Another successful addition to the range of financial books written by Robert T. Kiyosaki together with Sharon L. Lechter, Who Took My Money is a worthy read. It is divided into 2 main parts.
The 1st aims to address the importance of having a synergy of advisors as well as taking into account their different points of view.
The 2nd is about the synergy of various assets and financial forces.
Take a look at the content page below. Study it carefully, which part does it answer the question of Who Took My Money?
 (Part 1)
What should I invest in?
1. Ask a Salesperson
2. Ask a Cattle Rancher and Then Ask a Dairy Farmer
3. Ask Your Banker
4. Ask Your Insurance Agent
5. Ask The Tax Man
6. Ask a Journalist
7. Ask a Gambler
8. Ask Newton
9. Ask Father Time
 (Part 2)
Ask an Investor!
10. 4 Reasons Why Some People Can’t Become Power Investors
11. The Power of Power Investing
12. Gambling Rather Than Investing
13. How to Find Great Investments
14. How to Be a Great Investor
15. Winner or Loser?
It is obvious that the book deals more with investments rather than money loss. In my opinion, Who Took My Money is just a provocative title aimed at boosting book sales. It is human psychology, books with cheeky titles fare better than books with boring titles. If this book were to be titled ‘Investments’, it would be competing with the numerous other books already titled this way. Misleading…because Kiyosaki does not spend many pages explaining where our money is disappearing to (taxes are your single largest expense). Criticisms aside, this book is developed in an unorthodox ‘interview style’, making it both intriguing and engaging at the same time.
Rather than doing a whole summary of the book resulting in a diluted book review, I want to share something I learnt from the chapter ‘The Power of Power Investing’, which I feel is the most important chapter of the book.
Why the Rich Get Richer!
 
Conventional attitudes and wisdom lead us to be working in the E and S quadrant. Usually individuals in this group will only have 1 source of income which is their paycheck and they cannot survive prolonged periods without it. Referring to the chart, they save, reduce debt, pay off mortgage, buy paper assets first and invest in a long term retirement plan.
Turn your attention over the right side of the chart.
Instead of operating from the E-S quad, the rich operate in the B-I quad. Instead of using their own money & time to invest, the rich also use other people’s money and other people’s time and money! Instead of investing in paper assets first, the rich invest in Business, Real Estate followed by paper assets last.
Professional Investors use various forms of leverage for their own gain. They use banks to leverage their money and keep it moving. An example would be putting 10% down payment of a piece of property and borrowing the remaining 90%. Whatever profits gained would not be shared with the banker, even though the banker has 90% of the risk. Bankers would collect interest, which is paid by the tenants.
While people on the left side of the chart work alone, people working on the right side of the chart have a whole team of advisors working together, ensuring their money is properly managed, leveraged and protected. Essentially, people on the left side PARK their money while those on the right side ACCELERATE their money, ensuring rapid growth.
‘This is the basic plan that the richest investors in the world follow.’
~Big Words from Robert T. Kiyosaki
- menofwords.com-
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The rest is here:
Who Took My Money?
SEARCH ENGINE KEYWORD RESULTS :
I am on day 23 of my internet marketing career and already I’ve replaced the income from my J-O-B.
That’s right.
In just under a month, my income is at (actually slightly above) what I was making as an ‘E – employee’ at The Rich Dad Company.
What does that say about the education I received while working for Robert and Kim Kiyosaki for the last six years? To me it says that I am one of THE LUCKIEST people on the planet.
Not only did I have the opportunity to study side-by-side with Robert, Kim and the rest of the Rich Dad team, I got the opportunity to jump out into the real world and put that education to work.
One of the most significant things I’ve learned so far, is the power of social proof.
What is social proof?
It is when someone well known in the circles you are looking to be successful in endorses you. I have an advantage over most others having Robert and Kim behind me.
However, social proof can come from anyone. And it is often just as powerful.
Check out this video Nic Mitchell made (without my knowledge!) and posted on YouTube.
Now THAT demonstrates the power of social proof. And the power of leading with the giving hand. Nic didn’t ask for anything in return (although, I have recorded a response video that he does not know about yet).
See the original post here:
The Power Of Social Proof
We just got out of a meeting with Robert and Kim where I learned a valuable lesson. The relationship between a person’s need and their power.
So, here is how I understand it: when your need is high, such as you are in a position where you need the money, or need the job, or need a favor, you power is, as a result, low.
*Geek Alert*
I kept thinking about the scene in Star Wars Episode IV where Luke has to sell his land speeder because he is about to leave the planet forever and head off to Alderan with Obi Won Kanobi.
He is disappointed at the price his speeder demands due to the fact that a new model was just released. His power in the negotiation was very low because his need was very high.
I have experienced the same thing, but on the other side of the deal.
When I walk into a car dealership, I am constantly talking to myself, saying “You don’t really need this car. It is just fine if you leave here driving the same car you did when you came in.”
When I am in that frame of mind, my power shoots through the roof! There is no pressure. The sales person has nothing on me because I am more than willing to walk away.
When you are negotiating a sale, or attempting to recruit someone into your business, being a low need gives you all the power.
Here is the original:
Need vs. Power
Besides money, a wealthy woman has some qualities that serve as guideposts to make sure she’s always walking toward wealth rather than away from it. This month’s readers each had one or more of these traits out of alignment.
Here are the eight qualities and how they can translate into financial success:
Harmony and balance. Harmony is the agreement between what you think, say, and do. Balance is the state of stability in which you’re able to make sound judgments that will enhance your financial security. When you use a loan for in vitro fertilization that will leave you so deeply in debt that it would be difficult to care for your new child, you forsake harmony. Aligning your thoughts, words, and actions will put you on a path to balance—and emotional and financial well-being.
Wisdom and courage. The ability to make (not just think about) sensible decisions that respect your needs takes wisdom, the voice of experience that’s inside each woman. Courage, the catalyst that creates harmony by uniting our thoughts with our actions, is what lets us assert our opinions confidently. To tell your mother that you love her but can’t ruin your financial life to save hers requires wisdom and courage.
Generosity and happiness. True generosity must benefit both parties. No woman can control her destiny if she doesn’t give to herself as much as she gives of herself. That’s why I so often caution you not to cosign loans or deplete your emergency cash savings to bail out someone. While those acts seem helpful, they leave you financially at risk. Happiness manifests itself through generosity—when, for example, a woman makes donations that help others yet don’t deplete her.
Cleanliness and beauty. Removing clutter and chaos from our lives brings clarity, which makes it easier to achieve what we want. From emptying closets of unused stuff to streamlining your wallet, cleanliness is a sign that you’re in control. And by bringing the first seven qualities into your life, you feel beautiful.
When you commit to finding harmony and balance, you have the courage to make wise decisions that are as generous to you as they are to others. This leads to deep, unwavering happiness and brings beauty into your life. I wish this for the women who wrote to me this month, and I wish it for you.
Adapted from Suze Orman’s latest book, Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny (Spiegel & Grau)
Continued here:
8 Qualities of a Wealthy Woman
I continue to be amazed at the turn-outs for games and the energy everyone brings to games. We had 11 people for the October 20th Twin Cities Rich Dads and Moms Cashflow Club and for the very first time, both games played were Cashflow 202. People in attendance were regulars James Greelish of Worcester REI, Bob Kay, Terry Fairley, Danielle Rocheford, Bill Holmlund, Herb and Lee Johnson of Beko Investments and Worcester REI. Here for the second time was Ann La Roche and first timers playing with us were Greg Aldrich of Impact Networth, Kim Shreffler and Gus Martino. Like many of us, Kim and Greg are both real estate investors. So once again in Leominster, we had 11 people.
Playing on table 1 were Bill Holmlund, Bob Kay, Ann La Roche, Danielle Rocheford, and Lee Johnson (myself). Our table did a ton of partnering on deals. I personally partnered on no less than 5 deals! Some deals I did myself and some deals took everyone at the table to put together. In some cases, the person drawing the card had little cash and the other 4 people all wanted to participate. Instead of fighting for the deal, we each agreed to reduce our stakes and keep cash on hand to do more deals. Remember, Cash is king.
I started with what probably is the worst portfolio, which is stock only, and included overpriced purchases of MYT4U and OK4U. Generally, both tank and I don’t make anything on them but this time I actually made something small on one of them.
Additionally, this time I had owned no businesses, had no royalty income, etc. It was all real estate. Considering that we started playing about 6:30PM and there was a lot of talk and recording of deals, etc., the last person got out of the Rat Race by 9:45 PM. I got out first of the Rat Race first but I was not the first to win.
I started with just my savings and monthly cash flow, which is okay for the engineer. Some others started with cash and cash flow so I felt confident starting (and staying) with big deals.
Almost immediately, I partnered 50-50 on an 8-plex, taking a bank loan for part of my share of the down payment and a few “months” later, sold it to a plex buyer that made both owners happy because we both pocketed $33K. That took care of my bank loan that had grown to $16K and paid off my credit card and retail debt. My cash flow had dropped to about $1000 per month but because of the sale, it jumped back to nearly $3000 per month. And I still had cash that allowed me to buy duplexes and the like with what I would previously have considers large down payments, and still have cash. I even was able to sell a option.
I find it rather ironic that with my cash flow growing past $6000 and $7000 and with cash growing at one point to $140,000 +, because of deals I completed on my own or as a partner, my cash shrank to $680. And then I got downsized. However, because of my cashflow (substantial and not negative), I was able to borrow $4000 to cover the short-fall.
And it was control, dealmaking, and ability to negotiate and cooperate that enabled me to get out. For the longest time, I was the only one with all risk insurance and therefore everyone wanted me to control the deal which meant therefore I could sell when I needed cash. However, I also looked at others situations when talking about selling which won me trust on future deals. I joined a deal when I drew a card for a 1031 exchange. My fee for transferring it was to join the new deal with Danielle for a portion of what was now a 16 unit apartment; so they didn’t have to pay me any money to buy the card, I took a portion of the deal AND became the general partner because of my all risk insurance.
The final deal that got me out was a 1031 exchange deal in a market card. I was the managing partner/trustee/manager or the property on large property that I owned 75% of it before the exchange. Bill paid me $4000 (which covered my bank loan) and I kept enough enough of a percentage to keep cash flow that would put me at passive income being 2X expenses. That exactly worked out to giving up 25%, receiving $4000 and getting a substantial increase in passive income. It cost Danielle nothing, she still had 25% of the new deal and Bill because general partner because he now had all risk insurance.
Within another “month” or two, Bob joined me on the Fast Track, followed by Ann, Danielle and Bill. There were some business buyouts and I started two franchises and actually had one franchisee, which again shows the power of working together. Bob won first, and then Ann and I won almost simultaneously. We stopped at this point because Bill was the last person on the Fast Track and he would have won in probably 3 more rolls.
And this was all by 9:45PM!
I’ll try to record the number of months (paychecks, etc.) I get next month so I can show the number of months to translate into life.
On the other table, James and Greg both pursued a strategy of heavy negative cash flow. As a result, nobody partnered on deals. Gus got out of the Rat Race first about the time that most of us on the table I played on had won already on the Fast Track.
This got me thinking about the power of partnering on deals. Had there been a pattern of partnering instead of borrowing large sums and paying out more than one receives because of negative cash flow, I have no doubt that everyone would have succeeded and exited the Rat Race sooner. That doesn’t mean negative cash flow is always bad but it needs to be a measured, educated response and fit with your risk tolerance. I’ve played both ways and I’ve certainly done the former in real life and am actively pursuing the later in real life. Because of the results I’ve been experiencing, I’m finding that partnering is maybe the most powerful way to get out where everyone goes for the ride.
Original post:
Lessons from October 20th 2007
