Review of Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad

A week ago my wife bought me a book Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki. This book has been around for many years, but I didn’t read it until my wife literally threw it on my lap. My first reaction was inspired and mesmerized — the book got me thinking about money and wealth again. Here’s my thought on the book and Mr. Kiyosaki…

For me, the past few years were good, and I didn’t worry much about money. But now that I reflect on this matter, I always have been obsessed with it since I earned my first dollar. I recall buying a get rich quick book, which basically told me to sell the same book to other people to make money. I remember reading about many techniques (schemes really), spending money on stupid “investments”, and getting to the point where I almost joined Amway. I even have a whole shelf of books dedicated to the subject of wealth.

After I finished Rich Dad, I did a Google search on “Robert Kiyosaki” to find what else my new hero has to say, and found this interesting article: John T. Reed’s analysis of Robert T. Kiyosaki’s book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Although, I didn’t like the tone that got a little too personal at times, I felt John’s analysis was very thorough, and I felt my perspective was more balanced afterward. If you read Rich Dad, you have to read John’s article.

Basically, John discredited Robert’s status as a wealth expert / real-estate guru, and provided counterpoints to what Robert said in his book. I didn’t really care if Robert is a fraud, or Rich Dad is a fictional character; nor did I care much for John’s attack. However, I did learn from both men. I like how Robert’s story helped me focus on money by simplifying the mechanic of wealth building. In essence, if you want to have more money just do the following:

1. Increase your income,
2. Decrease your expenses,
3. Buy more stuff that makes you money (what he called assets), and
4. Buy less stuff that costs you money (what he called liabilities).

I also like the way he challenges the “I can’t afford it” mentality, and instead ask “How can I afford it?”

Lastly, I also agree with his 7 key skills:

1. Accounting
2. Investing
3. Economic
4. Law
5. Management of cash flow
6. Management of systems
7. Management of people

Other than that, I have to agree with John that some advice Robert dispensed were wrong and could be wholesomely dangerous. Here are some of the things I took from John’s analysis:

• Do your research — don’t blindly believe what other people tells you
• Getting rich is possible, but never as easy as some gurus want you to believe — it takes a lot of hard work and time
• Education is a good thing. Although there are several high school drop outs that did spectacularly well, the overwhelming odd is that the more educated you are, the more money you will make (relative to people in your own area of study)
• Having money work for you is great, but there is nothing wrong with working for your money. If you don’t like your job, then do something about it. Resenting your boss or your company is a cop out.

In closing, although I am not rich yet, nor am I a guru or an expert of any kind, I hope to use this blog as an online journal to discuss topics related to life, wealth, and happiness. In the end, I think it’s more practical to learn from someone who is making the journey, than someone who is already there (because they tend to forget how hard it is and make assumptions).

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