6 Key Lessons From Rich Dad, Poor Dad

Lesson Six: Work to Learn- Don’t Work for Money

A familiar acronym for job is just over broke. Oftentimes, it’s easy to get caught up in a job as a means of security or money. However, the rich use jobs as learning opportunities to develop necessary skills to be successful.

As Kiyosaki recommends in the book, take a long view of life. Instead of simply working for the money and security, which are important, take a second job or take classes that will teach you a skill.  He goes even further to describe the three main management skills necessary for success:

1.    The management of cash flow (assets and liabilities)

2.    The management of systems (basic economic theory, political landscape, etc.)

3.    The management of people

If one is able to focus getting jobs that develop these three major skills sets, he is well on their way on the path to success. After sharing these main lessons of the rich, Kiyosaki goes a step further by addressing the 5 main obstacles keeping people from actually following through.

1.    Fear- Overcoming the fear of losing money.  The fear of losing money is real. Everyone has it. The difference becomes how a rich and poor person handles the fear. Wealthy individuals use failure as a teaching moment and aren’t afraid to fail.

2.    Cynicism- This deals mostly with those around you. Follow your own path, because at the end of the day, wealthy individuals are a small percentage who go against the grain and don’t follow the crowd

3.    Laziness- One must be willing to put in the time and effort to build up their financial knowledge. This means being selfish and taking time out to build one’s personal wealth.

4.    Bad Habits- Reducing expenses is easier said than done, but one must be willing to break those bad spending/investing habits in order to be successful

5.    Arrogance- Always be willing to reach out to those who are successful and those you want to emulate. To become wealthy, it’s often a collaborative effort, bouncing ideas from prospective mentors.

With these main lessons in mind, one can walk towards the path of success. It just takes personal initiative to further develop the financial knowledge and management skills necessary for success. As Rich Dad, Poor Dad shows, higher education or a great job doesn’t guarantee success but rather the skills and knowledge you are able to apply with your income separates the lower and middle class from the wealthy.