Here's what I liked about these books:
1. Make money work for you. Good idea. Cut up the credit cards and put the money somewhere useful.
2. Your education may not be tied to your wealth. We have seen examples of this through history, and of course we have also seen contrasting examples.
3. Learn money. Everyone can use a CPA or financial planner sometime in their life, but dealing with your personal finances is crucial.

The trouble is, the more I went and learned about money, the more I realized Kiyosaki's advice was not useful and potentially dangerous.

Here's what I didn't like:

1. Real Estate. This is pretty scary stuff, and to become wealthy you don't need to own any of it. Top that off with reccomendations of books by Robert Allen, someone who has caused more damage to people's financial futures (not to mention his own) than you or I could ever do, and I can't say that any of his real estate advice was particularly helpful, in ANY of the books.
2. Incorporating. There is infinitely more to know about corporations than can be contained in a single book, and he makes it seem so easy, not to mention helpful and necessary in any given financial situation. Not true.

And last but not least, ANY OF HIS INVESTING ADVICE. Making this book the worst of the bunch. Let me give you an example. Two of the riskiest and least-succesful investments you can make in the stock markets are:

1. Penny-stocks, particularly on Canadian exchanges, where it is estimated that 1-in-10 investors stand a chance at making money.
2. Volatile IPOs, regardless of what you've heard on CNBC or read in Newsweek or seen on FOX's "The Street".

Surprisingly, Kiyosaki reccomends investing in Canadian penny-stock IPOs. I know he's protected under the First Amendment, but that kind of writing is just plain dangerous.

Frankly, I don't know what to make of Kiyosaki's series of books. He is vague, and fills the book with politician-like rhetoric. ....

Proceed with caution, and know that there is a lot better advice you can get for free or an equal price.


One of the Best I Have Read   May 2, 2001
 109 out of 113 found this review helpful

I've read close to 60 books on Personal Finance, Investing, and How-To-Be-Rich-types and this one is one of the best I have read. I have enjoyed Robert Kiyosaki's other books, but this one is the best, in my opinion, because he reviews many of his principles from his previous books just in case this may be the first of his books that you are reading.

This is not a *HOW-TO* book on HOW to become wealthy or which steps to take to become wealthy. Like the author states, this book is about the INVESTOR, not specific strategies. To become truly wealthy you have to do two things. First, you NEED to change how you think, not just about money but about all areas of your life. Why go after riches if your marriage is in trouble or you don't spend enough time with your children? Secondly, you NEED to take different actions. If your last 5 years were miserable, then your next 5 years will be the same unless you DO something different. If at least 95% of the people in this country are not wealthy then you cannot do what 95% of people do. You have to do what the other 5% do; people WILL tell you you are crazy or what you are doing won't work. This happened to me and I am GLAD I did not listen to those people who still work at a job (I don't).

Most people do not Incorporate, most people do not invest in mutual funds and stocks correctly (they buy high and sell low), most people do not know how to buy real estaste, and most people know little about taxes, accounting, and personal finance. If one book was to be written about all those subjects in a general sense, it would still be thousands of pages long.

Robert's genius is that with his "Rich Dad/Poor Dad" metaphor, he gets the average reader to realize that it is not some magic formula or some great unattainable secret, but that it is our responsibility to go out and learn what the rich do and WHY they do it.

I never thought I would read a book about the Investor that would have given me this many new ideas. A must have for those who want to get out of the "rat race."

Beware the negative reviews regarding this book because they are written by people who "don't get it." You either "get it or you don't." Reviews written by people who have not read the book and have not been there are a waste of your time.

Like I said, I've been there, I own and have read this book twice already. People WILL put you down in obvious or subtle ways if you go for your dreams. Don't listen to the 95%, listen to the 5% that have made it.

Good luck and may all your dreams come true.


Gets Prize for Least Amount Said in Most Amount of Words   May 24, 2006
 101 out of 107 found this review helpful

It is amazing how many books and hundreds of pages Kiyosaki can fill with the same info over and over. Furthermore, "Rich Dad" was obviously a fictional character... Kiyosaki's books are all filled with long, detailed conversations between Robert and Rich Dad, conversations that supposedly took place many years ago that obviously the author could not possibly have recalled in such detail, so the books read more like a play than financial advice. To be fair though, I suppose this is a pretty good literary device for making the subject matter more interesting, readable and listenable (dramatic, even, when read aloud by the actors who record his audio books.)

Below is EVERYTHING Kiyosaki has to say in ALL of his books (I am guilty of reading and listening to most all of them, but at least I got them for free at the library.) They are all very repetitive. The following will save you many hours of reading and dollars on his books....

1) The rich don't work for money; money works for the rich.
2) An asset is something that makes money for you; therefore, a house is not necessarily an asset. A liability is something that costs you money.
3) You should borrow money to invest in real estate so that you can get rental income, because...
4) Tax laws favor the rich and tax laws favor real estate investors, and real estate is a better investment than stocks and mutual funds, but if you are going to invest in the market then...
5) Learn how to read financial statements.
and
6) The market will tank big-time when the baby-boomers start retiring.

There you go, now you can read something else...







I'm getting rich reading Kiwosaki's books (so can you!)   April 4, 2004
 88 out of 100 found this review helpful

I love these reviewers who write junk like "Kiyosaki is getting rich writing books." NO KIDDING! His books sell. So what if he is cashing in on helping other people.

School teachers make a living by teaching. Colleges make money off of you. Why shouldn't people like Kiyosaki.

In fact, writing books has become so popular that certain self publishers are attempting to cash in as well. Unfortunately, some of them only offer regurgitated albeit plagerized material.

For what it's worth, I'm glad that Kiyosaki is writing books. I have certaintly profited as have many others from applying his wisdom. And I hope that Kiyosaki keeps writing more and more books.

Kiyosaki's advice works. For more information, read Rich Dad's Success Stories and ignore these stupid websites that are the internet version of the cheap tabloids sold in supermarket check out lines.

Thank you Robert. Keep those books coming. We love em.


Create Your Investment Plan to Overcome Stalled Thinking   June 10, 2000
 84 out of 94 found this review helpful

As in Rich Dad, Poor Dad, this book has the delightful story line of advice from the father of a friend who became a very wealthy man before his death -- leaving his family well set financially for 100 years! I think it's that base in reality that makes these books so interesting.

One of the best ways to learn is to have a successful mentor who will guide us through the key challenges of getting started. This book is designed to duplicate the experiences that the author had his his rich Dad. For example, the key questions that rich Dad asked him are at the end of each section for you to answer for yourself. I found my answers to be revealing, even though I have been through a lot of similar sets of questions. Well done!

The story line picks up after the author is coming out of the Marines in his twenties to find his boyhood friend already wealthy from his own efforts.

The financial advice parts of the book are tied into helping you pick up a meaningful financial plan. You begin by deciding what you want money to do for you. That's an excellent thing to do. Some want security. Some want more income. Others want substantial wealth that keeps growing. You should decide. Some books make the mistake of pushing you to choose a goal that really isn't what you want. Rather than push you in a particular direction, the book emphasizes key principles (compound cash tax-free, create assets with your mind as well as with your money). The author notes that each of us has preferences that will take us in different directions for implementing whatever our goals are. I liked that approach a lot.

You will recognize a lot of the diagrams from Rich Dad, Poor Dad. But it is good advice, so it doesn't hurt to have the repetition. This part is fairly compact, so you can skim through it if you feel confident about the material.

This book would be outstanding as a gift for someone who is about to graduate from school and starting a first job, or for newly wedded people. It would be even more valuable if you would be a mentor for the person you give it to, like one of your children or grandchildren.

If you get to be good at this now, think how great it would be to be the rich Dad for your children and their friends. Now that's an irresistibly great goal!

Enjoy the riches you would like to have, for the reasons you would like to have them!