Robert Kiyosaki

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Robert Kiyosaki : biography

April 8, 1947 –

Robert Toru Kiyosaki (born April 8, 1947) is an American investor, businessman, self-help author, motivational speaker, financial literacy activist, and financial commentator. Kiyosaki is well known for his Rich Dad Poor Dad series of motivational books and other material published under the Rich Dad brand. He has written over 15 books which have combined sales of over 26 million copies.

Three of his books, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Rich Dad’s CASHFLOW Quadrant, and Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing, have been on number one on the top 10 best-seller lists simultaneously on The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the New York Times. Rich Kid Smart Kid was published in 2001, with the intent to help parents teach their children financial concepts. He has created three "Cashflow" board and software games for adults and children and has a series of "Rich Dad" CDs and disks.

A financial literacy advocate, Kiyosaki has been a proponent of entrepreneurship, business education, investing, and that comprehensive financial literacy concepts should be taught in schools around the world. Kiyosaki also operates his own blog and maintains a monthly column on Yahoo Finance writing about his latest thoughts on global economics, investing, business, world financial markets, and personal finance.

Early life and career

A fourth-generation Japanese American, Kiyosaki was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii. He is the son of educator Ralph H. Kiyosaki (1919–91). After graduating from Hilo High School, he attended the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in New York, graduating with the class of 1969 as a deck officer. He served in the Marine Corps as a helicopter gunship pilot during the Vietnam War in 1972, where he was awarded the Air Medal. Kiyosaki left the Marine Corps in 1975 and got a job selling copy machines for the Xerox Corporation as a salesperson.

In 1977, Kiyosaki started a company that brought to market the first nylon and Velcro "surfer" wallets. The company was moderately successful, but eventually went bankrupt. In the early 1980s, Kiyosaki started a business that licensed T-shirts for heavy metal rock bands, which was later sold in 1985. In his book You can Choose to be Rich, Kiyosaki said that after his bankruptcy he became homeless, and was living with his then girlfriend Kim at the back of an old Toyota for several months before starting their own business from the ground up.You Can Choose to Be Rich, ASIN: B000CSXWXW

In 1994, Robert leaves Money and You program in Australia.Poor Man’s Prophet Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad says that everything you’ve been told about money is a lie. Is his vision setting us on the right track–or is it just more financial snake oil? http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/moneymag_archive/2003/01/01/334706/index.htm With various real estate investments, Kiyosaki retired at the age of 47. In 1997, he launched Cashflow Technologies, Inc. which owns and operates the Rich Dad and Cashflow brands.

Financial advice

Kiyosaki’s teachings focus on what he calls "financial education" generating passive income by means of investment opportunities, such as real estate investments and businesses, with the ultimate goal of being able to support oneself by such investments alone and thus achieving true financial independence WITHOUT working for a paycheck. Kiyosaki defines the term "assets" as things that generate cash inflow, such as stock dividends, rental properties, or businesses, and the term "liabilities" as things that use cash, such as houses, cars, and so on. Kiyosaki argues that financial leverage is critically important in becoming rich, despite the inherent financial risks, repercussions, and pitfalls that come with it.

Originally self-published before being picked up commercially to become a best seller, the central concept of the book is an anecdotal comparison of his "two fathers." His "poor dad" was his biological father, who was highly educated and became superintendent of the Hawaii State Department of Education but was poor. Contrasted with this is his "rich dad," who was his best friend’s father who became "the richest man in Hawaii" by investing his smaller income into income-producing investments, and was a high school dropout. Its main purpose as a self-help book is to help people rethink their idea of money and their concept of themselves as employees who will gain financial rewards from conformity and education.