Rich Dad Poor Dad

Author: Robert T. Kiyosaki

Publisher: PLATA Publishing

Price: INR 430

My rating: 3.5/5

Rich Dad Poor Dad is an interesting read and a personal finance bestseller of all time. It’s more of a manual for those who want to learn to manage their finances. The book is intelligently written and opens the door on making wise investments to a layman. What we may think as an asset is actually a liability and Kiyosaki has logically been successful in explaining the difference between the two.

The book revolves more or less around the life of the author in Hawaii. It showcases how he got different kinds of learning from his two dads, one rich and the other poor and both of them equally influenced his life in a great manner. From his learning, Kiyosaki has shared some keynotes to help readers understand the essence of money. In one of the chapters he says, “The rich don’t work for money. The rich have money work for them.” I was surprised to learn that our dream house which we strive to own in order to have an asset is actually a liability. You must read the book to explore how?

The book encapsulates the difference in the thought process of a rich man than those of the middle or a poor class. Poor class has basically nothing to lose; middle class strives harder and harder and looks for job security to meet his liabilities, which involves paying monthly bills, etc. While, the rich man thinks differently and thinks how he can grow his money. Kiyosaki spreads the message of how to be rich and what you should be teaching your kids so that they can think in the same direction.

The book also advocates the value of financial intelligence and financial literacy and how schools and colleges do not focus on these aspects. It breaks the notion of conventional wisdom given to most of us by our parents during our school days that we must study hard to get through a good college and then to a good job. Moreover, it emphasizes on the fact that one must be his own boss rather than working for somebody else. It highlights the importance of investing in real estates, stocks and your own businesses.

All in all, the book is a mind stirrer and would urge you to follow some of its sayings. It’s extremely influential in many ways, highly motivational too. However, in the last two chapters you may feel as you are being forced to absorb some impractical things. But, overall the book is a life changer and you are certainly going to focus more on building your assets than wasting money on liabilities.