Rich Dad Mentality v. Poor Dad Mentality

This is the second in a series of articles based on the groundbreaking best-seller “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” written by Robert Kiyosaki. As stated in the first article, the book compares the mindset of Kiyosaki’s father—who held several degrees and an important position in the government, but struggled financially--, with the mindset of his best friend’s father—who never even finished high school but left his son a financial empire. In his book, Kiyosaki explains that the mindset held by each of these two men, his “poor dad” and his “rich dad”, was largely responsible for each man’s financial destiny.

The following quote by T. Harv Eker, author of “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind”, refers to the concept of a rich person’s mindset: “Rich people have a way of thinking that is different from poor and middle class people. They think differently about money, wealth, themselves, other people, and life.” Kiyosaki expounds this same principle in “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”.

Below you will find seven mayor differences between the “poor dad” and the “rich dad” mentality:

1. The “poor dad” mentality states that your wealth depends on your family of origin. That is, to be rich you have to be born rich. “Rich dad” espoused the view that being rich or poor is something that you learn. You can learn to think in ways that will support you, and you can raise your financial IQ by reading books on finance, talking to financially successful people, and attending seminars and lectures. When you have the right belief system and the necessary knowledge on how to create, build, and protect wealth, you will become rich even if you were not born into a wealthy family.

2. “Rich dad” taught Kiyosaki that he should get a job to learn and to acquire the necessary skills so that he could go on to start his own business. “Poor dad” saw his job as his source of income for life. While “rich dad” taught Kiyosaki to strive to become financially independent, “poor dad” taught him to depend on his employer for his financial well being.

3. When faced with an opportunity, “rich dad” would ask himself: “How can I afford this?” This forced his mind to think and to come up with creative solutions to be able to take advantage of the opportunity that had presented itself. Instead, when presented with an opportunity, “poor dad” would dismiss it by saying: “It’s too bad I can’t afford this.”

4. While “poor dad” stressed scholastic education, “rich dad” always stressed financial education.

5. For “rich dad” the main cause of poverty or financial struggle was self-inflicted fear and ignorance. “Poor dad” blamed the economy and the job market. That is, “rich dad” always took responsibility for himself and felt that he created his circumstances, while “poor dad” often felt like a victim of the outside world.

6. As for risk taking, “rich dad” taught Kiyosaki to learn to manage risk. “Poor dad” taught him that when it came to money, risk was something that should be avoided and to always play it safe.

7. “Rich dad” taught Kiyosaki that failing was simply part of the process and that he should learn from his mistakes and move on. “Poor dad” attached great stigma to failure and was therefore afraid of making mistakes.

Study the seven examples above in order to begin to develop a clear concept of the difference between a rich and a poor mindset. You can find out more on how rich people think by reading books such as those found in the “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” series and by talking to people who have succeeded financially. n