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A review by ilawcoffee
Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki
1.0
1.5/5
The illiterate of the 21st century won't be those who can't read and write, but those who can't learn, unlearn, relearn (Alvin Toffler, futurist)
After years in my TBR, I finally went for it. I'm sorry to say I found it quite disappointing: the insights in this book are in part self-evident, in part questionable. Perhaps, I waited too long to read it and it just didn't age well. Overall, I think it may be more helpful as a general self-help book, rather than a guide to managing money. I feel like I should also point out that it's obviously dangerous to take financial advice from a book from the 1990s, and would strongly advise again using any takeaways from the book as financial advice for the 2020s. My comments are in parentheses.
Main points:
- Pay ourself first each month. Even before your rent and bills, take out a small portion of your salary each month. Spend it on medium-to-high risk stocks or bonds that will then offer a high reward. [Questionable] Spend what you can afford to lose. [Still, leading to a very good point]
- Learn what you need to learn. Keep filling obvious gaps in your knowledge and skill base. Rich people tend to know a little about a lot of things and pay experts for the details. They learn only what they need, then go out and apply it [Reckless financial advice, but potentially useful if interpreted in terms of more general work advice. We don't have to become experts at everything, it's better to focus on a niche and rely on experts to fill our gaps]
- "When emotion goes up, intelligence goes down." [Debatable] Work on controlling your thoughts and emotions. [Sensible] Step back, consider, and take a long-term view. [Makes sense] Write down your financial fears, then throw them away [Plain stupid]
Actionable advice: Only spend what you can afford to lose.
The illiterate of the 21st century won't be those who can't read and write, but those who can't learn, unlearn, relearn (Alvin Toffler, futurist)
After years in my TBR, I finally went for it. I'm sorry to say I found it quite disappointing: the insights in this book are in part self-evident, in part questionable. Perhaps, I waited too long to read it and it just didn't age well. Overall, I think it may be more helpful as a general self-help book, rather than a guide to managing money. I feel like I should also point out that it's obviously dangerous to take financial advice from a book from the 1990s, and would strongly advise again using any takeaways from the book as financial advice for the 2020s. My comments are in parentheses.
Main points:
- Pay ourself first each month. Even before your rent and bills, take out a small portion of your salary each month. Spend it on medium-to-high risk stocks or bonds that will then offer a high reward. [Questionable] Spend what you can afford to lose. [Still, leading to a very good point]
- Learn what you need to learn. Keep filling obvious gaps in your knowledge and skill base. Rich people tend to know a little about a lot of things and pay experts for the details. They learn only what they need, then go out and apply it [Reckless financial advice, but potentially useful if interpreted in terms of more general work advice. We don't have to become experts at everything, it's better to focus on a niche and rely on experts to fill our gaps]
- "When emotion goes up, intelligence goes down." [Debatable] Work on controlling your thoughts and emotions. [Sensible] Step back, consider, and take a long-term view. [Makes sense] Write down your financial fears, then throw them away [Plain stupid]
Actionable advice: Only spend what you can afford to lose.