Rich Dad Poor Dad is a starting point for anyone looking to gain control of their financial future

3. Organize smart people.
Intelligent people are those who work with or hire a
person who is more intelligent than they are. When you
need advice, make sure you choose your advisor wisely.
There is a lot to learn, but the rewards can be astronomical. If you 
do not want to learn those skills, then being a type-one investor is highly 
recommended. It is what you know that is your greatest wealth. It is what 
you do not know that is your greatest risk. 
There is always risk, so learn to manage risk instead of avoiding it.

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115
Chapter Six
LESSON 6:
 WORK TO LEARN —
DON'T WORK FOR MONEY
Job security meant everything to my educated dad. 
Learning meant everything to my rich dad. 
A few years ago, I granted an interview with a newspaper in
Singapore. The young female reporter was on time, and the interview 
got under way immediately. We sat in the lobby of a luxurious hotel, 
sipping coffee and discussing the purpose of my visit to Singapore.
I was to share the platform with Zig Ziglar. He was speaking on
motivation, and I was speaking on “The Secrets of the Rich.”
“Someday, I would like to be a best-selling author like you,” she 
said. I had seen some of the articles she had written for the paper, and
I was impressed. She had a tough, clear style of writing. Her articles 
held a reader’s interest.
“You have a great style,” I said in reply. “What holds you back 
from achieving your dream?”
“My work does not seem to go anywhere,” she said quietly.
“Everyone says that my novels are excellent, but nothing happens.
So I keep my job with the paper. At least it pays the bills. Do you 
have any suggestions?”
“Yes, I do,” I said brightly. “A friend of mine here in Singapore 
runs a school that trains people to sell. He runs sales-training courses 
for many of the top corporations here in Singapore, and I think 
attending one of his courses would greatly enhance your career.”

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Chapter Six: Lesson 6
116
She stiffened. “Are you saying I should go to school to learn to sell?”
I nodded.
“You aren’t serious, are you?”
Again, I nodded. “What is wrong with that?” I was now back- 
pedaling. She was offended by something, and now I was wishing
I had not said anything. In my attempt to be helpful, I found myself
defending my suggestion. “I have a master’s degree in English 
Literature. Why would I go to school to learn to be a salesperson?
I am a professional. I went to school to be trained in a profession so
I would not have to be a sales person. I hate salespeople. All they 
want is money. So tell me why I should study sales?” She was packing 
her briefcase. The interview was over.
On the coffee table sat a copy of an earlier best-selling book I wrote.
I picked it up as well as the notes she had jotted down on her legal pad. 
“Do you see this?” I said pointing to her notes.
She looked down at her notes. “What?” she said, confused.
Again, I pointed deliberately to her notes. On her pad she had 
written: “Robert Kiyosaki, best-selling author.”
“It says best-selling author, not best-writing author,” I said quietly.
Her eyes widened.
“I am a terrible writer,” I said. “You are a great writer. I went to
sales school. You have a master’s degree. Put them together and you get
a ‘best-selling author’ and a ‘best-writing author.’”
Anger flared from her eyes. “I’ll never stoop so low as to learn how 
to sell. People like you have no business writing. I am a professionally 
trained writer and you are a salesman. It is not fair,” she fumed.
She put the rest of her notes away and hurried out through the large 
glass doors into the humid Singapore morning.
At least she gave me a fair and favorable write-up the next morning.
The world is filled with smart, talented, educated, and gifted people. We 
meet them every day. They are all around us.
A few days ago, my car was not running well. I pulled into a garage, 
and the young mechanic had it fixed in just a few minutes. He knew 
what was wrong by simply listening to the engine. I was amazed.

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Rich Dad Poor Dad
117
I am constantly shocked at how little talented people earn. I have 
met brilliant, highly educated people who earn less than $20,000 a year. 
A business consultant who specializes in the medical trade was telling 
me how many doctors, dentists, and chiropractors struggle financially. 
All this time, I thought that when they graduated, the dollars would 
pour in. It was this business consultant who gave me the phrase: “They 
are one skill away from great wealth.”
What this phrase means is that most people need only to learn
and master one more skill and their income would jump exponentially. 
I have mentioned before that financial intelligence is a synergy of 
accounting, investing, marketing, and law. Combine those four 
technical skills and making money with money is easier than most 
people would believe. When it comes to money, the only skill most 
people know is to work hard.
The classic example of a synergy of skills was that young writer for 
the newspaper. If she diligently learned the skills of sales and marketing, 
her income would jump dramatically. If I were her, I would take some 
courses in advertising copywriting as well as sales. Then, instead of 
working at the newspaper, I would seek a job at an advertising agency. 
Even if it were a cut in pay, she would learn how to communicate in 
short-cuts that are used in successful advertising. She also would spend 
time learning public relations, an important skill. She would learn how 
to get millions in free publicity. Then, at night and on weekends, she 
could be writing her great novel. When it was finished, she would be 
better able to sell her book. Then, in a short while, she could be a “best-
selling author.”
When I came out with my first book, If You Want To Be Rich and 
Happy, Don’t Go to School, a publisher suggested I change the title to 
The Economics of Education. I told the publisher that, with a title like 
that, I would sell two books: one to my family, and one to my best 
friend. The problem is that they would expect it for free. The obnoxious 
title, If You Want To Be Rich and Happy, Don’t Go to School, was chosen 
because we knew it would get tons of publicity. I am pro-education and 
believe in education reform. If I were not pro-education, why would

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Chapter Six: Lesson 6
118
I continue to press for changing our antiquated educational system? So 
I chose a title that would get me on more TV and radio shows, simply 
because I was willing to be controversial. Many people thought I was a 
fruitcake, but the book sold and sold.
When I graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 
1969, my educated dad was happy. Standard Oil of California had 
hired me for its oil-tanker fleet as a third mate. The pay was low
compared with my classmates, but it was okay for a first real job 
after college. My starting pay was about $42,000 a year, including 
overtime, and I only had to work for seven months. I had five 
months of vacation. If I had wanted to, I could have taken the run to 
Vietnam with a subsidiary shipping company and easily doubled my 
pay instead of taking five months of vacation.
I had a great career ahead of me, yet I resigned after six months 
with the company and joined the Marine Corps to learn how to fly. 
My educated dad was devastated. Rich dad congratulated me.
In school and in the workplace, the popular opinion is the idea of 
specialization: that is, in order to make more money or get promoted, 
you need to specialize. That is why medical doctors immediately 
begin to seek a specialty such as 
orthopedics or pediatrics. The same
is true for accountants, architects, 
lawyers, pilots, and others.
My educated dad believed in the same 
dogma. That is why he was thrilled when 
he eventually achieved his doctorate. He often admitted that schools 
reward people who study more and more about less and less.
Rich dad encouraged me to do exactly the opposite. “You want 
to know a little about a lot” was his suggestion. That is why for years 
I worked in different areas of his companies. For a while, I worked in 
his accounting department. Although I would probably never have 
been an accountant, he wanted me to learn via osmosis. Rich dad 
knew I would pick up jargon and a sense of what is important and 
what is not. I also worked as a bus boy and construction worker as