Is this what you need school to really prepare kids for the real world? "Study hard, get good grades, and you'll find a job that pays well and has a lot of other benefits," my parents used to tell me.Their goal in life was to put my sister and I through college, thinking that we would have the best chance of being successful in life. In 1976, when I honorably received my degree in accounting from Florida State University at the top of my class, my parents achieved their goal and counted it as the proudest achievement of their lives.I was quickly hired by one of the "Big Eight" accounting firms under the "Master Plan", so I sensed early on that my long career and retirement would be a smooth path without much change.

My husband, Michael, walked the same path.We all come from hard working families with modest lifestyles and a strong work ethic.Michael also graduated with honors from a prestigious university, and he has also studied twice: once as an engineer and the other in law school.After that, he was quickly hired by a well-known law firm in Washington, specializing in patent law.Like me, his future looks bright, his career path is well established, and he has full retirement security. Although we are very successful in our careers, it should be said that we have met or even exceeded the hopes put forward by our parents at the beginning, but life is not as once and for all as they originally portrayed for us.Due to various reasons in the new economic era, we have all changed jobs several times, which made the occupational pension plan that seemed so attractive at the beginning almost impossible, and we can only earn our own pension.

Michael and I are happily married and have three wonderful children.As I write these words, two of them are in college and the other is starting high school.We spend a lot of money hoping to give our children the best education possible. One day in 1996, the youngest child came home from school disillusioned, saying he was fed up and didn't want to study anymore. "Why should I spend my time learning things that I'll never use in real life?" he protested. Without thinking, I replied, "Because if you don't study well, you won't get into college." "But I don't want to go to college," he said. How can you get rich if you can’t get a good job?”

The son smiled, shaking his head slowly with a little boredom.We've had many conversations like this before, and each time it boils down to this conclusion.He lowered his head and rolled his eyes. Obviously, my mother's words of wisdom failed again in front of deaf ears. Despite his intelligence and strong will, the son was a polite and respectful young man. "Mom," he began again, this time it was my turn to listen to the speech, "keep up with the times! You look around, the richest people don't get rich because they're educated, look at Michael.Jordan and Madonna, look at Bill.Gates, who dropped out of Harvard and founded Microsoft, is now the richest man in America, and he's in his 30s.Even with the "unconventional" label, he still owns baseball diamonds that cost $4 million a year. "

We were all silent for a long time. I thought it was my turn to pass on the advice my parents gave me to my son, but I didn't realize that the world had changed, and that advice might need to change too. When my efforts lasted for about ten minutes, I found that I could no longer use the words my parents persuaded me to convince my son, because the times have indeed changed, and many examples of reality tell us: get a good education and good grades Success is no longer guaranteed.And kids seem to realize this before we do. "Mom," the son continued his speech, "I don't want to work as hard as you and Dad in the future. You made a lot of money and we lived in a big house with a lot of toys, but at the same time each of you Huge bills to pay every month. If I follow your advice, I will be like you in the future, working extra hard just to pay more taxes and have more debt. There is no stable job in the world right now , life ebbs and flows and is unpredictable. I believe you also know that college graduates are earning much less money today than when you graduated. Look at doctors, they are earning far less than they used to. I know I can no longer rely on social security or the company's pension, I want to find a new way out." After a moment of silence, I think he is right, he really needs a new answer, and so do I, my parents' advice may be right What worked for someone born in 1945 might not work for someone born in this rapidly changing era.I could no longer simply repeat to my children: "Go to school, get good grades, and find a safe, secure job that will support you for the rest of your life." I knew I had to find a new path and show it to my kids.

As a mother and an accountant, I'm concerned about the lack of economic literacy my kids learn in school.Many young adults today have credit cards before they reach high school, but have never taken a class on money or how to invest it, let alone understand the complex and intriguing business of credit cards.Without sufficient financial intelligence and an understanding of how money works, they are not ready to enter the real world that awaits them, where being able to spend money is valued more than being able to save money. When my oldest son fell into credit card debt with no recourse during his freshman year of college, I helped him deal with those credit cards, but he was in the same trouble again before long.This incident made me always want to find a way to help me teach my children about financial affairs and develop their financial intelligence.

One day last year, my husband called me from the office: "I have a guy here who I think you should meet. His name is Robert T. Kiyosaki, he's a businessman and investor, and he's going to Here I am applying for a patent for a new educational product, which I think is exactly what you are looking for." Since my husband Michael was so impressed with Cash Flow, a new educational product developed by Robert T. Kiyosaki, he arranged for us to take part in a test run of a prototype of the product.Since it was an educational game, I also asked my 19-year-old daughter, a freshman at a local university, if she would like to go along, and she said yes.

About 15 people, divided into three groups, took part in the game. Michael is right, this is exactly what I was looking for.It looks like a game of "Strong Hand" or "Monopoly," with a big, stylishly dressed mouse in the center.But it's not as simple as those games where there are two paths on the game board: one inside and one outside.The object of the game is to get out of the inner road—Robert calls it the "rat race"—to the outer road, or "fast lane," and ultimately realize his "life dream" with the proceeds from his investments.Fast Lane, as Robert designed it, is as good a game as "Strong Hand" or "Monopoly" shows how rich people do in life. Before becoming rich, these games do not seem to be able to help and guide people's economic life except to increase people's unrealistic dreams of wealth and pure entertainment.Yet when Robert went on to explain the meaning of the "rat race" to us, I was immediately hooked.

"If you look at the life of the average educated, hard-working person, you see a very similar path. A child is born, goes to school, proud parents are excited because their child is doing very well, and Goes to a prestigious college. Then the kid graduates, maybe goes on to further education, and then is programmed to do one of the following: Get a safe, steady job, maybe a doctor or a lawyer, or join the military or go into government .He started earning money, the credit cards started pouring in, and he started shopping, if he hadn't already done so before." "With the money in his hand, the kid went where other young people like to go. There he started to get girlfriends, they dated, and soon got married. Now life is good, because in modern society, both husband and wife work, two jobs. Income is heaven. They feel successful and have a bright future, so they decide to buy a house, a car, take a vacation and have a baby. And then comes the problem: a lot of money is needed. The happy couple decides that their career is the best important, and started working harder, seeking promotions and raises. The raises came true, and the birth of another child made them need a bigger house, and they had to work harder. They became model employees, You can even say that there is a dedication to the company. They go to school to get more training so that they can make more money, maybe they work two jobs. Their income has increased, but at the same time it has a negative effect on their Taxes on income and property taxes on their new homes went up, and so did their social security and other taxes. They got big paychecks but were confused as to where the money was going. They bought Fund and some groceries on credit cards. The kids are getting older and have more and more money for college and for their own retirement needs.

The happy couple are caught in a 'rat race' trap after turning 35.They keep working for the boss of the company, for the government by paying their taxes, for the bank by paying their home loan and credit card loan, but what awaits them is more and more debts and collection notes, so they work harder, If you acquire more debts, you will fall into the vicious circle of financial stress and cannot extricate yourself. They then advise their children to study hard, get good grades, and find a secure job or career.As for money, they have learned nothing but from those who want to take advantage of them and profit from their naivety.They work hard all their lives, and then the process repeats itself in their next generation, which is called the 'rat race'".

The only way to get out of the "rat race" is to prove that you are good at accounting and investing. You must know how difficult it is to become a master in these two difficult fields.To my amazement as a CPA who once worked in the "Big Eight" accounting firms, Robert's game was able to make learning about these two classes so much fun and exciting.In the game we try hard to get out of the "rat race", this process is designed so well that we quickly forget that we are learning. It was a fun afternoon of toy testing.My daughter also participated, and we talked about things we had never talked about before.As an accountant, it's easy to play a game with a balance sheet and a balance sheet, so I have time to help my daughter and others in our group who don't seem to have the concept. I was the first person to jump out of the "rat race" that day, and the one who completed the entire game as soon as the "final dream" was realized.I walked out in 50 minutes, although the entire playtest was three hours long.At my desk there is a banker, a businessman, a programmer and my daughter.It amazes me how little these people know about accounting and investing, which are so important in life.I don't know how they manage their finances in real life, I can understand my 19 year old daughter not knowing that, but those are adults and at least twice her age. For two hours after I stepped out of the "rat race," I watched my daughter and other highly educated adults continue to roll the dice to move their markers.While I'm glad they learned so much, I'm still amazed at the fact that adults don't even have basic knowledge of accounting and investing, how little they know about the cause-and-effect relationship between balance sheets and balance sheets, When they buy or sell assets, it is always difficult to remember that every transaction has an impact on their monthly cash flow.So I wonder how many people in the real world are struggling with their personal finances just because they learned this from Ben? "Thank God they're just playing and are just haunted by the desire to win the game," I said to myself.After Robert finished this test, he gave us some time to discuss and evaluate the "Cash Flow" game.The businessman at my table was not happy, he didn't like the game. "I don't need to know any of this," he exclaimed. "I've hired accountants, bank managers, and lawyers, and they'll tell me these things." To which Robert replied: "Do you see that there are many accountants and bank managers and lawyers and stockbrokers and real estate agents who are not rich? They know a lot and are the smartest people, but most of them are not rich .It is precisely because we do not have this knowledge ourselves that we want to seek advice from these professionals. But if one day, you are driving on the highway, stuck in traffic, struggling to get to work, and you look to the right What do you think when you see your accountant, also stuck in traffic, looking to the left and seeing your bank manager? How can they help you when they are not themselves safe?" Computer programmers are also not interested in this game."I can buy software to manage this stuff for me," he said. The bank manager was impressed: "I learned this in school before, but I never knew how to apply it in my real life. Now that I know, I want to get my life out of the 'rat race' too. " My daughter said the game touched her deeply. "I had a great time learning it. It seemed to give me a life experience ahead of time. I learned a lot about the movement of money and investing. Now I know how to choose a career that I want to pursue instead of because of something. Choose it for career safety or profit. I think I need to keep playing this game and introduce it to my friends. If we learn what this game teaches, we will be free to do and learn from our What I really want in my heart, instead of learning something else just because it is a skill that some specific job requires. If I learn these, I will no longer have to worry about job security and social security, which are most of my life. What students care about." Since most people were so excited about the game, I didn't get to wait to talk to Robert after the game, but we agreed to meet up at a later date to discuss his project further.I knew he wanted to use the game to help others learn more about economics, and I was eager to know his plans. A week later, my husband and I planned a dinner party for Robert and his wife.Even though this was our first meeting, it felt like we had known each other for years. We found that we had many things in common.We talk about everything from sports to cooking to socioeconomic issues.We talked about this changing world, and we spent a lot of time talking about the many Americans who have little or no retirement savings, and the nearly bankrupt Social Security and Medicare systems.Will my children be required to contribute to the pension of 7.5 million people in the future?We don't know if people realize how dangerous it is to live on one pension plan for the rest of their lives. Robert's main concern is the growing chasm between haves and have-nots.A self-taught, self-made entrepreneur who traveled the world and invested extensively, Robert retired of his own accord at the age of 47.He retired because he had the same concern I had for my children, but more children of course.He knew the world was changing, but education hadn't changed with it.As far as Robert is concerned, children are spending years in an outdated education system learning things they will never use and are preparing to rely on them for a world that never existed. "Today, the most dangerous advice you can give a child is: go to school, study hard, and get a safe job. It's old advice and it's bad advice, if you can see that in Asia, Europe, South America What happens, you worry as much as I do." He's convinced it's bad advice, "because if you want your kids to have a financially secure future, they can't play by the old rules of the game, which are just as dangerous as being too aggressive." I asked him what the "old rules were" ". "People like me have a completely different set of rules of the game in economic life than you. Let me ask you, what happens when a company announces a drawdown?" "People will be fired, families will be hurt, and unemployment will increase." "Yes. But what happens to a company? Especially a publicly traded joint-stock company?" I thought for a while and said, "When a downsizing is announced, the stock price of a public company usually goes up. When the cost falls, it means that the company increases the average labor productivity through automation.” "Right," he said, "and when the stock price goes up, people like me, the shareholders, get richer. That's what I mean by a different set of rules. Employees lose, but owners and investors do." Profit." Robert not only describes the difference between an employee and an employer, but also the difference between taking control of one's own destiny and giving it to someone else. "It's hard for a lot of people to understand," I said, "and they just don't think it's fair." "That's why it's not enough to say to a child, 'Go get a good education'. "It's foolish to assume that the school system will prepare your child for real life," he said.I'm not saying the current education system in America is bad at all, but at least it's far from enough, in today's world, every child needs to get more education, different education, they need to know real life The rules of the game in the game, a variety of different rules.The rich man has his rules, and the rich man's rules are a secret to the vast majority of the poor and middle class.The other 95% of the population have their rules, and these people learned them in school.This is why it is dangerous to simply say to children today: 'Study hard and get a good job'. Children today need more sophisticated education, and the current education system does not provide it. How many computers have been built or how much money has been spent in schools, but how can the education system teach something that it doesn't even know?" "So how should parents teach their children accounting? Wouldn't children be bored with things that even parents find boring? And how to teach children to invest when you yourself are a risk avoider? So we can't simply Instead of preaching, let the children play the game, let them experience it by themselves, study and discuss with them, I conclude that this is the best educational method.”Robert said. "So how do you teach kids about money and everything else we talk about?" I asked Robert. "How can we make this kind of education easy for parents, especially parents who don't understand it themselves?" "I wrote a book on this topic." He smiled and said shyly. "Where?" "In my computer, it's been there on and off for a few years now. I've been writing bits and pieces here and there, but I haven't put them together yet. I started writing it after my other book was a bestseller, but The new one is not finished, it's just fragments." It was indeed only fragments, but after I read several scattered parts later, I concluded that the book had gold worth and needed to be known, especially in this day and age, so we agreed to jointly serve as the author of Robert's book. author.When I asked Robert how much economics he wanted to teach his kids, he said it depended on the kids.As a kid, he wanted to be rich and he knew he was lucky to have a rich daddy willing to teach him. Education is the foundation of success, Robert said, and just as certain skills taught in schools are very important, so are economic skills and communication skills, if not more so. Then there are Robert's two fathers, rich dad and poor dad, who explain to him and he also uses the skills of his life. The opposition of the two fathers from concept to result provides us with an important contrast.I assisted in the editing and assembly of this book, and for any accountant reading this book, I recommend that you put aside the books you read in school and open your mind to the theory Robert offers.Although many theories challenge some long-accepted, even principled, accounting foundations, they offer a new perspective on how real investors analyze and make investment decisions. When we as parents advise our children to "go to school, study hard, get a good job", we often do it just out of cultural convention, because people always think these things are right.But when I met Robert, his mind shook me. Raised by two fathers, he was told to strive for two very different goals.His educated father advised him to work for business and his wealthy father advised him to own his own business.Both paths require education, but the subjects of education are quite different.His educated father encouraged him to be smart, and his wealthy father encouraged him to hire smart.Two fathers raises many questions.Robert's real father, that is, the "poor dad" was the superintendent of the Hawaii state education system. When Robert was 16 years old, the threat of "if you don't get good grades, you won't get a good job" from his real father threatened him. It's almost useless for him.He had decided his career path was to own businesses rather than work for them.In fact, he probably wouldn't even have gone to college were it not for a bright and persistent high school advisor.He admits it.He was eager to start building his assets, but eventually agreed that a college education would be good for him too.Indeed, the ideas in this book may be too incomprehensible and too radical for most parents today, even those struggling with the inability to keep their children in school enough time.But given our times of change, we as parents should be open to new, bold ideas.Encouraging children to be employees is advising your children to pay more than their fair share of taxes over their lifetime and receive a small and uncertain pension.There is no doubt that tax is the biggest expense of a person. In fact, the work of most families from January to mid-May is for the government.So we need to tell children new ideas, and this book provides exactly this new way of thinking. Robert claims that the rich educate their children in a different way, at home, at the dinner table.You may not choose to discuss ideas with your children this way, but thank you for seeing those ways instead of just saying no, and I suggest you keep exploring.In my opinion, as a mom and a CPA, the idea of ​​just studying well and getting a good job is antiquated.We need new ideas and a different education.Maybe it would be a better idea to tell the kids to try to be a good employee while also trying to own the business they invested in. As a mother, I hope this book will be helpful to other parents.What Robert wants to show people is that anyone can do a great job - if he chooses to do so.If you are a gardener or janitor or even unemployed today, you still have the ability to educate yourself and teach your loved ones to care about their own financial situation.Remember, economic savvy is developed in the process of solving our economic problems. Today we are facing economic globalization and new technology changes, which are as huge as what mankind has faced before, or even bigger.Nobody has a crystal ball to predict the future, but one thing is for sure: Changes beyond the lives we currently live lie ahead.Who knows what the future holds?But no matter what happens, we have at least two basic options: play it safe, or play smart by preparing, getting educated, and awakening your and your children's economic potential. If you have had or have the same troubles as I have, then this is what you need.