7 Books Similar To Rich Dad Poor Dad (MUST READ)

If you’ve been around this blog for awhile (THANK YOU!), then you know that I’ve published several articles about Robert Kiyosaki’s famous book Rich Dad Poor Dad.

The reason why is two fold.

First, every successful real estate investor I’ve ever met or heard speak at a meeting or on a podcast mentions it.

Second, it forced me to start thinking differently about HOW money is made.

If you haven’t read it and want to watch my video review, click below:

Looking back, this was one of the first and best books I’ve read on my journey towards becoming financially independent. It’s helped set the foundation which all of my investment decisions are made.

So to say that it’s been an important part of my journey would be an understatement.

Yes, you can watch the video review above and read the 7 minute book summary HERE but nothing beats sitting down, physical book in hand, reading and highlighting the most important sections to review annually.

If you decide to read it hoping for some type of step-by-step plan on how to get rich quick then don’t bother wasting your time.

But if you want to change your mindset towards money then grab a copy today.

After reading, I guarantee you’ll be in search for similar information. This is why I wanted to give you this list of books to read today.

But before we get into each one, here’s a brief Rich Dad Poor Dad book summary...

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Rich Dad Poor Dad Summary

Who taught you about money? Your parents? High school teachers? A coach maybe?

Research shows that most of us learn financial education at home from our parents (whether good or bad).

This is the main reason the rich get richer, poor people get poorer, and the middle class struggle in debt.

As a child, there’s not much we can do about how we’re brought up. If you were raised in a poor household, more than likely you were instructed to:

go to school
study hard
make good grades

Unfortunately, you may have graduated with good grades but with a poor person’s financial mindset. And because of this, go through your career suffering with money problems.

A tale of two dads

In Rich Dad Poor Dad, Kiyosaki talks about growing up with his “two dads” that taught him about money.

Kiyosaki’s real father or “poor dad” was an educated college professor while his “rich dad” was the father of his best friend who happened to be a very successful businessman.

His “poor dad” was a Ph.D in education with a steady income, but like many educated people working hard to pay the bills, still struggled with debt and money.

Kiyosaki’s “rich dad” was one of the wealthiest people in Hawaii at that time having only an eighth grade education.

Growing up, he noticed several fundamental differences from both father figures.

In his book he states, “I noticed that my poor dad was poor, not because of the amount of money he earned, which was significant, but because of his thoughts and actions.“

Many of our new Passive Investor Circle members also fall into this situation due to their money mindset.

Even if you make a six-figure income, having a scarcity mindset limits your finances your entire career.

Though the book discusses six main lessons he learned over a thirty year period from his rich dad, here’s the three most important for high income earners.

“There is a difference between being poor and being broke. Broke is temporary, and poor is eternal.” – Robert T. Kiyosaki

Another popular book from Kiyosaki, Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant, is another best seller also on my list below.

But it also happens to be one of the MOST important lessons in the book.

This lesson has to do with where our income comes from. If this is a new concept to you then you’ve been forewarned.

You’ll NEVER think the same about the different ways you make money AGAIN :).

How we make money is broken down into 4 quadrants:

E – Employee: You have a job.

Most new doctors finish training and immediately go to work for someone.

This is due to the fact that they leave with $300K+ in student loan debt and starting a practice from scratch is VERY expensive.

Employees enjoy the security of a steady paycheck yet must work longer hours for a higher income. They are set up to trade time for dollars.

S – Self-employed: You own a job.

Even though a self-employed person like myself may feel as if they’re better position than their employees, financially they’re not.

Why? They have some of the same financial problems such as also trading time for money. In my situation, if I’m not treating patients, money isn’t coming through the door. At least that’s how it used to be before I started investing in real estate.

Even though someone in the “S” quadrant has a great job and owns their business; it’s the business that owns them.

Don’t forget that both employees and self employed individuals pay the MOST in taxes compared to the other two quadrants (B and I).

B – Business owner– You own a system and people work for you.

Business owners run a system that produces income independent of their time. Because of this, they’re able to delegate responsibilities to their employees.

Those in this quadrant are NOT trading time for money as their business generates income whether they’re present or not.

Similar to investors, business owners pay much less in taxes than the employed/self-employed and have much more freedom.

I – Investor – Money works for you.

Kiyosaki states that it’s the B and I quadrants (right side) are where true financial freedom is found.

Investors own assets that make them money.

An Investor is someone who has earned money (active income) in one or more of the other quadrants and has put that money to work for them creating passive income.

They purchase assets such as real estate that generate cash flow.

Reaching this stage makes practicing medicine/dentistry much more enjoyable as you’re working because you WANT to and not because you have to.

#2. Assets make money

One of the most important statements in the book pertained to this lesson, “You must know the difference between an asset and a liability, and buy assets. If you want to be rich, this is all you need to know. It is rule number one. It is the only rule.”

The rich buy assets. A poor person and middle class acquire liabilities that they THINK are assets.

Assets put money in our pockets and liabilities take money out.

Here’s a diagram from the book that show this concept visually:

Here’s the cash flow pattern of the poor, middle class and rich. As money comes in to the poor and middle class, it immediately goes out to cover the expenses liabilities create.

Notice how the cash flow pattern of a rich person flows. The assets (real estate, stocks, etc.) create income which goes right back to the person.

Theoretically one could have their assets pay for their liabilities.

Another Rich Dad Poor Dad lesson regards avoiding the “Scarcity Mindset.”

Stephen Covey coined the termed scarcity mindset and states, “Most people are deeply scripted in what I call the Scarcity Mentality. They see life as having only so much, as though there were only one pie out there. And if someone were to get a big piece of the pie, it would mean less for everybody else.”

People with a scarcity mindset often have the following thoughts:

They must hoard resources because there’s only a certain amount to go around.
Have an extreme fear of change.
Will only help others ONLY if they receive something in return.
Competition is more important than collaboration.
They fear risk which keeps them from progressing to bigger and better opportunities in life.

Needless to say, those with this type of mindset are all about serving their interests ONLY no matter the cost..

The opposite of the Scarcity Mindset is the Abundance Mindset. This is where you realize the pie can grow and that there’s MORE than enough for everyone to go around.

People with the ability to think long term vs short term are using an abundance mindset.

They realize that just because you don’t have something NOW doesn’t mean you can’t get it later.

Using this mindset allows one to think that EVERYONE can become more wealthy and there are no limits on your income.

These people tend to be more content and willing to help others out. They know that it’s not ONLY about themselves.

Now that we’ve got a basic understanding of the Rich Dad Poor Dad concepts, here’s 13 books similar to continue learning….

7 Books Similar To Rich Dad Poor Dad

#1. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Napoleon Hill’s classic book is centered around the thirteen steps to riches which he claimed to be the secret to building great wealth.

In 1908, Hill was hired by a magazine to interview famous people to learn about their success regarding building wealth.

One of the first interviewees happened to be one of the wealthiest men in the world at that time, Andrew Carnegie.

Not only did Carnegie share his secrets to success with Hill, but he also connected him with over 500 other successful business leaders to learn their secrets, too.

Some of those “other” famous people included:

Alexander Graham Bell
John D. Rockefeller
Thomas Edison
J.P. Morgan
Henry Ford
Wilbur Wright
Theodore Roosevelt
Howard Taft

Some twenty years later, Napoleon Hill turned the lessons he learned into the thirteen steps to riches, which he outlined in Think and Grow Rich.

#2. The Richest Man In Babylon by George S. Clason

The book highlights a story about two friends, Bansir, a chariot builder and Kobbi, a musician. They both were good at their respective trade but had no money.

They met with a man named Arkad, who was the richest man in Babylon.

They asked him why he thought they had no money to show for all of the hard labor they’ve performed all of their lives.

The lessons that Arkad provided, which he calls the seven cures to a lean purse, are wealth building habits and wise advice that anyone can follow for financial success.

These included:

Pay yourself first
Live below your means
Make your money work for you (passive income!)
Insure for wealth protection
Make your dwelling a profitable investment
Have a retirement plan

#3. The Cashflow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki

As previously mentioned, this is another book in the Rich Dad Poor Dad series.

In it we’re reminded that it’s NOT how much we make that matter, it’s HOW we make it.

Our goal is to move from the left or poor side of the quadrant to the right or rich side.

This is where our money works for us and allows us to pay little to no taxes.

#4. The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone

I was fortunate enough to meet with Grant in person at his South Florida office. He’s as intense in person as he sounds in his books.

In The 10X Rule, he talks a lot about setting goals and why we underperform him life.

When goal setting, he stated people typically make 4 mistakes:

Failure to set goal high enough from the beginning
Underestimating how much action is really needed to accomplish them
Spending too much time competing and not enough time dominating
Underestimating the amount of adversity they’ll have to overcome

10X Goal Setting

In order to 10X your goals, Cardone recommends:

Set 10X targets
Align them with your other purposes
Write them down daily – when you wake up and before going to sleep.

#5. The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

The 4 Hour Work Week is about how to get more done in less time and the importance of location and time allocation in wealth.

Even if you don’t own a business, this book outlines the steps you can take to maximize your financial return.

Whether you agree with his philosophy or not, it’s always good to see other perspectives in order to form an opinion.

#6. Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker

In the book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, author T. Harv Eker discusses in detail what we must do FIRST to become wealthy & it all has to do with our mindset.

The book discusses his “17 Wealth Files” which help to explain why the rich are “rich” and why the poor are “poor.”

17 Wealth Files

Rich people believe “I create my life.” Poor people believe “Life happens to me.”
Rich people play the money game to win. Poor people play the money game to not lose.
Rich people are committed to being rich. Poor people want to be rich.
Rich people think big. Poor people think small.
Rich people focus on opportunities. Poor people focus on obstacles.
Rich people admire other rich and successful people. Poor people resent rich and successful people.
Rich people associate with positive, successful people. Poor people associate with negative or unsuccessful people.
Rich people are willing to promote themselves and their value. Poor people think negatively about selling and promotion.
Rich people are bigger than their problems. Poor people are smaller than their problems.
Rich people are excellent receivers. Poor people are poor receivers.
Rich people choose to get paid based on results. Poor people choose to get paid based on time.
Rich people think “both.” Poor people think “either/or.”
Rich people focus on their net worth. Poor people focus on their working income.
Rich people manage their money well. Poor people mismanage their money well.
Rich people have their money work hard for them. Poor people work hard for their money.
Rich people act in spite of fear. Poor people let fear stop them.
Rich people constantly learn and grow. Poor people think they already know.

#7. Money Master The Game by Tony Robbins

This book teaches people how to better manage their finances.

He discusses that you should never underestimate the power of compound interest.

As a result, you should begin investing as soon as possible in order to reap the greatest returns.

In addition, he suggests that you use the three-bucket system to spread out your sources of income.

He also states that you should diversify your income using the three bucket system:

security bucket – guaranteed investments
growth bucket – more volatile higher yield investments
dream bucket – money to live your dream life

Final Words

I understand that there’s hundreds of other books that are similar to Rich Dad Poor Dad.

What do you think? Leave any of your best recommendations in the comment section below.

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