A REVIEW OF "RICH DAD, POOR DAD"

by LaKeshia Martin-Ayers

A Review of:
“Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the rich teach their kids about money – That the poor and middle class do not!”
By Robert T. Kiyosaki
- With Sharon L. Lechter, C.P.A.


“Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the rich teach their kids about money – That the poor and middle class do not!” This title, which sets the tone for the whole book, presents a bold statement that could cause quite the controversy amongst the “rich”, the “poor”, and the far between. Although possibly bold and controversial, the statement holds that of substance and merit. What DO the rich teach their children about money that the poor and middle classes DO NOT? Answer: Financial Intelligence and Independence. The rich teach their children how to have “money work for them,” while the poor teach their children how to “make money.”

“Rich Dad, Poor Dad” is an educational, yet inspirational, account of a young man’s pursuit to riches that turns into a lesson which far surpasses “making money”, into a world of financial fear and desire. Contrary to common belief, nine-year-old, Robert T. Kiyosaki, was a “poor kid” yearning to get rich quick. By no means was he a “rich kid” coming for a wealthy family. Robert was content with his socioeconomic status. One day a “rich kid” didn’t extend an invitation out to Robert and his soon to be “business partner,” Mike, to go to his beach house for the weekend. This life altering event was the turning point for Robert Kiyosaki. He now wanted to become rich. Robert then presented his “poor dad” with the infamous question: “Can You Tell Me How to Get Rich? (Kiyosaki, 23)” His “poor dad” then proclaimed nonchalantly that he had to ‘learn to make money’ by using his head. Robert and Mike formed a partnership and adopted the literal meaning of “making money.” They took to making coins out of recycled lead toothpaste tubes, milk cartons, and plaster of Paris. Once Robert and Mike were informed by “poor dad” that this was counterfeiting and illegal, they had to resort to Plan B: refer to another “resource.” It wasn’t until Robert’s dad admitted to being financially illiterate, and suggesting that Robert go to Mike’s dad for guidance, that Robert learned the key to financial literacy. He then adopted Mike’s father, whom he later coined as his, “rich dad.” “Rich dad” then became “Mr. Miyagi” as Mike and Robert were his “karate kids.” [If you are not familiar with this 1984 classic, then here’s a glimpse: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087538/] This soon became a lesson on what the “rich dad” teaches his children that the “poor dad” does not. Through hard work, perseverance in his pursuit of financial wherewithal, and lesson, Robert T. Kiyosaki was on the road to become a “rich man.”

As I plundered through the book list for our Diversity of Psychology class, I stumbled across this book. The title of the book caught my eye. To be honest, at first glance I was reasonably skeptical about its contents. I wondered what insight it would offer me on the world of the “Rich and Poor.” I believe some people’s first perception of the book, is that it will be a fast guide to get rich quick. I most definitely held this notion. What I failed to realize was that I was in for a rude awakening. This book is by far NOT a “get rich quick scheme for dummies.” It opens doors to the “good”, the “bad”, and the “ugly” of the pursuit to financial literacy.

“Rich Dad, Poor Dad” has many focuses, but a few significant objectives. I believe Robert Kiyosaki’s main objectives are to:

1. First and foremost, encourage the reader to get out of the “Rat Race.” “Rich dad” defines the “Rat Race” as, “the pattern of get up, go to work, pay bills, get up, go to work, pay bills... Their lives are then run forever by two emotions, fear and greed. Offer them more money, and they continue the cycle by also increasing their spending (Kiyosaki, 42)” The poor and middle class fall into this trap of “habit” (borrowing and taking from savings) and desire to keep up with the Joneses, while the rich know how to manage their money, allocate it to assets, THEN spend their assets on luxuries. Self- discipline is key. The poor and middle class become slaves to this so-called “Rat Race,” while the rich are on the “Fast Track.” “The poor and the middle class work for money. The rich have money work for them (Kiyosaki, 35).” “Rich dad” stated that “fear is what keeps most people working at a job (Kiyosaki, 36).” I’d have to agree. People let fear dictate every step they make. The fear of not being able to pay their bills. The fear of not having money. The fear of being fired. The fear of not having food on the table for their children. These are some of the reasons people spend their lives running the “Rat Race.” Why not let the fear of being poor, be motivation to increasing one’s financial literacy?

2. Expand the reader’s understanding of “Cash Flow.” The formula for an ideal “cash flow” is, assets [yields] income [yields] expenses = wealth. Formulate assets, use those assets to increase income and use the money gained from assets to pay expenses. He also suggests enlisting a highly educated team of expensive bankers, accountants, brokers, etc. to educate oneself. If these people are indeed professionals, they’ll make you money. The more money they make, the more money you’ll make. It’s a give and take relationship. Furthermore, he suggests that “the real skill is to manage and pay well the people who are smarter than you in some technical area (Kiyosaki, 178).” One may ask: if the goal is to gain more assets, why would one spend money on bankers, etc.? Allow them to be your educators, and use that education to gain more money in assets than you spent on their services. I personally like that idea. What I found interesting in regards to cash flow, is Kiyosaki’s take on paying taxes. He follows the saying “pay yourself first,” in which he pays himself and then pays the government. One may find this quite strange, as did I, but it’s actually a smart idea. Being that we all fear the IRS, creditors, and tax collectors, if we pay ourselves first, then it forces us to seek out other means of income. The pressure to pay our bills becomes our motivation. Here’s the kicker: Self-motivation is hard to come by for some people. I wouldn’t suggest taking the “pay yourself first” path for those people who aren’t easily motivated.

3. Defines assets and liabilities. I’ll elaborate on this later. Hang tight.

4. Build the reader’s confidence, in order to not become a “Chicken Little.” The “Chicken Littles” of life are those who, when it comes to money and investments, always fear the worst. They always scream, “The sky is falling.” No matter how promising the investment might appear, they’re always assuming the worst. “They can always tell you why something won’t work (Kiyosaki, 170).” Don’t let fear control you. You control fear. There’s plenty of “Chicken Littles;” don’t jump on the bandwagon.

5. Finally, to become a more financially literate and educated asset to society. He wants the reader to understand that he/she can’t afford mental laziness when it comes to finance. The reader has to overcome the fear of losing money, and gain the bravado to have money work for them. Don’t allow oneself to be pushed around by life. One has to not only become a creative investor, but also someone who can spot a “diamond in the ruff” out of any investment opportunity. [Remember that saying: “One wo[man]’s trash is another wo[man]’s treasure”] Exercising your mind, exercises your wealth.

Rummaging through these objectives, I chose what I have reason to believe is the most important and the main focus of this GREAT book: “Assets and Liabilities.” I believe that understanding their difference is by far the most important information you can get out of this book. Why, might one ask? Simple, EVERY decision someone makes in regards to finance, even life itself, has the potential to either become an asset or a liability to one’s future. The most pressing problem with poor and middle class today is their inability to understand the difference between assets and liabilities [myself included]. Robert T. Kiyosaki simply defines assets and liabilities by stating the following: ‘assets (stocks, bonds, real estate, etc.) put money in your pocket. A liability (mortgage, consumer loans, and credit cards) is something that takes money out of [your] pocket.’ Assets are essential, liabilities are detrimental. Many people consider their homes their biggest “asset,” when in retrospect it’s their biggest liability. When Robert Kiyosaki brings this idea up, while focusing on the difference between a liability and an asset, he is by no means saying that someone should never own a home. What he is trying to portray is that one should build up his/her “asset column” before adding a home to his/her “expenses column”. Once the person’s assets are built up, then he/she can allocate that money to homeowner expenses. By doing so, this will save oneself from being pushed deeper into the “Rat Race” and he/she won’t be coming out of pocket (his/her “income column”) to purchase a home. I believe that once this is properly executed, one’s home will indeed be he/her biggest asset.

‘Stay in school, get good grades, so you can find a safe, secure job (Kiyosaki, 45)’ This seems to be a lesson that poor and middle class families teach their children daily. The problem is, this notion might make a highly educated, multi-degree lugging businessman, but it won’t make that businessman make a savvy financier. Robert T. Kiyosaki reiterated numerous times in this book, that “One of the reasons the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, and the middle class struggles in debt is because the subject of money is taught at home, not in school (Kiyosaki, 14).” He’s right; the only thing children are taught in school about money is how to count their dollars and coins. By no means are either Kiyosaki or myself saying that one should not pursue an education and a safe and secure job. Considering I was always taught that school was my job in order to get a better job in the future, I would not agree with dropping out and thinking that being financially savvy is going to help. I, along with Robert Kiyosaki, believe that children should also be educated on finance, if not in the school, at home. I find it unfortunate that our children are not properly being taught the fundamentals of money. Not how to make money, but how to have money work for them.

If the problem lies in our educational system, then how do we educate our educators, in order to enhance students’ fluency of financial literacy? Answer: build the educators’ knowledge of finance through schooling, seminars, and helpful books such as this one. Once this is accomplished, they can then incorporate the stages to financial knowledge in the school systems. Schools can start with the basic, elementary concepts of finance in our Primary Schools. Then work their way up to more in depth concepts in Secondary Schools. We need to educate the masses. Who might you ask are the masses? The masses are our future generations. Where do we start? It starts in our education system, the domain of “fresh,” young minds. If you’re wondering why I didn’t included adults as part of the masses, it’s because adults are stubborn (believe it or not). It’s harder to teach adults when their set in their ways. Their financial literacy/illiteracy is virtually set in stone. The only way this is at all possible, is if the adult is willing and determined to not only learn, but integrate what they’ve learned into his/her daily life. Therefore, why not star at minds we can mold: the minds of the youth? Education seems to be the biggest factor in our nation’s financial illiteracy. Our minds are our biggest asset (pun intended). UTILIZE IT! Until this is accomplished, we will always have a poor, middle, and upper class. You do the math! The first and most important investment one can make is their education.

“Rich Dad, Poor Dad” was overall a great read! At times I found it slightly repetitive and redundant, yet informative and educational. It still got the point across. I extend my recommendation of this book to anyone who wants to become financially independent and educated, and learn how to have money work for them. If one’s main objective is to “get rich quick” then this book isn’t the answer. This book was very well written and the objectives were executed. It was by far an easy read. Robert T. Kiyosaki speaks the truth, however controversial the truth may be. He made the words flow in a way that allowed the reader to understand the context. It had my “creative juices” churning and the nuts and bolts in my head in constant motion. This book has the potential of having the reader think: “If he can do it, I can do it too.”

I leave you with this quote to facilitate your mind:

“Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort”
- Franklin D. Roosevelt




Kiyosaki, Robert. Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids about Money - That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!. New York, NY: Grand Central Publishing, (1997,1998). Sphere: Related Content