Robert Kiyosaki Explained

Robert Kiyosaki
Birth Name:Robert Toru Kiyosaki
Birth Date:8 April 1947
Birth Place:Hilo, Territory of Hawaii, U.S.
Occupation:Businessman, author
Subject:Personal finance, business investing
Years Active:1973–1994
1997–present
Notableworks:Rich Dad Poor Dad

Robert Toru Kiyosaki (born April 8, 1947) is an American businessman and author, known for the Rich Dad Poor Dad series of personal finance books. He founded the Rich Dad Company, which provides personal finance and business education through books and videos, and Rich Global LLC, which filed for bankruptcy in 2012.[1]

Kiyosaki was sued in a class action suit filed by attendees of his seminars,[2] [3] and is the subject of investigative documentaries by the CBC, WTAE-TV and CBS News. In January 2024, Kiyosaki was more than $1 billion dollars in debt.[4] [5]

Early life and family

Kiyosaki was born in 1947 in Hilo, Territory of Hawaii, into a family of Japanese descent.[6] His father, Ralph Kiyosaki, was an educator, Hawaii's superintendent of schools, and a lieutenant governor candidate of the Republican Party.[7] [8] His mother, Marjorie Kiyosaki, was a nurse.

Kiyosaki graduated from Hilo High School,[9] from which he was nearly expelled due to poor grades.[8]

Early career

In 1977, Kiyosaki started a company called "Rippers" that marketed nylon and Velcro wallets.[10] The company eventually went bankrupt, and he took a job as a sales associate for Xerox until June 1978.

In the 1980s, Kiyosaki became a motivational speaker in San Diego who ran a course on Erhard Seminars Training (EST) techniques called Money and You, which he attended in 1974 from the course's creator, Marshall Thurber. Thurber transferred the business to Kiyosaki and D.C. Cordova in 1984. They expanded the course beyond the U.S., including to Australia.[8] The course at one point had tens of thousands of students internationally. The business nearly collapsed in Australia in October 1993 after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Four Corners aired a documentary about emotional abuse in the course of the Money and You program. Kiyosaki said the program was "unfair" considered suing the ABC before deciding against it. He left the business in 1994.[8]

Financial education career

In 1993, Kiyosaki published his first book, If You Want to Be Rich and Happy, Don't Go to School. In his book, he encouraged parents not to send their children to college and instead to enter the real estate business.[11]

In 1997, Kiyosaki founded Cashflow Technologies, Inc., a holding company that owns and operates the Rich Dad and Cashflow brands.[12] [13] Kiyosaki created the Cashflow board and video games to educate adults and children about business and financial concepts.[14]

Kiyosaki settled a lawsuit in 2008 brought by Sharon Lechter, his former business partner, with an undisclosed sum. Lechter said Kiyosaki and his wife had enriched themselves and redirected assets in the business, which the Kiyosakis denied. She sold her stake in Rich Dad Company to them after the settlement and ended the partnership that lasted about 10 years.[15]

Other businesses

Kiyosaki's earlier two businesses (for surfing bags with Velcro fasteners and T-shirts) went bankrupt.[16]

Kiyosaki operates through a number of companies that he owns fully or in part, and through franchisee arrangements with other companies authorized to use his name for a fee.[17] This includes Rich Dad LLC, Whitney Information Network, Rich Dad Education and Rich Dad Academy.[18] The company's main revenues come from franchisees of the Rich Dad seminars that are conducted by independent individuals using Kiyosaki's brand name.[19]

In 2012, Kiyosaki's company, Rich Global LLC, filed for bankruptcy and was ordered to pay $23.7 million to The Learning Annex and its founder because Kiyosaki had used The Learning Annex for speaking opportunities.[20] [21] [22] Mike Sullivan, the CEO of Rich Dad Company, one of at least 10 companies through which Kiyosaki conducts business, said Rich Global LLC had been dormant for years. At bankruptcy, the company had nearly $26 million in liabilities and $1.8 million in assets.[20]

Business and financial advice

See main article: Rich Dad Poor Dad.

Kiyosaki has authored more than 26 books including Rich Dad Poor Dad, which has been translated into dozens of languages. As of 2017, nearly 40 million copies of the book had been sold.[23] He said his books were an advertisement for his higher-priced seminars.[3]

Kiyosaki's financial and business teachings claim that financial independence can be achieved through passive income.[24] [25] He also claims that wealth cannot be achieved from going to school and obtaining a traditional job.[26]

He advocates for using what he calls "good debt" as leverage to buy financial assets such as real estate.[27] Additionally, he is a strong proponent of buying gold and silver, often referring to them as "God's money."[28] In 2006 and 2007, Kiyosaki's Rich Dad seminars continued to promote real estate as a sound investment, just before their prices came crashing down.[29]

In 2010, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Marketplace broadcast a documentary on scams that were being perpetuated by Kiyosaki's company in Canada in the guise of "Rich Dad" seminars.[30] Investments in trailers and trailer parks, which seminar instructors claimed to be evidence of success, were found to be barren and unused land.[14]

Also in 2010, Allan Roth of CBS News documented what occurred when he attended one of Rich Dad's free seminars and dissected some of the tactics employed.[31]

WTAE-TV, the ABC television station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, produced another critical segment about Kiyosaki in 2013.[32]

Kiyosaki's advice has also been criticized for emphasizing anecdotes and no concrete advice on how readers should proceed or work.[33]

Personal life

Kiyosaki divorced from his first wife when he was 32.[34]

Kiyosaki met his second wife and business partner Kimberly "Kim" Kiyosaki (née Meyer) in 1984, and they got married in 1986.[34] [8] They amicably divorced in 2017.[35] When asked about his net worth, Kiyosaki claimed to be more than $1 billion in debt.[36]

Political views

Kiyosaki endorsed and supported Republican candidate Donald Trump for the 2016 presidential elections.[37] Kiyosaki had previously co-authored two books with Trump.[38]

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. News: Kim . Susanna . 12 October 2012 . 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' Author Files for Bankruptcy for His Company . 18 July 2018 . ABC News.
  2. News: Olen . Helaine . This Legal Dispute Says Everything About the Shadiness of Personal Finance Gurus . 18 July 2018 . . 11 February 2016.
  3. Web site: Marketwatch – Rich dad's seminar's deceptive marketplace . February 24, 2010 . https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/dv6feHB0AE4. 2021-12-12 . live. CBC. 13 November 2017. YouTube.
  4. Web site: 2024-01-06 . 'Rich Dad Poor Dad' Author Robert Kiyosaki on His $1.2 Billion Debt: 'If I Go Bust, the Bank Goes Bust' . 2024-11-23 . Yahoo Entertainment . https://web.archive.org/web/20240106195225/https://www.yahoo.com/web/20240106195225/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/rich-dad-poor-dad-author-171417925.html . January 6, 2024 . en-US.
  5. Web site: Lang . Hannah Erin . 2024-01-03 . Robert Kiyosaki, author of 'Rich Dad Poor Dad,' says he's more than $1 billion in debt — but that's 'not my problem' . 2024-01-09 . MarketWatch . EN-US.
  6. News: 'Rich Dad Poor Dad' author Robert Kiyosaki appeals for financial literacy. Mai. Yoshikawa. January 18, 2018. The Japan Times. Kyodo.
  7. Zia . Hoyt. April 2006 . Rich son, poor son . . Hawaii .
  8. Carbonara . Peter . Caplin. Joan. January 1, 2003 . 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? . Money.
  9. News: Investor, author of 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' lists Hawaii home on edge of ocean for $7.35M. The Sacramento Bee. Caraccio. David. July 25, 2022.
  10. Web site: Robert Kiyosaki . Hawaii Business . April 22, 2016 . Youn . Jacy . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160923003402/http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/robert-kiyosaki/ . September 23, 2016.
  11. Book: Kiyosaki. Robert. If You Want to Be Rich & Happy Don't Go to School: Ensuring Lifetime Security for Yourself and Your Children. registration. 1 April 1993. Aslan publications. 978-0-944031-38-4. 2.
  12. Web site: Entity Details – Secretary of State, Nevada . Nevada Secretary of State . 2014-07-10.
  13. Web site: Trademark Electronic Search System: RICH DAD . . 2014-07-10 . July 25, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130725031104/http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4002:hagh71.2.6 . dead.
  14. News: Road to rich dad . 23 November 2020 . CBC.
  15. News: 2008-09-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20080906224930/http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/2008/09/04/20080904biz-richdad0904.html?&wired. 'Rich Dad' partners settle suit, call it quits. dead. The Arizona Republic. Harris. Craig. 2008-09-04.
  16. News: 1 July 2015 . Interview with Robert Kiyosaki . CNN Money.
  17. News: Jaffe . Chuck . 10 February 2006 . 'Teach Me to Trade' seminar is a lesson in futility . 26 November 2018 . MarketWatch.
  18. News: Jaffe . Chuck . 13 July 2017 . 'Rich Dad Academy' a poor choice for investors . 26 November 2018 . MarketWatch.
  19. Web site: Robert Kiyosaki Net Worth: Exploring the Financial Success of the Rich Dad Poor Dad Author .
  20. News: 12 October 2012 . Robert Kiyosaki files for bankruptcy, again . 13 November 2017 . ABC News.
  21. News: Roth . Allan . 2013-01-20 . Rich Dad, Poor Dad's bankrupt company . 2020-09-26 . CBS News.
  22. News: https://web.archive.org/web/20121017234634/http://www.nypost.com/f/pagesix/rich_dad_bankrupt_dad_UNJgqVDYCEthW1TEAYYwXN. Rich 'Dad,' bankrupt Dad. dead. 2012-10-17. October 10, 2012. New York Post.
  23. News: Shiller . Robert J. . 'Gut Feelings' Are Driving the Markets . September 24, 2024 . The New York Times . January 2, 2020.
  24. Web site: Yardney . Michael . Do Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad Poor Dad" lessons still apply? Here's what I learned from my interview with him . Property Update . 5 January 2023 . 7 October 2022.
  25. Web site: Silva . Derek . Robert Kiyosaki - Everything You Need to Know . SmartAsset . 5 January 2023 . en . 21 September 2022.
  26. Web site: Chris Schnabel . December 1, 2015 . Robert Kiyosaki: Traditional school is useless . 19 January 2016 . Rappler.
  27. Web site: Robert Kiyosaki Says Good Debt Makes You Richer — Here's How Nasdaq .
  28. Web site: Gold is God's Money, Says Author Kiyosaki . 2024-06-23 . www.bloomberg.com . 2019-10-21.
  29. News: Jaffe . Chuck . Stupid Investment of the Week . . 26 November 2018.
  30. News: January 29, 2010. Road to Rich Dad: Who's getting rich off Rich Dad?. Marketplace. CBC. 2010-01-31.
  31. News: Rich Dad Education - The Ultimate Emotional Investment . 26 November 2018 . CBS News . 4 March 2010.
  32. News: 'Rich Dad' author's seminars cost thousands, but not everyone gets rich . 18 July 2018 . . 9 May 2013 . Paul . Van Osdol.
  33. News: Writer ignores critics of his self-help success . Terrence . Sing . July 13, 2003.
  34. Book: Kiyosaki . Robert T. . If you want to be rich & happy don't go to school . 1992 . Excellerated Learning Publishing . 9780646079370.
  35. Web site: Byrne . Brendan . 2024-06-10 . Robert Kiyosaki Net Worth: A Comprehensive Overview of The Rich Dad, Poor Dad Author's Wealth . 2024-06-20 . ValueWalk . en-US.
  36. Web site: 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' author reveals he's $1 billion in debt—but says going bust would 'not be his problem' . 2024-06-20 . Fortune . en.
  37. Web site: Why America Needs Donald Trump . Jetset Magazine . 20 October 2015 . 21 November 2015 . Kiyosaki, Robert.
  38. Book: Trump . Donald . Kiyosaki . Robert T. . McIver . Meredith . Lechter . Sharon L. . Why we want you to be rich : two men, one message . Rich Press Distributed by Publishers Group West . New York Berkeley, CA . 2006 . 978-1-933914-02-2 . 71305016.

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