Introduction
The book “Rich Dad Poor Dad” was written by Robert Kiyosaki. The novel aims at enlightening people on how to achieve monetary success through rewarding business activities. It draws insights from the lives of two fathers who have disparate personalities and perspectives of money. The author compares the principles, financial practices, level of accomplishment, and ideas of the two dads. The book focuses on various ways of building up wealth through investments as opposed to working for a small salary.
Main body
The book starts with the narrative of two fathers and the early life of Robert Kiyosaki and his childhood best friend, Mike. One dad, who is his biological father, is a highly educated man, employed, and poor while Mike’s dad is an accomplished businessperson with only an eighth grade (Kiyosaki, 2018). Throughout the novel, the narrator likens his poor dad to individuals who have become susceptible to the vicious cycle of wanting to achieve more significant milestones in life but fail because they lack financial literacy (Kiyosaki, 2017). They spent much time in learning institutions reading books on societal issues without acquiring any valuable knowledge about money, perhaps because such lessons are excluded from the curriculum (Chu et al., 2017). On the other hand, his rich dad exemplifies a highly independent wealthy merchant who plays his cards well with the power of companies and the knowledge of taxation and financial accounting.
The book’s theme infers two essential impressions: willpower and audacious entrepreneurship. The narrator purposely relates to both concepts by providing numerous examples for each and emphasizing the significance of acquiring financial knowledge, how the power of corporations increases wealth among the rich, the role of fearlessness in overcoming obstacles, appreciating the speckled characteristics among human beings, and learning how to refrain from meddling in people’s businesses.
In the first lesson, the author alludes that the middle-class work for money as opposed to the rich people who let money work for them. The well-off father believes that individuals continue languishing in financial poverty because they do not understand this lesson. The author goes ahead to blame poor people for obliviousness, skepticism, and anxiety, among other characteristics that make them failures in life (Kiyosaki, 2017. A captivating twist arises when the author maintains that both fear and greed are catalysts to poverty. He states that poor people stay in job positions for a long time without realizing that their employers gain the most meaningful financial gains by allowing money to work for them.
The second lesson illustrates the importance of acquiring financial literacy. The author tries to show the audience the relevance of the education acquired from real-life scenarios as compared to that gained from ordinary school settings. He emphasizes that education should focus on creating and strengthening entrepreneurial mindsets rather than encouraging students to obtain good grades for future employment purposes. This reasoning shows distinctiveness in the handling of money matters between the rich and poor. Indeed, Kiyosaki (2018) believes that middle- and lower-class people regularly confuse liabilities, such as cars and expensive homes, with assets. He indicates that assets should generate money rather than create room for expenses.
In lesson three, the author wants people to get out of the rat race and start thinking about creating and developing their establishments. This example is illustrated where Kiyosaki (2018) explains the start of his professional career as a salesperson for Xerox photocopiers. He used his revenue to invest in real estate, and his income exceeded his salary in three years, prompting him to leave his job. In the fourth lesson, the narrator highlights the game of taxes and the power of corporations. He maintains that the rich have the supremacy to shield themselves from various ridiculous taxes by establishing companies. Employees earn taxed money from these establishments, protecting the owners from heavy duties.
Conclusion
The fifth lesson accentuates how the rich invent money through self-confidence. The author says, “Often in the real world, it’s not the smart who go ahead, but the bold.” (Kiyosaki, 2018, p. 112). This statement defies the notion that money comes along with more education, talent, or more contribution to society. He highlights changes that have defined wealth over time. The author states, “Land was wealth 300 years ago. So, the person who owned the land owned the wealth. Later, wealth was in factories and production, and America rose to dominance. The industrialist owned the wealth. Today, wealth is in the information. And the person who has the timeliest information owns the wealth.” (Kiyosaki, 2018, p. 113). Although the art of making money is learned, many people have no time to acquire financial skills.
The last lesson insists that people should work to learn and not to work for money. Kiyosaki explains how having a secure job was necessary for his poor dad. He was shocked by his low earnings, yet he was highly educated and talented. This lesson persuades people to expand their skill sets by getting out of their comfort zones and picking up some experiences in investment, sales, accounting, and law, among others. In a nutshell, the young Kiyosaki leaned towards the rich dad’s money principals.
References
Chu, Z., Wang, Z., Xiao, J. J., & Zhang, W. (2017). Financial literacy, portfolio choice, and financial well-being. Social Indicators Research, 132(2), 799-820.
Kiyosaki, R. T. (2018). Why the rich are getting richer. Gramedia Pustaka Utama.
Kiyosaki, R.T. (2017). Rich dad poor dad: What the rich teach their kids about money that the poor and middle class do not! Paradise Valley, Ariz.