Rating:  Summary: Mixed Feelings Review: I thought the book had more to do with investing in real estate in a down market (like Phoenix) and hoping it comes up rather than being a teacher of actionable items - I found the audio 1-hour on the internet very informative and hit more of the highlights rather than being a salesman for the board game. If the author highlights that he does not need to write books or games for the 'money', then I question why are not the profits from sales go to a good cause. More action items are needed but does start you thinking about other types of investing.
Rating:  Summary: Good Review: This is a good book, because it stresses what John Paul Getty said, "If you want to get rich, work for yourself." I like how he stresses that he doesn't LOVE is work. He only really enjoys his free time. That's refreshing honesty. He points out how he made a lot of money in projects that took little effort. He points out that living cheaply one you are wealthy, is stupid. (We're supposed to be in awe of how Ross Perot gets the same $5.00 hair cut he did before he was rich. Splurge, Ross!)
Rating:  Summary: One more piece of the puzzle...not the whole thing Review: Very provocative book about the beginnings of financial guru Robert Kiyosaki. Its best value is the fact that it provides a very different point of view when it comes to prosperity. It also proves how important it is to educate children in financial issues from a very early age. This is a valuable book if you are trying to learn more about personal finance. I don't like the self-promotion of CashFlow Technologies throughout the book, and i think there are cheaper ways to learn about your finances than by buying an expensive game, but overall the book is interesting, reads quickly and more importantly, gives you a different way to look at money.
Rating:  Summary: Author got rich & now thinks he knows it all - but doesn't Review: The author got rich investing in realestate and now thinks he knows all the answers. He recommends that you quit your job and never work for someone else. Brian Tracy in The Pyschology of Achievement recommends learning a specialized skill, becoming an expert at it, saving your money and you have a good chance of becoming wealthy. The author recommends that you go into business for yourself (but then points out that a huge percentage of businesses fail.) He also misrepresents tax rules - he says that if you form a corporation, you can deduct personal expenses legally through the corporation. This is not the case -cars and other expenses that are not for corporate use are taxed to an individual as compensation (or should be). He stresses financial literacy but really doesn't seem to have the basics down. The author refers to a house as a liabiltiy (and I think he really believes it) Houses are indeed assets (mortgages are liabilities and so is my credit card bill for buying this book)
Rating:  Summary: changes your thought process Review: This book changed my thought process completly. It forced me to see things in ways i have never seen before.
Rating:  Summary: This is pure blather... Review: Save your money! Whatever you pay for this book is probably too much. It is full of useless rhetoric, and appears to be written at a very low level. It is full of examples which just seem to farfetched to be believed.
Rating:  Summary: Save your $10 Review: Here are the salient points:1)Buy assets such as investment real estate, stocks, bonds, and businesses that you can hire others to run, and shun personal assets such as cars,houses beyond your means and expensive toys. 2)Keep your eyes open for money-making opportunites that others are missing. There, No need to suffer through this book, which reads like it was written by Al Gore. ("Now children, let me explain s-l-o-w-l-y...") I also wonder if the author is as wealthy as he would like us to believe. For example, he says on page 88 that "One day, to get a loan, my financial position did not look too good. So I added my new golf clubs, my art collection, books, stereo, television, Armani suits, wristwatches, shoes and other personal effects to boost the number in the asset column." I don't know if he has a sister, but I fear that he might have thrown her in as well. Why did his financial position "not look good?" It makes him sounds like the many real estate hustlers I've seen come and go over the years who use fuzzy math to make their net worth seem like much more than it really is. It also makes me think that he doesn't follow his own advice when it comes to over-consumption of status-y consumer goods. "The Millionaire Next Door" is a much better book if you want to understand how wealthy people got that way, and how you can, too.
Rating:  Summary: Not worth the money or time Review: I know this book was a best-seller and has a 4.5 star average on Amazon. This does not make it good, and I will explain why. First, most people focus on his inspiration and pointing out that you need to save money instead of spending it. To put it bluntly, "Duh." To be more constructive, there are much better books on this subject - for instance, "Your Money or Your Life." It's easy to spout platitudes about why you should save, but Kiyosaki doesn't tell you how. Second, his real estate advice. Kiyosaki emphasizes making money in real estate, since it seems clear that is how he made his fortune. But he does a terrible job explaining that as well. People have lost fortunes in real estate; Donald Trump went from being a billionaire to losing most of his empire. It isn't easy. Kiyosaki himself says that winners learn from their failures; where are his failures? Perhaps he should refer people to other books about real estate, but one of the books he recommends was written by a man who had a half-million dollars in tax liens filed against him and declared bankruptcy - all before "Rich Dad" was written. That isn't exactly the kind of advice I was looking for! Third, experts in the fields he talks about generally agree that his advice is bad. A review by an experienced real estate professional is here: http://www.johntreed.com/Kiyosaki.html. His advice on making money via IPOs is completely wrong; you can't invest that little money so close to the IPO filing for such a large discount. It just isn't done that way. Fourth, his emphasis on making money. I like money, don't get me wrong. Like most people reading this review, I'd like to be a millionaire. But, I think, there is an underlying current of meanness in Kiyosaki's book. The way his "rich dad" kept people waiting and intimidated them with his power, the way Kiyosaki himself resented being left out of the parties held by the "rich kids." It's disturbing. Fifth, for all the talk about spending less, Kiyosaki clearly lives up the high life (or claims to.) Rolex watches (why?), Porsches (again, why?)... all these are types of liabilities, which he spends most of the book saying you should avoid. It's flash, which I think ties into his rejection as a 'poor' child, and also meant to impress the reader by letting them think that, someday, they too will be able to show off their wealth. Most millionaire's aren't this way. "The Millionaire Next Door", which cannot be recommended highly enough, has interviews with real millionaires who live modestly - in fact, probably living on less than you are - and yet they accumulated their fortunes through hard work. (Real estate and owning your own business qualifies as hard work!) It is a much more educational book, but is also more inspiring to see people like yourself who did make it. Summary: this book has some decent information in it (but there are better books), is inspirational at points (but inspirational books are a dime a dozen!), and didn't really do squat for me.
Rating:  Summary: This book will change your outlook. Review: Robert Kiyosaki never fail to point out that our education system is a failure by not teaching our children the concept of money. He uses the concept of cashflow to illustrate the wealth accumulating process, and redefine the meaning of asset and libility. To him, anything that drain away your money, or leading to a cash outflow is a liability. You may be shock to learn that under this definiation, your greatest asset - your own house, is cobsider to be a liability as well. Robert emphasize the importance of accumulating income producing assets like stocks, bonds, and real estate. To him, building a business is the best way of building wealth, follow by real estate. However, the complaint I have with this book is that it is too general. If you wanted to get some real tips and example, you are heading for a great disappointment.
Rating:  Summary: Rich Dad Poor Dad Review Review: An excellent book, and easy to read. Mr. Kiyosaki uses his unique position of having two fathers to illustrate the differences in their thinking and their approach to money. I found that I have often used the same thinking that the poor dad used, and was glad to have the opportunity to see an alternative approach. Both dads worked hard, but one became rich while the other remained poor all his life. This book defines assets as income producers - toys get included in liabilities. I've read many books on becoming rich, but this one finally got through to me. An excellent book. It has helped me change my financial life for the better.
|