Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter in their book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad present the story of the narrator who has two dads. One is the poor dad who is his biological father and the other one is the rich dad who is the father of his childhood best friend. The two fathers teach the author how to get success using approaches that are not the same. All over the book, the author compares the different principles, ideas, and financial principles of these two fathers to understand the one which makes more financial sense. His biological father, the poor dad is a highly educated man but who does not manage to acquire the same status as the rich dad with regards to business acumen and asset building.
The author tries to compare the poor dad to those people who find themselves trapped in the system where they need more but do not acquire wealth because they lack financial literacy (Robert & Sharon, 2000) . These people would spend so much time in school learning about world problems but lack the very basic and essential knowledge about money and how to manage money since it is not a lesson taught in school. By contrast, the rich dad reflects the wealthy people in the societies who are aware of the power of corporations and are equipped with knowledge about accounting and tax which they use to their advantage. The themes of the book go down to two key concepts; a fearless approach and can do attitude approach to entrepreneurship (Robert & Sharon, 2000) . The author goes ahead to point out the two concepts by giving many examples of the two approaches while focusing on why people who dream to attain wealth should have financial literacy to guide them through the journey. The author observes that the power of corporations makes the wealthy to grow. He further cautions those who dream to acquire wealth from fear, laziness, cynicism, and generally negative attitude. In summary, the author presents six important lessons which he talks about throughout his book. They include the following;
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The need for financial literacy
The wealthy people do not work for money
The need to work
The importance of minding one's business
The rich create money
Corporations and taxes
Poor dad according to the author sees education as the way to success. In this case, the poor dad holds a doctorate degree but is still struggling with financial issues. Poor dad is more interested in education than the knowledge of money (Robert & Sharon, 2000) . Further, the poor dad appears to be more interested in social security, promotions, salary raises and job tenure and often believes that money is not important. The narrator admits that the rich dad makes more financial sense than the poor dad. From the rich dad, the narrator learns the importance of working for oneself instead of working for others. The rich dad deliberately pays them low wages when they work for him to teach them that one who works for others do not end up getting rich.
The author points out that the rich people work to learn and not for money. The author cautions people against the common notion of working for money and bills. He observes that the poor and the middle class often find comfort in playing safe because they do not want to take perils. The author is certain that financial literacy starts with accounting knowledge. It is vital to know the difference between liabilities and assets (Robert & Sharon, 2000) . The author advises the readers to focus on building assets and keeping liabilities at a minimum level.
In trying to evaluate the pieces of advice given by the author as a way to financial freedom, I find all his pieces of advice valuable and sensible in the manner in which they are presented. For example, the author talks about the importance of financial literacy. I agree with the author that the first step to financial freedom is having the knowledge about money. One should know the differences between liabilities and assets and the need for building assets and keeping liabilities at a minimum level. I also agree with the idea of not working for money. Most people who work with the idea of making money or paying bills play safe and do not take risks. The road to financial freedom, in my view, involves taking risks and making new moves instead of playing safe. While it may be difficult to pick on risks especially if one is comfortably making money and paying bills, this system in my view would only keep one within the vicious cycle of poverty and cannot help one make extra wealth.
On the authors’ presentation on the need to work, I totally agree that one has to work to create wealth. Without work, one would not have even small money to start something. Creating massive wealth depends on having money which can only be done when one is working.
I agree with the author on the power of tax and corporations. While most people do not find tax and corporations as important in the journey to financial freedom, the issue of tax can bring down someone financially.
The author points out the common personality traits that obstruct people from gaining financial freedom. These traits include arrogance, fear, laziness, cynicism, and bad habits. The author encourages the readers to overcome these obstacles to gain financial independence.
I agree with the author that the first step of getting started is motivating oneself by empowering one's mind. I believe that one should first find a purpose for living and aim at living towards the purpose. The author suggests that people should carefully choose friends, avoiding those who are negative and picking on those who have positive vibes about life.
The book challenges my perception about life and motivates me to think deeper on how I can begin my journey to financial freedom. I love the book and would want to try the pieces of advice given by the author. I would love to implement them because I find them practical. The first thing is to change my mindset and convince myself that I am able to do the simple things to create a huge difference.
Reference
Robert, T. K., & Sharon, L. (2000). Rich Dad/Poor Dad. Economics , 6 , 2.
