Updated Oct 20, 2022
Whether you’re entering the world of real estate or into the world of personal finance, one of the first recommendations you’ll is to read the New York Times bestseller “Rich Dad Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki.
Released in 1997, the book has a massive fan base and has sold millions of copies, spawning workshops, follow up training, and an entire ecosystem based on its content.
But what exactly makes this book so renowned 25 years after its original release date?
Well, sit back and relax because we’re going to take a 5 minute journey on what the book is about, its main points, and how it relates and can help real estate investors like you.
Who is Robert Kiyosaki and What is Rich Dad Poor Dad?
Before we get into the book, let’s talk about its author, Robert Kiyosaki.
A lot of Robert’s background is the basis for the “Rich Dad Poor Dad” series, as well as some of his other books. Currently, he is an entrepreneur, businessman, real estate investor, speaker, and of course, author.
His entrepreneurial career began when he launched two different companies, one a Velcro surfer wallet and the other t-shirt company.
Unfortunately, both of these companies failed, leaving him broke and eventually homeless until he realized that he could use his experience to help people avoid the mistakes he had made.
This is where the idea of his book came to be. Robert uses his own experiences to reflect the different attitudes that people of different financial classes have when it comes to money and how that mindset shapes our financial future.
The book’s title comes from the two dads he had in his life – his biological father, the ‘poor dad’ and his father’s best friend, the ‘rich dad.’ Both men were very successful in life, however they took separate paths to get there.
His father took the traditional route of going to school, getting good grades and then landing a well-paying job.
His father’s friend didn’t do any of that and became one of the richest people in Robert’s home state of Hawaii.
So how did these paths diverge in such a way?
Well, that’s what Robert talks about – how the different philosophies from both of these men shaped their lives and how they shape the lives of their children.
Some of the takeaways from the book include:
The Rich Don’t Work for Money: Wealthy people make money work for them, finding opportunities to earn money. A big thing that the wealthy do is find the time and invest in that time to earn the money they want.
It’s Not About the Money You Make, but the Money You Keep: Most of us focus on earning more money, but a key difference between those of us who struggle to earn and those that are successful is keeping the money you make. Sound familiar? This is a big concept I push when it comes to tax time and ensuring you keep more of your money.
The Rich Acquire Assets, While the Poor Acquire Liabilities: Liabilities are things that don’t generate a return on investments, while assets do. As Robert points out, this is a big difference – instead of spending on expenses (or extravagances), those who are wealthy buy stocks, bonds, and other things that help to generate income.
Work to Learn, Not to Earn: This takeaway is one of the most crucial – the value of knowledge ends up paying you back far more than a paycheck. The importance of acquiring knowledge over money is probably the heart of the book, to be honest.
Mindset Matters: I’ll talk more about mindset later, but Robert points out that there is a huge difference between the rich and the poor – the mindset of each person and how that affects their response to different situations.
How Rich Dad Poor Dad Can Inspire Real Estate Investors
So, now that you’ve gotten the five minute summary, how does this extremely popular book help those of you that are looking to start investing in real estate?
At the outset, “Rich Dad Poor Dad” focuses more on looking at personal finance and the differences between how those who are wealthy think about finances versus how most of us think about finances.
As someone who didn’t have money growing up, to having money, and then not having it again, I can absolutely tell you that having the right mindset is so, so, so crucial to finding success in any career and anything in life.
After that, the part about learning before earning is also important.
I’m sure many of you have learned something on the fly or are doing your business on your own and maybe you’ve had some success – but imagine if you could gain more.
When I started investing in real estate, it was a complete accident and I was learning on the fly. And you better believe that I made a bunch of mistakes. Even Robert’s background holds two failed businesses and a brief stint of homelessness.
For me, starting AstroFlipping was to help other investors learn from my mistakes and to avoid the mistakes I made.
Despite being published in 1997, “Rich Dad Poor Dad” is still a great book when it comes to thinking about how your ideas of money might be affecting your current state of success.
It’s dated for obvious reasons, but the takeaways are perfect when it comes to starting a mindset journey, something I’m a big proponent of, is encouraging and a bit inspiring.
You can find “Rich Dad Poor Dad” on Amazon.