Robert Kiyosaki opened my eyes!
The Cash Flow Quadrant makes perfect sense
Robert Kiyosaki is the gifted man behind the Rich Dad Poor Dad book series. He is an ultra rich investor, author and educator. And he is a very likeable person too.
Like few others, his works have been a great source of wisdom and inspiration. I can honestly say that Robert Kiyosaki´s great book The Business School for People who Like Helping People. The Eight Hidden Values of a Network Marketing Business, Other Than Making Money really opened my eyes to the whole concept of Cashflow Quadrant and its implications.
In brief, in the Cashflow quadrant´s upper right hand corner there is an E for employee. Just below is an S for self-employed or small business owner. Both represent the left side of the cashflow quadrant and people on this side have very limited possibilities of ever becoming rich, according to Robert Kiyosaki.
For obvious reasons it is hard to invest the time and money into a business of your own if you are employed. And as a small business owner too you are limited to your own efforts. If you do not work, you do not make any money.
The goal therefore, according to Robert Kiyosaki - and provided you want to become rich - is to shift to the right hand side of the quadrant. In the upper right hand corner there is a B for business owner and below it there is an I for investor. Here is where you can let other people´s efforts profit you. And in the I-quadrant, you invest so that your money works for you and eventually make you ultra rich. Robert Kiyosaki is one of the ultra rich people who, like his friend Donald Trump, can say "I have owed millions, and I have owened millions."
Most people are in the E-quadrant. Why? Many like the "security" of a job. It is often seen as imprisoning, but let´s face it, most people do not like the responsibility that comes with owning their life, their time and their destiny. And most people are alien to the idea of delayed gratification. That is one of the most important concepts that Robert Kiyosaki teaches. It is far easier to stay within your comfort zone and complain than to dream big and try to realize whatever you dream of!
The E-quadrant gives you limited freedom, money and influence on your life. On the other hand, you get a salary for your hours worked (Or at work, Everybody does not necessarily work because they are at work...) The E-quadrant is predictable and gives people a false sense of security.
In addition, a lot of people like their jobs. They interact and socialize there and get a sense of identity and worth from what they perform there and so on. It is a myth that everybody wants to quit their jobs. (Or J.O.B.s as some say; "Just Over Broke") Of course they don´t!
What Robert Kiyosaki points out is that no matter how hard you work or how many hours of overtime you put in, you will never get rich from your job.
In the S-quadrant there are possibilities of creating wealth, however. But then again, if you do not work, there is no income. Consequently, the S-quadrant is also limited. Additionally, the reality is that most small business owners work tremendously hard and long hours. If you have previously been employed and start your own business, you will most likely spend much more time working than ever before. But most small business owners do that out of passion and a sense of gratification in working for themselves. Being their own boss. All this is explained in detail by Kiyosaki in his books.
What then is the big difference between the S- and the B-quadrant? First of all, it is a fairly low percentage who ever reach the B-quadrant (business owner). Those who do let others work for them. That is the biggest difference. Accordingly, it is possible to make money while others take care of your business.
Robert Kiyosaki points out time and time again in one of his great books The Business School for People who Like Helping People , that the journey from the S to the B-quadrant is not so much physical as mental. You have to believe that it is OK to let others work for you and let go of the belief that an employment is the only right way to make a living. Business philosopher Jim Rohn often points out that "Wages will make you a living (which is fine). But profits will make you a fortune (which is super fine)!
From there the step to the I-quadrant is not hard, Robert Kiyosaki claims. "I" stands for investor and simply means that you invest in for instance property and make profit from that.
According to Robert Kiyosaki, the I-quadrant is the ultimate wealth builder and it also gives the investor the most freedom. What many fail to realize however, is that it takes hard work to get there. In many cases you invest thousands of hours of works for years and years and get no financial benefit at all until years later. Most people cannot accept that idea. The concept of delayed gratification is totally alien and as a result frightning.
What is there to fear?
1. Waste of time.
2. Waste of money.
3. Failure.
4. Ridicule from others.
All the above are possible losses if you are oriented towards immediate rewards. But if you realize that there are lessons to be learned from everything we go through and that experience is invaluable and applicable to everything in life, then there is no reason to hold back. That is the concept of delayed gratification. Robert Kiyosaki has lost his riches on several occations, but I do not think he was ever unsuccessful. It is a matter of the right mindset.
The seed you sow, water and look after today will be reaped when the fruit is ripe. Robert Kiyosaki´s rich dad used to say:
"The richest people in the world look for and build networks, everyone else looks for work".
In conclusion, anyone who is truly determined can change quadrant. You do not have to be Bill Gates or Henry Ford. It is possible through a solid networking business, which Robert Kiyosaki endorses.
And bear in mind that the journey is a mental, emotional and spiritual one. All in all, changing quadrant is essentially the best thing to strive for if you want to become ultra rich. Albert Einstein said: "Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value."
If you do, call yourself successful!
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