Building everlasting wealth is a lifelong journey, and Robert Kiyosaki is an expert. He’s a 74-year-old entrepreneur, speaker, best-selling author, and investor. Robert Kiyosaki has piled himself a nice chunk of cash – a net worth estimated at $100 million.
His financial knowledge is what makes him millions. He’s written three best-selling financial books. Rich Dad, Poor Dad is the most popular. He also has a podcast, youtube videos, seminars, and more. Many consider him a financial guru, but there’s also some controversy that we’ll be clearing up in this article.
But first, feast your eyes on everything you need to know about Robert Kiyosaki in one infographic.
Robert Kiyosaki (Estimated) Net Worth: $100+ million
The Beginnings
Robert Kiyosaki was born on April 8th, 1957 in Hawaii with a Japanese American background. After graduating from high school, he enrolled in the Marines. The first thing he did here was working on merchant ships, where he was able to travel the world.
Kiyosaki served as a helicopter gunship pilot during the Vietnam War in 1972. He was later awarded the Air Medal. Afterward, he became a copy machine salesman for Xerox from 1974–1978. Inspired by his sales position, he started his own company that sold the first nylon and Velcro. This grew some success but later went bankrupt.
Stay tuned if you want to learn more about Robert Kiyosaki’s net worth and how he built it. He makes this information available for his fans to learn from!
Rich Dad, Poor Dad
Kiyosaki is an independent and unique man. He sells his own knowledge rather than products (well, books are products if you want to get technical). This is very different from most of the millionaires and billionaires in this era.
His first and most successful book was Rich Dad, Poor Dad. He wrote this with his co-author, Sharon Lechter and they published the book in 1997. By 2000, it reached the New York Times best-seller list and remained here for an incredible 8 years.
This Robert Kiyosaki biography tells about his two contrasting, influential parent figures. These were real dad and his friend’s dad. His real dad was a poor teacher, while his friend’s dad was rich. He shares life lessons he gained from both of these dads (his Rich Dad, for the most part). Kiyosaki teaches how to be a leader, assets, and other lessons. He shares everything he learned on his road to financial intelligence.
There are 11 other Kiyosaki books that have changed the way millions of people think about money. But, some fans grew to distrust him as time went on.
Who Is the Real Rich Dad?
For years, Kiyosaki wouldn’t reveal the true identity of his “rich dad.” This led many fans to believe the story was false and he was a fraud. Other fans didn’t care because they still acquired great knowledge from his story. Yet, Kiyosaki stated there was a real-life dad. There was a strict confidentiality agreement between the two. Many didn’t believe him and lost faith in Robert Kiyosaki's books.
But, Kiyosaki's Rich Dad was finally revealed! The secret unleashed once the Rich Dad passed away – Richard Kimi was his name. He accumulated his wealth in the hotel industry. The Kimi family lived down the street from Kiyosaki in Hawaii.
True to the story, Kiyosaki was friends with his son “Mike,” whose real name is Alan Kimi. Richard Kimi owned Sand & Seaside Hotels in Hawaii, which Alan took over when he passed away.
Robert Kiyosaki Bankruptcy Scandal
He was already under scrutiny. People believed his best-selling book wasn’t a true story. It didn’t help when his company declared bankruptcy in 2012! Learning Annex sued Rich Global LLC for $24 million. They stated this was for using their platform during speaking engagements.
The company only had $1.8 million in assets, so they declared corporate bankruptcy. Even so, the company earned $45 million in royalty payments from Rich Dad seminars. This happened between 2007 and 2010 (according to the Wall Street Journal). As you might imagine, this aroused suspicion.
Although some criticized his decision, evidence shows that bankruptcy was a strategic move. Robert Kiyosaki’s net worth wasn’t touched and he didn’t need to pay a penny of his personal assets. The court awarded Learning Annex with $24 million. Kiyosaki was still worth $80 million afterward. Now, he has a new company that he does business under.
If he were to pay from his pocket, he would’ve been going against his financial intelligence beliefs. Bankruptcy was definitely a risk and isn’t a great thing to associate himself with, but he came out on top once again.
Want to learn more about Robert Kiyosaki’s net worth? His Youtube videos and podcasts have plenty to learn from. Many scrutinize his decisions. Even so, the fact remains that Kiyosaki knows how to make and keep money.
Rich Dad Network
Although Rich Global LLC went bankrupt, he created the Rich Dad Network soon after. This is a community for those interested in gaining wealth-building knowledge. For one, you’ll find the Robert Kiyosaki podcast, called the Rich Dad Radio Show.
There are hundreds of knowledge-filled podcast episodes to learn from! He hosts and interviews financial experts on the show. Their topics include real estate, entrepreneurship, stocks, personal finance, and more. You can even submit an “ask Robert” question at the bottom of the podcast page. This gives you the chance to have your question answered on the air!
There are plenty of other resources to learn from. Robert Kiyosaki seminar and webinars are completely free. This excludes the enhanced 3-day training courses that start at $1299. Seminars take place in a variety of cities around the United States. Webinars are available online. For the most part, he profits from the expensive 3-day training courses (and his books).
The website also shares his Youtube videos, articles, and books. You can even find cash flow learning games that you can download on your phone! There are a few different games, including one created for kids to learn from. Additionally, he shares about “Rich Dad friends” and advisors. These are other experts that he’s gained financial knowledge from.
Kiyosaki Tax Advisor
Even though capitalism allows for financial freedom, the biggest downfall is taxes. They’re one of the most difficult feats of becoming wealthy, or even if you make an average income. They’ll take away half of your hard-earned income if you don’t go about it right. In his book, Kiyosaki shares a bit about smart (and legal) ways to go about saving money on taxes.
Even a smart man like Kiyosaki decided to hire Tom Wheelwright – one of the top tax advisors in the world. As Robert Kiyosaki's net worth in 2020 grows, receiving help with taxes is even more necessary. He wants to make the smartest decisions.
Wheelwright has written best-selling books packed with tax knowledge. Tax-Free Wealth is his top seller. Are you on the road to acquiring riches (and want to keep it)? Well, taxes are one of the most important subjects to educate yourself on. Tom Wheelwright shares about write-offs and other tax secrets in the following video.
Quotes
There are plenty of influential Robert Kiyosaki quotes and statements. Some are inspiring, while some arise controversy. As someone who didn’t go to college himself, he’s not too supportive of the idea. He doesn't completely bash the idea though. Kiyosaki believes life experience is more important.
Here are a few quotes from the man himself, if the 48 Robert Kiyosaki quotes above aren't enough for you.
“The trouble with school is they give you the answer, then they give you the exam. That’s not life.” – Robert Kiyosaki
“The only difference between a rich person and a poor person is how they use their time” – Robert Kiyosaki
“The moment you make passive income and portfolio income a part of your life, your life will change. Those words will become flesh.” – Robert Kiyosaki
Robert Kiyosaki's Wife
Kiyosaki met his match when he found Kim. She had moved to Hawaii for college and worked as an employee, soon realizing this wasn’t her dream. She held the same ambitions as Robert, including the desire to be independent. Kim met Robert in 1984. They immediately started working together to create a business. Their first business together began only two months after they started dating. They met in February of 1984 and got married that same year.
After a few months, they sold their first company (a clothing company). Robert couldn't support the terrible working conditions in sweatshops overseas. Once they sold, they started investing in real estate together.
She recently wrote the financial book Rich Woman. This teaches about acquiring financial freedom for women in particular. She also invests in real estate with her husband and they don’t have any children. Kim’s profits aren’t as easy to find as Robert Kiyosaki’s net worth. Even so, she makes plenty of money from her business ventures as well.
The Takeaway
So, one reason so many people love reading articles like this - about people who've created massive, life-altering wealth - is curiosity. We want to know how'd they get so rich? What are they doing with all that money? What's their life like? It's almost as if there's this invisible wall we want to peer over, to see how "the other half" lives. It's as if the ultra-rich have secrets most people don't know. They DO! And that's good news, actually, because we can all learn them. Once we begin learning what they know, we can do what they did, and create the kind of life most people only wish they had. If you've got that same curiosity about "the other half" you should check this out.
