富爸爸穷爸爸-第9部分

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e　you　to　that　place　where　most　people　are　afraid　to　go。　If　you　go　with　me；　you'll　let　go　of　the　idea　of　working　for　money　and　instead　learn　to　have　money　work　for　you。〃
〃And　what　will　we　get　if　we　go　with　you。　What　if　we　agree　to　learn　from　you？　What　will　we　get？〃　I　asked。
〃The　same　thing　Briar　Rabbit　got；〃　said　rich　dad。　〃Freedom　from　the　Tar　Baby。〃
〃Is　there　a　briar　patch？〃　I　asked。
〃Yes；〃　said　rich　dad。　〃The　briar　patch　is　our　fear　and　our　greed。　Going　into　our　fear　and　confronting　our　greed；　our　weaknesses；　our　neediness　is　the　way　out。　And　the　way　out　is　through　the　mind；　by　choosing　our　thoughts。〃
〃Choosing　our　thoughts？〃　Mike　asked；　puzzled。
〃Yes。　Choosing　what　we　think　rather　than　reacting　to　our　emotions。　Instead　of　just　getting　up　and　going　to　work　to　solve　your　problems；　just　because　the　fear　of　not　having　the　money　to　pay　your　bills　is　scaring　you。　Thinking　would　be　taking　the　time　to　ask　yourself　a　question。　A　question　like；　‘Is　working　harder　at　this　the　best　solution　to　this　problem？'　Most　people　are　so　terrified　at　not　telling　themselves　the　truth…that　fear　is　in　control…that　they　cannot　think；　and　instead　run　out　the　door。　Tar　baby　is　in　control。　That's　what　I　mean　by　choosing　your　thoughts。〃
〃And　how　do　we　do　that？〃　Mike　asked。
〃That's　what　I　will　be　teaching　you。　I'll　be　teaching　you　to　have　a　choice　of　thoughts　to　consider；　rather　than　knee…jerk　reacting；　like　gulping　down　your　morning　coffee　and　running　out　the　door。
〃Remember　what　I　said　before：　A　job　is　only　a　short…term　solution　to　a　long…term　problem。　Most　people　have　only　one　problem　in　mind；　and　it's　short　term。　It's　the　bills　at　the　end　of　the　month；　the　Tar　Baby。　Money　now　runs　their　lives。　Or　should　I　say　the　fear　and　ignorance　about　money。　So　they　do　as　their　parents　did；　get　up　every　day　and　go　work　for　money。　Not　having　the　time　to　say；　‘Is　there　another　way？'　Their　emotions　now　control　their　thinking；　not　their　heads。〃
〃Can　you　tell　the　difference　between　emotions　thinking　and　the　head　thinking？〃　Mike　asked。
〃Oh；　yes。　I　hear　it　all　the　time；〃　said　rich　dad。　〃I　hear　things　like；　‘Well；　everyone　has　to　work。'　Or　‘The　rich　are　crooks。'　Or　‘I'll　get　another　job。　I　deserve　this　raise。　You　can't　push　me　around。'　Or　‘I　like　this　job　because　it's　secure。'　Instead　of；　‘Is　there　something　I'm　missing　here？'　which　breaks　the　emotional　thought；　and　gives　you　time　to　think　clearly。〃
I　must　admit；　it　was　a　great　lesson　to　be　getting。　To　know　when　someone　was　speaking　out　of　emotions　or　out　of　clear　thought。　It　was　a　lesson　that　served　me　well　for　life。　Especially　when　I　was　the　one　speaking　out　of　reaction　and　not　from　clear　thought。
As　we　headed　back　to　the　store；　rich　dad　explained　that　the　rich　really　did　〃make　money。〃　They　did　not　work　for　it。　He　went　on　to　explain　that　when　Mike　and　I　were　casting　5…cent　pieces　out　of　lead；　thinking　we　were　making　money；　we　were　very　close　to　thinking　the　way　the　rich　think。　The　problem　was　that　it　was　illegal　for　us　to　do　it。　It　was　legal　for　the　government　and　banks　to　do　it；　but　not　us。　He　explained　that　there　are　legal　ways　to　make　money　and　illegal　ways。
Rich　dad　went　on　to　explain　that　the　rich　know　that　money　is　an　illusion；　truly　like　the　carrot　for　the　donkey。　It's　only　out　of　fear　and　greed　that　the　illusion　of　money　is　held　together　by　billions　of　people　thinking　that　money　is　real。　Money　is　really　made　up。　It　was　only　because　of　the　illusion　of　confidence　and　the　ignorance　of　the　masses　that　the　house　of　cards　stood　standing。　〃In　fact；〃　he　said；　〃in　many　ways　the　donkey's　carrot　was　more　valuable　than　money。〃
He　talked　about　the　gold　standard　that　America　was　on；　and　that　each　dollar　bill　was　actually　a　silver　certificate。　What　concerned　him　was　the　rumor　that　we　would　someday　go　off　the　gold　standard　and　our　dollars　would　no　longer　be　silver　certificates。
〃When　that　happens；　boys；　all　hell　is　going　to　break　loose。　The　poor；　the　middle　class　and　the　ignorant　will　have　their　lives　ruined　simply　because　they　will　continue　to　believe　that　money　is　real　and　that　the　pany　they　work　for；　or　the　government；　will　look　after　them。〃
We　really　did　not　understand　what　he　was　saying　that　day；　but　over　the　years　it　made　more　and　more　sense。
Seeing　What　Others　Miss

As　he　climbed　into　his　pickup　truck；　outside　of　his　little　convenience　store；　he　said；　〃Keep　working　boys；　but　the　sooner　you　forget　about　needing　a　paycheck；　the　easier　your　adult　life　will　be。　Keep　using　your　brain；　work　for　free；　and　soon　your　mind　will　show　you　ways　of　making　money　far　beyond　what　I　could　ever　pay　you。　You　will　see　things　that　other　people　never　see。　Opportunities　right　in　front　of　their　noses。　Most　people　never　see　these　opportunities　because　they're　looking　for　money　and　security；　so　that's　all　they　get。　The　moment　you　see　one　opportunity；　you　will　see　them　for　the　rest　of　your　life。　The　moment　you　do　that；　I'll　teach　you　something　else。　Learn　this；　and　you'll　avoid　one　of　life's　biggest　traps。　You'll　never；　ever；　touch　that　Tar　Baby。〃
Mike　and　I　picked　up　our　things　from　the　store　and　waved　goodbye　to　Mrs。　Martin。　We　went　back　to　the　park；　to　the　same　picnic　bench；　and　spent　several　more　hours　thinking　and　talking。
We　spent　the　next　week　at　school；　thinking　and　talking。　For　two　more　weeks；　we　kept　thinking；　talking；　and　working　for　free。
At　the　end　of　the　second　Saturday；　I　was　again　saying　goodbye　to　Mrs。　Martin　and　looking　at　the　ic…book　stand　with　a　longing　gaze。　The　hard　thing　about　not　even　getting　30　cents　every　Saturday　was　that　I　didn't　have　any　money　to　buy　ic　books。　Suddenly；　as　Mrs。　Martin　was　saying　goodbye　to　Mike　and　me；　I　saw　something　she　was　doing　that　I　had　never　seen　her　do　before。　I　mean；　I　had　seen　her　do　it；　but　I　never　took　notice　of　it。
Mrs。　Martin　was　cutting　the　front　page　of　the　ic　book　in　half。　She　was　keeping　the　top　half　of　the　ic　book　cover　and　throwing　the　rest　of　the　ic　book　into　a　large　brown　cardboard　box。　When　I　asked　her　what　she　did　with　the　ic　books；　she　said；　〃I　throw　them　away。　I　give　the　top　half　of　the　cover　back　to　the　ic…book　distributor　for　credit　when　he　brings　in　the　new　ics。　He's　ing　in　an　hour。〃
Mike　and　I　waited　for　an　hour。　Soon　the　distributor　arrived　and　I　asked　him　if　we　could　have　the　ic　books。　To　which　he　replied；　〃You　can　have　them　if　you　work　for　this　store　and　do　not　resell　them。〃
Our　partnership　was　revived。　Mike's　mom　had　a　spare　room　in　the　basement　that　no　one　used。　We　cleaned　it　out；　and　began　piling　hundreds　of　ic　books　in　that　room。　Soon　our　ic…book　library　was　open　to　the　public。　We　hired　Mike's　younger　sister；　who　loved　to　study；　to　be　head　librarian。　She　charged　each　child　10　cents　admission　to　the　library；　which　was　open　from　2：30　to　4：30　p。m。　every　day　after　school。　The　customers；　the　children　of　the　neighborhood；　could　read　as　many　ics　as　they　could　in　two　hours。　It　was　a　bargain　for　them　since　a　ic　costs　10　cents　each；　and　they　could　read　five　or　six　in　two　hours。
Mike's　sister　would　check　the　kids　as　they　left；　to　make　sure　they　weren't　borrowing　any　ic　books。　She　also　kept　the　books；　logging　in　how　many　kids　showed　up　each　day；　who　they　were；　and　any　ments　they　might　have。　Mike　and　I　averaged　9。50　per　week　over　a　threemonth　period。　We　paid　his　sister　1　a　week　and　allowed　her　to　read　the　ics　for　free；　which　she　rarely　did　since　she　was　always　studying。
Mike　and　F　kept　our　agreement　by　working　in　the　store　every　Saturday　and　collecting　all　the　ic　books　from　the　different　stores。　We　kept　our　agreement　to　the　distributor　by　not　selling　any　ic　books。　We　burned　them　once　they　got　too　tattered。　We　tried　opening　a　branch　office；　but　we　could　never　quite　find　someone　as　dedicated　as　Mike's　sister　we　could　trust。
At　an　early　age；　we　found　out　how　hard　it　was　to　find　good　staff。
Three　months　after　the　library　first　opened；　a　fight　broke　out　in　the　room。　Some　bullies　from　another　neighborhood　pushed　their　way　in　and　started　it。　Mike's　dad　suggested　we　shut　down　the　business。　So　our　ic…book　business　shut　down；　and　we　stopped　working　on　Saturdays　at　the　convenience　store。　Anyway；　rich　dad　was　excited　because　he　had　new　things　he　wanted　to　teach　us。　He　was　happy　because　we　had　learned　our　first　lesson　so　well。　We　had　learned　to　have　money　work　for　us。　By　not　getting　paid　for　our　work　at　the　store；　we　were　forced　to　use　our　imaginations　to　identify　an　opportunity　to　make　money。　By　starting　our　own　business；　the　ic…book　library；　we　were　in　control　of　our　own　finances；　not　dependent　on　an　employer。　The　best　part　was　that　our　business　generated　money　for　us；　even　when　we　weren't　physically　there。　Our　money　worked　for　us。　Instead　of　paying　us　money；　rich　dad　had　given　us　so　much　more。

CHAPTER　THREE　
Lesson　Two：Why　Teach　Financial　Literacy？

In　1990；　my　best　friend；　Mike；　took　over　his　father's　empire　and　is；　in　fact；　doing　a　better　job　than　his　dad　did。　We　see　each　other　once　or　twice　a　year　on　the　golf　course。　He　and　his　wife　are　wealthier　than　you　could　imagine。　Rich　dad's　empire　is　in　great　hands；　and　Mike　is　now　grooming　his　son　to　take　his　place；　as　his　dad　had　groomed　us。
In　1994；　I　retired　at　the　age　of　47；　and　my　wife；　Kim；　was　37。　Retirement　does　not　mean　not　working。　To　my　wife　and　me；　it　means　that　barring　unforeseen　cataclysmic　changes；　we　can　work　or　not　work；　and　our　wealth　grows　automatically；　staying　way　ahead　of　inflation。　I　guess　it　means　freedom。　The　assets　are　large　enough　to　grow　by　themselves。　It's　like　planting　a　tree。　You　water　it　for　years　and　then　one　day　it　doesn't　need　you　anymore。　It's　roots　have　gone　down　deep　enough。　Then；　the　tree　provides　shade　for　your　enjoyment。
Mike　chose　to　run　the　empire　and　I　chose　to　retire。
Whenever　I　speak　to　groups　of　people；　they　often　ask　what　I　would　remend　or　what　could　they　do？　〃How　do　they　get　started？〃　〃Is　there　a　good　book　I　would　remend？〃　〃What　should　they　do　to　prepare　their　children？〃　〃What　is　the　secret　to　success？〃　〃How　do　I　make　millions？〃　I　am　always　reminded　of　this　article　I　was　once　given。　It　goes　as　follows。

THE　RICHEST　BUSINESSMEN

In　1923　a　group　of　our　greatest　leaders　and　richest　businessmen　held　a　meeting　at　the　Edgewater　Beach　hotel　in　Chicago。　Among　them　were　Charles　Schwab；　head　of　the　largest　independent　steel　pany；　Samuel　Instill；　president　of　the　world's　largest　utility；　Howard　Hopson；　head　of　the　largest　gas　pany；　Ivar　Kreuger　president　of　the　International　Match　Co。；　one　of　the　world's　largest　panies　at　that　time；　Leon　Frazier；　president　of　the　Bank　of　International　Settlements；　Richard　Whitney；　president　of　the　New　York　Stock　Exchange；　Arthur　Cotton　and　Jesse　Livermore；　two　of　the　biggest　stock　speculators；　and　Albert　Fall；　a　member　of　President　Harding's　cabinet。　Twenty　five　years　later　nine　of　them　（those　listed　above）　ended　as　follows。　Schwab　died　penniless　after　living　for　five　years　on　borrowed　money。　Instill　died　broke　living　in　a　foreign　land。　Kreuger　and　Cotton　also　died　broke。　Hopson　went　insane。　Whitney　and　Albert　Fall　were　just　released　from　prison。　Fraser　and　Livermore　mitted　suicide。

I　doubt　if　anyone　can　say　what　really　happened　to　these　men。　If　you　look　at　the　date；　1923；　it　was　just　before　the　1929　market　crash　and　the　Great　Depression；　which　I　suspect　had　a　great　impact　on　these　men　and　their　lives。　The　point　is　this：　Today　we　live　in　times　of　g