Rich Dad Poor Dad
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki is one of those books that every parent, wanting their kids to be more than just
working drones the rest of their lives, needs to have their children read.
Kiyosaki basically tells the story about growing up with his real dad, a highly educated and intelligent Ph.D. college professor
who never made any real money in his entire life, and his "rich" dad, his best friend's father, who never got past 8th grade, yet,
because of his entrepreneurial spirit, ended up being one of the richest men in Hawaii in his time. He talks about the lessons
that his rich dad taught him through action and projects, and then the other lessons he learned from his father while watching him
struggle to get by, including the one lesson that most of us hear from our parents often: "Go to school and get a good education
so you can get a good job when you get out of college."
Kiyosaki is also candid in talking about his career, one of success and unhappiness at the same time, as he first ended up doing
exactly what his father said to do, going to college, coming out with an advanced degree, then going to work for Xerox. He talks
about creating his first business in real estate while still working for Xerox, and how he started making his real money off a
game he created called Cashflow. He talks about overcoming the five obstacles to
financial freedom, those being: fear, cynicism, laziness, bad habits, and arrogance. And he gives tips stories, and many book
recommendations for educating oneself towards the possibility of working for themselves and gaining great wealth.
If I had a problem with the book, it's that it ends flat and abruptly. I got to page 187 of a 213 page book expecting that he
was going to give some real tips on how to maximize money; he didn't do that. Then I realized that, throughout the book, he
never spent any time on how to make money at all; rather, he spent all his time telling his story and trying to alter one's
perception that they could end up being wealthy, if only they had the confidence in themselves to try, and to learn the lessons
of hard work, marketing and selling, and taking chances, becoming an individual rather than a group thinker.
Other than how it ends, though, Rich Dad Poor Dad is a pretty good book, one that's easy to recommend. You'll be amazed at
the career this guy has had, both before, and after, he became rich. I've also read one of his follow up books, Before You
Quit Your Day Job, another must read.
