‘rich dad, poor dad’ is commonly known as THE personal finance classic. my feelings about it were… let’s call them… mixed.
why?
well, there is an obvious appeal to the basic ideas in this book that go against mainstream assumptions. such as, the difference between an asset and a liability when it comes to own-use real estate. or the emphasis on entrepreneurship and financial literacy.
values
however, it turns out kiyosaki and i see the world differently on many accounts.
he for instance is a big fan of the former US president. (or at least was back in 2016 when my edition was published). they co-wrote two books.
also, the way kiyosaki talks about taxes and governments likens them to a medieval evil like cholera. or the pest.
now, don’t get me wrong. i don’t like paying taxes either. but i do like to be able to depend on a strong government providing schools and hospitals and other awesome things like a safety network. then again, i’m european.
rambling
there is a line in the book where kiyosaki refers to himself as a best-selling author, not a best-writing one. that i can confirm. this book could have benefited from some serious down-editing. once you have the basic concepts absorbed, a lot of the writing just repeats itself in endless variations.
now, the tough question:
would i recommend it?
well i guess, that depends. if you are looking for one book to give you an idea of how to go about your finances, keep looking.
if, however, you are interested in seeing what the hype is behind kiyosaki’s ‘rich dad, poor dad’s franchise or you would like to expose yourself to ideas that are outside your wheelhouse to break through your filter bubble, by all means, go ahead.
