Recently, I was sent a review copy of Rich Brother, Rich Sister, by Robert and Emi Kiyosaki. You may recognize Robert Kiyosaki’s name from the popular Rich Dad, Poor Dad series. And, that may be this book’s biggest challenge: to find its audience despite being associated with the Rich Dad juggernaut. People who pick up this book looking for advice about how to manage their financial life will do better to select from the other books in the series (I personally think the first one had the most to say).
What Is It?
Rich Brother, Rich Sister is a kind of joint memoir, with life stories and lessons fom Robert and his sister Emi interwoven in thematic chapters. Each chapter was written half by Robert, and half by Emi. The focus of both stories is about how their experiences molded their character and spiritual awareness. The paths these siblings took were very different (as Robert built a large business while Emi became a Buddhist nun), so the contrasts between their approaches to life were interesting enough to keep me reading.
But, then again, I am interested in spiritual development, and Buddhism in particular. So, books like this appeal to me. I fear that the “Rich Dad” machine will market this book to existing fans of the franchise, a large percentage of whom aren’t looking for books like this. At least, that’s my opinion. It’s not a financial how-to, and it’s not a guide to spiritual growth. It’s an autobiographical work, and should be read from that perspective.
They’ve Actually Done Stuff
One thing I noticed right away was that both Robert and Emi did stuff. You know? They had many and varied experiences that changed them forever. The book opens with stories of seeing a distant nuclear test explosion. Robert survived three helicopter crashes in Vietnam. Emi lived for a time in India, among other places. Robert narrowly escaped jail time for flying military helicopters full of women to deserted islands, while drunk. Then he went on to form more than one multi-million dollar business.
Meanwhile, I’ve seen a couple historical events in my lifetime. On TV. After the fact.
hmm…
They learned a lot through their first-hand triumphs and mistakes. By comparison, I couldn’t help but think that my life is a bit too “virtual.” I blame technology. Plus it’s nicer inside, where there’s air conditioning. I digress.
My Favorite Section
At one point Robert discusses universal principles he learned from Dr. Buckminster Fuller. This was easily my favorite part of the book. These principles are deep ideas I recognize from other spiritual and philosophical circles. For instance, he discusses the concept that “unity is plural,” calling to mind eastern ideas about unity in duality (0 = 1 + -1). Other principles covered were leverage (ephemeralization), the ripple effect (precession), and lag. I found the discussion in this section, which generally applied the ideas to everyday situations, very interesting.
My Overall Impression
What I liked about this book, thinking back on it, is its inclusive attitude. It encourages people to follow their own path. You can see clearly in the text that Robert is not at all conflicted about his monetary goals, or commercialism, or eating meat, or about the idea that there will always be war. The message comes across especially clear next to Emi’s sections covering Buddhist philosophy. As the tagline on the cover says, it shows “Two Different Paths to God, Money, and Happiness.” One other example that struck me was that Emi achieves clarity through quiet, while Robert makes use of extreme stress. In other words, you can get a similar result by either understimulating your senses or overstimultating them. This is a well-known principle, but very nice to see explained in such a down-to-earth and biographical way.
It’s by getting comfortable with yourself, and in touch with your inner sense of purpose, that a person becomes free to explore their full potential.