Why you should read rich dad poor dad - Père Riche, Père Pauvre

Rich Dad Poor Dad, a best-selling book written by American businessman Robert T. Kiyosaki, is not the first book I've read on financial education.

And yet, in my opinion, it is certainly one of those who have changed the most things in the handling of my finances.

Kiyosaki tells his story, and more mainly the lessons of his childhood between two "fathers" - his real father and the father of his best friend - and how the two men shaped his way of seeing money. In particular, he debunks the myth that you have to earn a high income to be rich by explaining the importance of financial education.

Thanks to this book, I was able to understand that exchanging your time for money (that is to say having only the salary as a source of income) was certainly not the best way to live your life. life... nor the most pleasant. Your money should work for you, not the other way around.

And this is precisely what Kiyosaki explains to us in Rich Dad, Poor Dad through the 6 key concepts that I present to you in this article.

Managing your finances better starts with changing your mindset

Rich Dad Poor Dad is not a step-by-step guide to managing your money better.

It is above all a work of motivation. And when it comes to taking control of your finances, motivation is key.

Too often, we think that we already, deep down, want to change our relationship with money. And the last thing we need is a book explaining the importance of changing your mindset about personal finances.

But I can assure you that there is a before and an after reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad. All the practical works that you can read will be much less useful to you without going through the theoretical stage that this book provides.

In his book, Kiyosaki teaches there what made him a multi-millionaire. And after reading it, we understand that becoming rich is not so far from our reach either...

The 6 lessons of rich dad poor dad

1- The rich don't work for the money

The meaning of this phrase can be interpreted in different ways. But this is not to say that the rich work for free or only volunteer. It's just that they don't work just to get paid at the end of the month.

Kiyosaki explains how wealthy people work first to learn and grow, and then use their knowledge to create new ways to make money ...again and again.

This is the pattern that most people follow: getting up in the morning, going to work, paying the bills... Their life is forever controlled by two emotions, fear and greed. Offer them more money, and they will continue the vicious cycle by increasing their spending.

Contrary to what we tend to think, the majority of rich people are not destined to spend all their fortune on luxury cars and infinity pools.

They are mainly looking for ways to create their source of income to become financially independent.

Kiyosaki explains how you can get out of this habit of excessive consumption, and use what you learned to build your wealth.

2- The importance of financial education

Most people don't realize that in life it's not about how much you earn, but what you do with the money you have.

What Kiyosaki makes us understand in Rich Dad, Poor Dad is above all the importance of financial education.

That's why it is, in my opinion, one of the best books to read on money and personal finance. And also why it shines a light on all the other books on the subject.

Without going through a change of perspective, it is often difficult to put in place practical solutions. And we generally tend to underestimate the importance of mastering, even a minimum, the subject of personal finances.

Among other things, Kiyosaki explains how to become rich by accumulating "assets", that is, by using part of your money to buy things that will be used to earn you even more money.

3- Learn to manage your money

The rich invest their money and spend what's left. The poor spend their money and invest what is left.

In this chapter of Rich Dad Poor Dad, Kiyosaki explains why, to be financially sound, you should spend your free time not spending your salary, but investing as much of it as possible in assets.

Note

An asset is something that earns you money (e.g. a buy-to-let investment)

A liability is something that costs you money (e.g. a car)

This is a lesson with which I wholeheartedly agree. By starting to invest in income-generating activities as soon as possible, you ensure that you achieve valuable financial peace of mind in the future.

Yet many of us spend almost all of our money on liabilities...while being afraid to invest in assets. A very costly situation in the long run.

4- Taxes and duties

An entire chapter of Kiyosaki's book explains the best way to (legally) limit his taxes and duties so as not to let a large part of his salary go away every month.

This chapter is a bit laborious to read but gives a rather interesting view of the functioning of the financial system.

The middle class finds itself in a state of constant financial struggle. Their main income comes from their salary. As their wages increase, their taxes also increase. And their expenses also tend to increase in proportion to the increase in their salary.

In it, he explains how one of the great benefits of being an entrepreneur is being able to keep money in a corporate structure. He also points out why wage-earning may not be the best way to get rich, giving most of your income to the state.

5- The rich create their wealth

A big part of Rich Dad Poor Dad is about why you'll need to create multiple streams of income, and not just limit yourself to your paycheck anymore.

Employees work just hard enough not to be fired, and employers pay them just enough not to quit.

In particular, Kiyosaki explains why being an employee is much riskier than being an entrepreneur and wanting to start your own business.

6- Work to learn, not for money

In today's rapidly changing world, it's not so much what you know that matters, because often what you know is out of date. What matters is how fast you learn.

This lesson more or less joins the first. Kiyosaki explains why everyone should strive to learn as much as possible through their work. It's about making your job not just a way to get a paycheck at the end of the month, but a way to learn and grow.

Transforming the way you see the world and developing yourself personally and professionally are essential ways to grow your bank account. Today, training online has become very accessible thanks to the popularity of online courses.

They are also incredible levers when it comes to creating your own business or becoming independent, changing jobs to get better paid, or getting a well-deserved raise or promotion.

Verdict?

Perhaps the feelings I most associate with this book are inspiration and motivation.

This is the reason why I very often recommend it to my loved ones, or to anyone who wants to start their journey toward financial education.

Here's a little more detail on what I like about Rich Dad Poor Dad, and what I'm a little less in tune with.

What I liked 👍

• In addition to being a kind of "how-to guide" to learning how to take charge of your money, Rich Dad Poor Dad is told like a story, which makes it truly captivating to read. Seriously: once the book was in my hand, it was almost impossible for me to put it down.
• Kiyosaki tells not only the story of his two dads, but also other small stories, anecdotes, and tales that allow us to understand the main points and illustrate his points.
• Rich Dad Poor Dad is written with great candor and honesty. It is also, in my opinion, what allows us to change our perspective and makes this book so inspiring. Kiyosaki doesn't take tweezers, and sometimes that's just what you need.
• This book is of course about personal finance, but not only. The lessons are also applicable in personal development and many other areas of our lives.

What I liked less 👎

• The part of the book that deals with taxes, businesses, and real estate is quite laborious and difficult to read. Especially after the narrations of the first parts. Kiyosaki goes into great detail. You can of course only fly over or skip these passages if necessary.
• The tone used by Kiyosaki is sometimes a little moralizing. And if we appreciate the frankness, we sometimes find ourselves a little too close to condescension. It's quite classic for an American author (and that didn't prevent him from becoming a world bestseller), but this tone can sometimes be a little more difficult to adopt in France. But if it is sometimes necessary to put the form aside, the bottom remains, however, ultra-relevant