Customer Reviews

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a fantastic book and last I heard it became the best selling book of all time in its category and I can see why. It is a perfect example about how we are "trained" to think about money. One dad had a really good "job" as a school administrator and his friends dad was an entrepreneur who teaches both of them hard lessons about money. Until I read this book I was completely lacking in one part of my "goal-setting" and this book helped me put it in perspective. Real wealth is when you have enough assets paying for your cost of living with dividends, interest or cash flow without touching the original asset. So I made a goal to have a specific dollar amount of assets spinning off a certain return and set off for (and made) the financial goal. Before this book, somehow I was not clear on something so important.
He also explains it to you like a third grader what the difference is between a "liability" and an "asset" which sadly, most people don't know.
This book is timeless and should be required reading for everyone (especially High-School kids). Seriously one of the best of all time and a must read. I have probably purchased 8 copies over time and handed them out.

I state that financial auditors shouldn't read this book because it goes against what they are taught. SAFETY SAFETY SAFETY!!! The only thing is, we don't live in a safe world, so how does money go against the norm? ("A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for." - Grace Murray Hopper)

Also, this book is for people WILLING (not just hoping) to get out of their financial problems. If you are looking to become financially fit, talk to someone who is there, not your broke uncle, or financial auditor who is struggling to get by also. If you take advice about money from someone, look to see how well off they are, if they aren't... walk away. Point is, don't complain that nothing is working for you, when you haven't done anything to help yourself.

I have done many things that were recommended, and, slowly, but surely, things are picking up little by little. If wishes were kisses...

Read the book and form your own opinions. Don't listen to the negative reviews. People think that by reading this book they will get all the answers to wealth and success. That's not how it works. You have to take the principles and teachings and put them to use in your own life. Robert didn't intend to hold your hand and guide you every step of the way. He intended to give you the necessary knowledge and principles he believes will guide you to success. This is a great read. I definitely recommend this book. All my kids will be reading this as well.

We all like money.
This book was a difficult read; I felt it was too drawn out but the message is worth the difficult read. This book was recommended because it is supposed to teach us how to manage finances and the power of money. The more I thought about what was written the more curious I was to see whom it was written for. If you are a goal oriented individual this book will work for you, but we don't live in a world where our goals are same as others. I understand the intentions of this book and its importance toward finance. The book is all about training your brain to think a certain way to make money. Let's face it, most of us didn't grow up rich and everyday our parents and grandparents didn't talk about money at the dinner table. With that said, I did hear talks about money but never when kids were around. That's exactly the opposite of what this book suggests, talk money around the kids so they understand and mold their minds to think a certain way. Who else will teach their kids about money than their own family? This book on the other hand is teaching the adults to rewire their brains to talk about money with their kids and teach them about assets and liabilities. I recommend this book not because it's easy to read but because it is something people need to think about and know about.

I am a person who has been self taught after my high school years and some college. With that said, this book is not for everyone. It is an extremely counter intuitive book. This type of thinking is not taught in school since it points you in the direction to climb the mountain. Traditional education tells you what mountain to climb, what gear to buy, what day to climb the mountain, etc. Think of it like religion. You may choose which path to take, but it may not get you to where you want to go. That is up to you. This book tells you absolutely nothing, but tells you everything. Maybe a better analogy would have been philosophy. This book will not tell you how to get rich step by step. That is content and shows you a step by step way or strategies to get rich. This tells you how to think different and has a way of changing the context of the subject of making money. For example, if I say " I"m going to make money". That would be a contextualized statement and some assumptions would be created, like getting a job. Now, if i said " I am going to make money illegally". Whoa....wait a minute, that changes everything. I am still making money but the context changes. The two statements do not mean the same thing and open a whole different perception of making money. That is what this book is about, which may sound confusing. At this moment in time, buying homes is not the correct investment vehicle. That "bubble" has burst and still will take time to deflate. Now is the time to invest in Gold & Silver, another Rich Dad Poor Dad book. If you want to learn about money, then read all the Rich Dad, Poor Dad books, then read them again. Also, watch CNBC when you can along with "Fox Business Network". Finally, [...] and watch Peter Schiff and Jim Rogers and you will be well on the way to "making money" and will learn about "bubbles" like I did. Hopefully, you will not make the same mistakes that I did, but making mistakes is a process of learning. Be careful, the dollar is falling steadily and now Dubai is in trouble. We can't keep printing money or inflation, or hyperinflation will ruin all of our wealth. Good Luck.

Although the author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad distinguishes assets from liabilities, I found it a bit difficult to figure out how somebody with only money enough to survive can acquire assets. He says a house is a liability, then suggests you go out and purchases real estate. And if your house is a liability, as he claims, what is an apartment you are living in which belongs to your landlord?

I suppose the idea is that you should invest -- but stock market investment proved to be a good way to go broke in recent years. And bank savings lose value every day as inflation eats the dollar. It's nice if you have a crystal ball. Maybe careful study will teach us which way to jump, but it's quite likely that many of the people who took the risks that Kiyosaki so recommends wound up bankrupt and answering phones at a call center or working in car-washes.

Sure, Ray Kroc made a bundle by taking risks. But for every Ray Kroc there are ten thousand guys who took similar risks and ended up broke.

Maybe what we need is a better definition of wealth. It is true that bank statements and brokerage statements document wealth, but in an inflationary economy and an economy where the stock market is tanking, are the dollars represented in these accounts actually assets?

Another thing I found off-putting is the author's disdain for the wisdom of his biological father, who apparently has a fairly good life despite lack of a big brokerage/real estate account. Not only is this disrespectful, it ignores the fact that not all wealth is measured in dollar amounts. Seriously: Lois McMaster Bujold says: "All wealth is ultimately biological." If you defer or avoid having children, for example, you may have more dollars in the bank, but are you actually better off? If you spend 20 hours a day tracking your various businesses, and end with a heart condition from lack of sleep, are you really wealthy? Those hospital bills can really cut into your bank balance!

Kiyosaki also has a deeply ingrained reactionary streak. I suspect had he lived in Victorian days, he might have argued that three-year-old starving orphans had made some earlier mistake, possibly at age two, that caused their penury.

There is wisdom here; I might even suggest my financially naive son read this book. But I'd also want to discuss it with him critically. A paid-off home IS an asset, even though you have to pay taxes and upkeep, because you can't live in hotel rooms and ditches. And a going-nowhere business is a liability.

And family is an asset. Even Poor Dad, who gets such short shrift here.

But read it. A library copy. Books, after all, are not free.

Financial pornography. Just another get rich book by a person who doesn't respect higher education.
I read this after a number of acquaintances (OK, clients!) read this guy, went to this guy's lecture and then bought real estate using his advice. I wanted to see what 'pearls' this book had.
This author is clearly making more money "on the circuit" and writing repetitive books than he did in buying/selling real estate. Subtract one star for bad writing.

Don't believe the Hype. Robert Kiyosaki strings together a collection of old finance adages and manages to write a book of out them.
Some of the his advice is actually quite dangerous. ("If you're gonna go broke, go broke big")

I myself am a financial auditor. Please do not fuel what is wanton idiocy and mob mentality. Do yourself a favor. Donate your emergency fund and what you would be saving to charity. At least your lost money will do some good.