TOP DRAWER BOOK REVIEW
by
HL Carpenter

 

Rich Dad, Poor Dad
By Robert T. Kiyosaki (with Sharon L. Lechter CPA)
182 pages; Softcover; $15.95
Techpress, Inc., Arizona, 1997

This book was ranked #3 on the Wall Street Journal’s Best Selling Book list the week the review was written.

Remember the first time you saw the ‘Wife and Mother-in-Law’ drawing made famous by cartoonist W.E. Hill? You knew it was an optical illusion, knew that within the shadings of light and dark were the faces of two women, one old, one young. But all you could see – at first – was the old lady’s nose or the young woman’s jaw line.

The premise of Rich Dad, Poor Dad is a similar psychological test, but instead of art, author Robert Kiyosaki wants you to take a second look at the way you view money. Do you work for it, or does it work for you? Are you more worried about how much you make, or how much you keep? Do you spend your money on assets or on liabilities – and do you know the difference?

Through a series of anecdotes and simple drawings, Mr. Kiyosaki shows how rich people respond to those questions – and then he presents the very different answers offered by those without wealth.

Of course, merely changing your perspective won’t make you rich. Neither will talent, intelligence or education, at least not by themselves. According to Mr. Kiyosaki, you’ll also need to be willing to take risks, work for what you will learn instead of what you will earn and polish your sales and marketing skills.

In addition, there are plenty of internal obstacles to overcome, not the least of which is fear. Mr. Kiyosaki admits, “I wish I could say acquiring wealth was easy for me, but it wasn’t.”

Still - just like the moment you see the other face in W.E. Hill’s drawing – effort, focus and an open mind can produce surprising results.

 

Review originally published July 2003.