Fake by Robert Kiyosaki

I first finished both “Rich Dad Poor Dad” and “Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant” and have been following Robert Kiyosaki since then. When I saw that he was releasing this book, I wanted to learn from it right away.

Initially, in the book, the author shared 5 things for the future. I think that all things are important and definitely things that people may need. As the saying goes, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

Preparing for the future with the 5 G’s:

1. Gold and silver

2. Grub — food for at least 6 months

3. Gasoline, invest in oil wells, gas needed to get out of town

4. Ground, safe properties with food and water

5. Guns and ammo — protection and currency

I agree with these foundational words. People might not understand them at the level that they should and most times, I think that people definitely need to know and understand all 6 but understand flow is most important. There are many many studies available now that show high-income levels and low savings rates for many people. Why?

I would argue that a few things are the cause of that. First, people might not be truly financially educated. Second, people may not be willing to sacrifice. They may believe that just because they are making 6 figures a year that it means they can live in a $500,000 house, have 3 cars, and an exotic vacation each year… not true.

6 foundational words to real financial education:

Income

Expense

Asset

Liability

Cash

Flow

After I first heard this from the book I didn’t know what to think. But then I thought about it and thought about it some more and I couldn’t agree more. A truly sustainable model and a truly adept investor do not use any money of their own and there is an infinite return as a result.

The goal of an investor is an infinite return.

An infinite return is a return made without using any of your own money.

This is how you measure FIQ (financial IQ).

Robert and Kim were married for a few years but had to live out of a car for a little while. Talk about resiliency. Even when they didn’t know what to do, they pressed onward. As Robert and Kim learned more and more and more over the years, they continued to grow and press on and eventually became very successful.

After marrying Kim in 1984, their money ran out and they kept going. This happened after Robert learned extraordinarily for years and years.

This was shocking. Not shocking in the terms of I would have never predicted it but shocking that it is the truth. I love facts and figures and while I have not looked into true data for the reasons behind this, I have a few potential conclusions of my own. First, I think that people are going to the doctor or therapist for diagnoses at a much higher rate than in the past. Second, I think that the internet has played a large role as we continue to view and project ourselves in a certain light while the rest of the world will not always match that.

The average age for being diagnosed with depression:

1978, 29 years old

2009, 14.5 years old

From what I know, from the people I know, maybe 10% of people have more than just 1 of these asset categories. And no… the house that you live in is NOT an asset; it doesn’t pay you, you pay for it. This whole book centered around these 4 things. Which are real assets and which are fake? Fake assets are the ones that only have value because we give them value (money, stocks, etc.) they don’t have real value. If the government tomorrow said that the dollar was not worth anything… who would still accept it as a form of payment? I hope that makes you think about your spending a little bit.

4 basic asset classes:

1. Businesses

2. Real estate

3. Paper assets — stocks, bonds, mutual funds, savings

4. Commodities — gold, silver, oil, food, water

If you read these and think about them during the course of your day, it should not be difficult to determine which person you are. Do you talk like a poor person or a rich person? It centers around the idea of a life of abundance or a life of scarcity. The world is extremely abundant. The God who created you created me. The God who created the world created the universe. Because God created everything,

He can give anything to anyone. Just imagine for one moment how much greater life could be if we truly took the responsibility that God has given each of us seriously. God has given us everything in this world to use, we are called to be good stewards of everything.

Poor people say vs rich people and what they say:

1. Poor people say, I can’t afford it

Rich people say, how can I afford it?

2. Poor people say, I’m not interested in money

Rich people say, if you aren’t interested in money, money is not interested in you

3. Poor people say, I’ll never be rich

Rich people say, I must be rich

People who think and speak the words of poor people should use a financial planner and invest in paper assets.

The author shared the following along with a diagram (on left) displaying the purchasing power of the dollar since 1940. Wow. It’s quite crazy to consider but historically speaking, we have seen this happen with every great world economy.

Without inflation, the US and other world economies may slide into the next Great Depression because of excessive deflation.

Many people do not see the full picture of the reasons that big businesses attract tax incentives to begin with. People may overlook the fact that smaller businesses thrive in areas where they can service larger clients and businesses. I believe that this strategy and approach is incredibly important.

Local governments offer tax incentives because big businesses attract smaller businesses which then pay higher taxes.