Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary In 10 Words

Acquire assets, not liabilities. Develop your mind. Make money work.

The Main Ideas and Key Points

1. The rich don’t work for money. They have money work for them.
2. It’s not how much money you make. It’s how much money you keep.
3. Make your money work for you. Get assets.
4. Money only amplifies the cash-flow pattern running in your head.
5. Learn to see opportunities.
6. Control your emotions of fear and desire.
7. Reinvest gains into real estate to avoid paying taxes.
8. Create a corporation/business.
9. We all have two assets: Time and Mind (Learning)
10. Self-discipline is everything.
11. Manage cash flow, people, and personal time.
12. The mindset shift of all mindset shifts: “How can I afford that?”

Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary In 4 Sentences

1. The book, Rich Dad Poor Dad, follows Robert Kiyosaki from childhood where he was raised and taught by his two dads – his real dad (the poor dad) and his best friend’s dad (the rich dad) – and how Robert navigated both dads’ conflicting viewpoints on how to live life, earn and manage money.
2. The overarching theme can be summed up in an interaction that takes place early in the book between Robert and his rich dad: Rich Dad says, “I have more than 150 employees, and not one of them has asked me what I know about money…So, most will spend the best years of their lives working for money, not really understanding what it is they are working for.”
3. Do you know what you are working for?
4. Invest in your mind and learn how to acquire assets and you will have wealth.

Top 3 Quotes

1. “The moment you see one opportunity, you will see them for the rest of your life.”
2. “If you realize that you’re the problem, then you can change yourself, learn something and grow wiser.”
3. “It’s what is in your head that determines what is in your hands. Money is only an idea.”

2 Ways Rich Dad Poor Dad Will Change You

1. You will start to see assets and liabilities more distinctly in daily life, their purpose and function and how you can use them to leverage wealth accumulation.
2. You will probably think that real estate is scary because you don’t know how to get into it and you’ve never done it before, but then you will take a breath, calm down, and think it through, realizing that assets and wealth creation come in many different shapes and sizes. Then you will go back to watching Netflix and imagine what it would be like to have a bazillion dollars.

1 Thing to Implement After Reading This Book

1. Start reading more books about finance to create the foundation necessary to understand how money works and allow yourself a chance at wealth.

Who Should Read It?

I will say this for a lot of books, but since this is my first official book summary and review, this isn’t old yet: you. You should read this book.

Although this book isn’t perfect and many of his ideas about how to amass wealth might be a bit contrarian and not for everyone, the essence of the book is an essential one: if you want wealth, you need to learn about money and the tools and systems in which it operates. Money is simply an imaginary societal agreement at its core, so use your mind to level the playing field.

Ultimately, I saw much of this book as a self-help book—updating one’s knowledge and mindset—not so much a book about financial intricacies; hence, the 5-Star Rating. Looking at this book through the lens of self-improvement it is chock full of wisdom.

This is an essential read for anyone trying to be rich. Trying not to be poor. Or simply looking to start carrying the heavy-ass burden of changing themselves and their situation.

Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary As A Story. Because, Why Not?

Slinking off in a distant corner of a dimly lit bar, a hoodie covering his head, pulled down low. Hands stuffed in his pockets. Shades on.

Is that what rich looks like? Why so mysterious? you think to yourself, standing dumbfounded by the entrance watching him from afar. You had always thought that this guy was elusive. “Impossible to find” and “only special people get to meet him,” you were told your whole life. But there he was. In the flesh. “Moneyman” himself. What a nickname, you mumble inaudible over the chattering couple sitting at the bar nearby. He was easier to find than you thought. The address of where to find him was in your mind, stored deep down somewhere. As though it had been locked away in a mental lockbox during your youth. It was only recently that you realized the only way it could be opened was by two separate keys: one of desire, the other of knowledge. One of them was currently in your possession. The other one, well…you weren’t leaving there without it.

He knows something. Knowledge you don’t yet have. Exactly what that knowledge is, you can’t quite put your finger on it…yet. I guess it is true what they say, you don’t know what you don’t know, you think as you begin to feel your body gain the courage to move. But you want to know what he knows. Even if it’s not easy, you need to know. You are yearning to know what he knows. For much of your life you have watched others meet him and, some, heed his advice to achieve great wealth. Others, well…inaction will suck the life out of any dream.

You just never thought it would be you standing just a few steps away.

Taking a step forward, wobbling slightly in your own hesitation, you manage another step as you look down at your clumsy feet. You had to meet the “Moneyman” in person if the chance ever presented itself. And it had, the moment you found that hidden key of desire.

Another step.

Who does he think he is anyway? He doesn’t really have a rich dad and a poor dad, does he?

Another step.

Everyone said that if I want to get rich I have to meet this guy and get the secret to wealth, so surely it is the right play. Right?

You glance up. Entranced in your own thought you didn’t even notice your hurried approach. You are standing over him. You take a step back in caution.

Unfazed, he doesn’t move.

“Er…M-Mommeyman?” you manage.

Without looking up, he slowly pulls his right hand out of his pocket.

You expect to see a fancy watch or pricey rings. But his hands and wrists are bare.

That’s odd, you think, maybe the rich don’t need to show their wealth. Is it true they use money to buy time and freedom? How the hell do you buy time and freedom? Is that even possible?

A hand holding a crumpled napkin waving in front of your face breaks you out of your trance.

I’ve really gotta work on my overthinking, you think.

Without a word exchanged, you take the napkin from his hand. Not sure what to do next, you stand there, awkwardly staring down at him.

He looks up. With the briefest wave of his hand he sends you off.

What the hell just happened? You think as you find yourself instinctively walking back toward the door where you came in, uncrumpling the napkin to see what it was. Scribbled on it you make out three words:

MONEY ISN’T REAL

You spin around like a ballerina who’s trained her whole life, ready to seek an explanation. You’re already halfway back to the corner of the bar when you realize he’s gone. Moneyman is gone.

A slight chuckle leaks out of your crooked smile, standing alone in the middle of the bar. Indistinct chatter coming from behind you.

What did I expect? Mysterious indeed. But – you think giving yourself goosebumps – I am going to figure it out.

Little did you know that those three words would send you on a journey to wealth beyond what you could have ever possibly imagined.

Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary, Review, and Notes

My summaries are organized by common ideas and threads not by chapter. I have found this to greatly benefit understanding and recall. They also include the essential lessons and key passages from the book. My Summary, Quotes, Notes, and Thoughts follow:

Rich Dad Poor Dad Is In Large Part About One’s Mindset

• “I gained valuable insight into the power and effect of one’s thoughts on one’s life.”
• “I noticed that people really do shape their life through their thoughts.”
• “The reason positive thinking alone does not work is because most people went to school and never learned how money works, so they spend their lives working for money.”
• I’m the only one stopping myself – If I realize that I’m the problem, then I can change myself, learn something, and grow wiser – it’s all about me being in the way.
• The first step is telling the truth about how I feel. I don’t have to tell anyone else. Just myself. (This is the hardest part. Nobody, myself included, wants to admit that we are 100% responsible for where we are in our lives, especially if we aren’t where we want to be.)
• Be truthful about my emotions, and use my mind and my emotions in my favor.
• Just be an observer, not a reactor, to my emotions.
• If I don’t first handle fear and desire, and I get rich, I will only be a high-paid “slave”.
• Learn to use my emotions to think, not think with my emotions.
• The moment I see one opportunity, I will see them for the rest of my life.
• RULE ONE: I must know the difference between an asset and a liability, and buy assets. IT IS THE ONLY RULE.
• (Well, that was an easy list of rules.)
• An asset is something that puts money in my pocket. A liability is something that takes money out of my pocket.
• “Money only accentuates the cash-flow pattern running in your head.”
• If I want to be rich, I have got to read and understand numbers.
• Intelligence solves problems.
• “If you find you have dug yourself into a hole…stop digging.”
• Trust my inner wisdom. The genius inside of me.
• Be true to my inner wisdom rather than my fears.
• Concentrate my efforts on only buying income-generating assets.
• Wealth is a person’s ability to survive so many number of days forward…or if I stopped working today, how long could I survive?
• Wealth measures how much money my money is making and, therefore, my financial survivability.
• A true luxury is a reward for investing in and developing a real asset.

A Note On Corporations

• A corporation protects the rich. But what many people who have never formed a corporation do not know is that a corporation is not really a thing. A corporation is merely a file folder with some legal documents in it, sitting in some attorney’s office registered with a state government agency. A corporation is merely a legal document that creates a legal bond without a soul.
• This knowledge changed everything for me! How little I knew.
• For example, ‘1031’ is jargon for Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code, which allows a seller to delay paying taxes on a piece of real estate that is sold for a capital gain through an exchange for a more expensive piece of real estate. Real estate is one investment vehicle that allows such a great tax advantage. As long as you keep trading up in value, you will not be taxed on the gains, until you liquidate.
• If your money works for you, you keep and control the power.

What is Financial IQ?

• Financial IQ is made up of knowledge from four broad areas of expertise:
• Accounting (Financial Literacy)
• Investing
• Understanding Markets
• Understanding the Law: an individual with the knowledge of the tax advantages and protection provided by a corporation can get rich so much faster than someone who is an employee or a small-business sole proprietor.
• Tax advantages
• Protection from lawsuits
• “As part of your overall financial strategy, we strongly recommend owning your corporation wrapped around your assets.”
• We all have tremendous potential, and we all are blessed with gifts. Yet, the one thing that holds all of us back is some degree of self-doubt.
• ‘Guts,’ ‘Chutzpah,’ ‘Balls,’ ‘Audacity,’ ‘Bravado,’ ‘Cunning,’ ‘Daring,’ ‘Tenacity,’ and ‘Brilliance.’ This factor, whatever it is labeled, ultimately decides one’s future much more than school grades.
• “I recognized that it was excessive fear and self-doubt that were the greatest detractors of personal genius.”
• “I’d rather be welcoming change than dreading change. I’d rather be excited about making millions than worrying about not getting a raise.”
• The world is always providing us with instant feedback. We could learn a lot if we tuned in more.
• “The question is, ‘Now what can you do?’ How many different financial options can you come up with?’”
• Financial intelligence is simply having more options. (What else can I do to improve my financial position?)
• I want to be the kind of person that creates my own luck.
• MONEY IS NOT REAL.
• If I can grasp the idea that money is not real, I will grow rich faster.
• THE SINGLE MOST POWERFUL ASSET I HAVE IS MY MIND.
• I develop my financial IQ because I want to participate in the fastest game and biggest game in the world. It’s scary. And it’s fun.
• “I use two main vehicles to achieve financial growth: real estate and small stocks.”
• Simple math and common sense are all that is needed to do well financially.
• Again, it is a matter of understanding financial statements, investment strategies, a sense of the market and the laws.
• “My overall philosophy is to plant seeds inside my asset column. That is my formula. I start small and plant seeds. Some grow; some don’t.”
• “Of course, there is always risk. It is financial intelligence that improves the odds.”
• “Passive income of more than $100,000 a year is nice and not that hard to achieve.” Depending on the market and how smart I am, I could do it in 5-10 years.
• “Great opportunities are not seen with your eyes. They are seen with your mind.”
• “Sometimes you win and sometimes you learn. But have fun. Most people never win because they are more afraid of losing.”
• “Winners are not afraid of losing. But losers are. FAILURE IS PART OF THE PROCESS OF SUCCESS.”

Money Skills

• How to find an opportunity that everyone else has missed.
• How to raise money (the learned skill of raising money is priceless.) (Investing is not buying. It’s more a case of knowing.)
• How to organize smart people.
• It is what you know that is your greatest wealth.
• I AM ONE SKILL AWAY FROM GREAT WEALTH.
• I only need to learn and master one more skill and my income with grow exponentially.
• Where is this daily activity taking me? = Where is what I am doing taking me?
• Take a long view of my life.
• “’I only do what I am interested in’ – I say, ‘I’m not interested in going to the gym, but I go because I want to feel better and live longer.’”
• Life is much like going to the gym. The most painful part is deciding to go. Once you’re past that, it’s easy.
• “The world is filled with talented poor people. All too often, they’re poor or struggle financially or earn less than they are capable of, not because of what they know, but because of what they do not know.”
• The Main Management Skills for Success:
• Management of cash flow
• The management of systems
• The management of people
• The most important specialized skills are sales and understanding marketing.
• It is the ability to sell that is the base skill of personal success.
• It is communication skills such as writing, speaking and negotiating that are crucial to a life of success.
• “I know of no other skills to be more important than selling as well as marketing.”

The Five Obstacles According To Rich Dad Poor Dad

• Overcoming Obstacles
  1. Fear.
     1. It’s how you handle failure that makes the difference in one’s life.
     2. Failure inspires winners. And failure defeats losers.
     3. If you have little money and you want to be rich, you must first be FOCUSED…To make progress, you must first go unbalanced. Just look at how you make progress walking.
     4. IF YOU HAVE ANY DESIRE OF BEING RICH, YOU MUST FOCUS.
     5. It takes guts, patience, and a great attitude toward failure.
  2. Cynicism.
     1. Cynics criticize, and winners analyze.
     2. Finding what people miss is key to any success.
     3. “I don’t wants” hold the key to my success = Because I don’t want to do certain things I WILL FIND A WAY to get someone else to do it for me.
     4. People avoid their “don’t wants”, but they pay a huge price. They never get what they want in life.
  3. Laziness.
     1. So what is the cure for laziness? The answer is a little GREED.
     2. HOW CAN I AFFORD IT?
     3. WII-FM = What’s In It For Me?
     4. “A person needs to sit down and ask, ‘What’s in it for me if I’m healthy, sexy, and good-looking?’ Or ‘What would my life be like if I never had to work again?’ Or ‘What would I do if I had all the money I needed?’”
  4. Bad habits.
     1. Our lives are a reflection of our habits more than our education.
     2. If I pay myself first, I get financially stronger, mentally and fiscally.
  5. Arrogance.
     1. Arrogance is ego plus ignorance.
     2. When you know you are ignorant in a subject, start educating yourself by finding an expert in the field or find a book on the subject.
• “There is gold everywhere. Most people are not trained to see it.”

How You Can Get Started Building Wealth and Changing Your Life

1. Need a Reason Greater Than Reality:
   1. A reason or a purpose is a combination of ‘wants’ and ‘don’t wants’.
   2. I DON’T WANT TO WORK ALL MY LIFE.
   3. I DON’T LIKE BEING AN EMPLOYEE.
   4. I WANT TO BE FREE TO TRAVEL THE WORLD AND LIVE THE LIFESTYLE I LOVE.
   5. I WANT TO SIMPLY BE FREE.
   6. I WANT CONTROL OVER MY TIME AND MY LIFE.
   7. I WANT MONEY TO WORK FOR ME.
2. I Choose Daily:
   1. Financially, with every dollar we get in our hands, we hold the power to choose our future to be rich, poor, or middle class. Our spending habits reflect who we are. Poor people simply have poor spending habits.
   2. INVEST FIRST IN EDUCATION – In reality, the only real asset you have is your mind, the most powerful tool we have dominion over.
   3. You see, if you learn something new, you are then required to make mistakes in order to fully understand what you have learned.
3. Choose Friends Carefully:
   1. Learn from all of them, and consciously make the effort to learn from them.
   2. “I would say that one of the hardest things about wealth building is to be true to yourself and be willing to not go along with the crowd.”
   3. Investors know their profits are made when they buy, not when they sell.
4. Master a Formula and Then Learn a New One:
   1. There is so much power in learning quickly.
   2. “You become what you study”.
   3. If you’re tired of what you’re doing, or you’re not making enough, it is simply a case of changing the formula via which you make money.
   4. It is how fast you learn. That skill is priceless. It’s priceless in finding faster formulas.
5. Pay Yourself First:
   1. The power of self-discipline. If you cannot get control of yourself, do not try to get rich. (I personally had to start here; months of training and callousing the mind.)
   2. SELF-DISCIPLINE is the #1 delineating factor between the rich, poor, and middle class.
   3. The 3 necessary management skills:
      1. Management of cash flow.
      2. Management of people.
      3. Management of personal time.
6. Pay Your Brokers Well:
   1. The power of good advice.
   2. Pay professionals well.
7. Be an Indian Giver:
   1. This is the power of getting something for nothing.
   2. “On every one of my investments, there must be an upside, something for free. A condominium, a mini-storage, a piece of free land, a house, stock shares, office building. And there must be limited risk.”
8. Assets Buy Luxuries:
   1. The power of focus.
   2. “Remember, the easy road often becomes hard, and the hard road often becomes easy.”
   3. DELAY GRATIFICATION
9. The Need For Heroes:
   1. The power of myth.
   2. When it comes to investing, too many people make it sound hard. Instead, find HEROES who make it look easy.
10. Teach and You Shall Receive:
    1. The power of giving.
    2. “And when it comes to money, love, happiness, sales, and contacts, all one needs to remember is first to give what you want and it will come back in droves.”
    3. “All you need to be is generous with what you have, and the powers will be generous with you.”

Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary Of To Do’s: What You Need To Do Right Now

• TAKE ACTION!
• Search, offer, reject, negotiate, and accept are all parts of the process of almost everything in life.
• Money is only an idea. If you want more money simply change your thinking. Every self-made person started small with an idea and then turned it into something big.
• Start early. Buy a book. Go to a seminar. Practice. Start small.
• It’s what is in your head that determines what is in your hands. Money is only an idea.
• Today, don’t play it safe, play it smart.

Buy the Book

---

Print | Audiobook | Ebook

Other Books by Robert Kiyosaki

• Cashflow Quadrant: Rich Dad’s Guide to Financial Freedom (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing: What the Rich Invest in, That the Poor and the Middle Class Do Not! (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)

More Book Summaries

• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

If You Liked This Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary Then…

• The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness by Eric Jorgenson (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing by Benjamin Graham (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• I Will Teach You to Be Rich: No Guilt. No Excuses. No BS. Just a 6-Week Program That Works by Ramit Sethi (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• The Millionaire Fastlane: Crack the Code to Wealth and Live Rich for a Lifetime by MJ DeMarco (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)
• The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason (Print | Ebook | Audiobook)

Related Topics

• Finance & Investing Articles and Book Summaries
• Self-Improvement Articles and Book Summaries

30 Days of Audible…Free

---

My Book-Rating Scale

---

*If you use the affiliate links in here a magic genie will suddenly appear in front of me granting me unlimited wishes, at which point I will then immediately wish for something like 100 billion dollars, a submarine, a funny hat, or something cool like that. So just assume that if you use the links to buy anything I make tons of money and become filthy rich. Besides this last statement, I practice radical honesty, and anything I ever recommend is something I stand by.