Wisdom of Rich Dad

~Robert Kiyosaki

The other day, my wife and I were shopping for a new car. We stopped by the Cadillac dealership because we wanted to see the new Escalade Hybrid. The lot was filled with new cars. There were at least 10 salespeople ready to help us, but there were only two customers: us. I felt bad for those salespeople and the staff. I wish I could say we purchased a new car, but we didn’t.

Many people blame the automakers for the problems that they are facing–and they are to blame, but not completely. As entrepreneurs, we can all learn at least three big lessons from the auto industry mess:

1. Leaders should be on the same compensation plan as the sales staff. If Detroit’s leaders were paid only for the number of cars sold, they might be better businesspeople. Instead, the leaders have megasalaries, private jets, midweek golf outings and benefits suited for royalty–all unrelated to sales or company health. These corporate leaders have been stealing from the company, workers and investors who gave them so much. To be a great entrepreneur, be a leader who works for those who work for you. As the head of my company, I work for my customers and my workers. If my company is not profitable, I should not get paid.
2.  Leaders listen to the customer. Never forget: It was the customer that wanted the big SUVs and trucks. An entrepreneur needs to have a crystal ball and prepare for changes in the customer before the customer changes. As my company’s leader, I have been preparing for this economic downturn for years. As some of you know, I have spoken out against the financial planning industry, mutual funds and the financial gurus who recommend them. Instead, I have been an advocate of personal financial education and have built my company around it. Today, my company’s sales have increased as more and more people realize that a well-diversified portfolio of mutual funds is not a safe investment and investing in a financial education might offer a better return.
3. Politicians reward incompetence. Many of the politicians the Big Three automakers were begging for money are the very politicians who protected the inefficient industry. It was the politicians who protected the unions and high wages. Most entrepreneurs do not have the benefits of high-paid lobbyists and friends in high places. I realize President Obama promises change. But never forget: He is a politician, not an entrepreneur. Getting elected takes more than just money. That is why entrepreneurs need to watch what politicians do–more than what they say.

Have you ever met anyone famous? Did you actually get to talk with them? I did. The entire time I knew it would be a night I would never forget.

How did this come about? It started in the same way that many great stories begin: in a smoky casino. If someone asked me what I was doing for my spring break, I would exclaim: “I’m going to Vegas!” to which everyone would follow that up with what my “game” was. Then I would explain that I was going for a real estate conference, and that I would have no time to gamble. That’s right. I went to Vegas, NOT to gamble! Blasphemy. After I said that I would get a reaction of disbelief to pity.

Anyway, there I was, after about 12 hours of sitting and learning, standing around with the owners of SREC: Josh Cantwell, Greg Clement, and many others. It was amazing to see more than one person just “show up” whom I had seen on various webinars and websites, (and part of their gold coaching program). These people are famous! And I was just standing there (in the smoky casino, the best possible place to decide your dinner plans), shooting the breeze. Crazy.

After awhile, we finally decided where to eat. It was someplace Italian. I didn’t care, really. It was amazing, I actually got to trade jokes with people who seem so normal, but then they go out and make $10,000 in one go and call it a bad month.

But you didn’t come here for a story, did you? You want information, insight, intrigue (?). Well, here it is: what I learned most from my dinner from millionaires, actually just reaffirmed something that has been said time and time again.

Your net worth truly is the average of those you surround yourself with

If you have yet to hear this saying: take your five closest friends, average what they make in a year, and it should be very close to what you make. Why is that? I learned why that night. It’s one of those things that you really have to experience to truly comprehend, but I’ll say it anyway. To put it bluntly: Winners hang out with winners, losers hang out with losers. Misery loves company, but so does success.

Whenever I would come back from a conference, seminar, boot camp, whatever, I would always feel so invigorated for real estate, investing, and life. Then, after awhile, my enthusiasm would start to fade. The reason being is that I was surrounded by negative people. Get this: successful people don’t put down each other, or tell each other why something won’t work. They actually encourage each other! It’s crazy, but true! It’s not money that makes them successful, it’s their mindset and the mindset of those they spend time with.

What you can do about it

Find successful people, and hang around them. Period. Offer to do stuff for them, run errands, volunteer for any causes they have, whatever it takes, just get around them. Their confidence will rub off on you, and they might even help you if you ever need anything…

Get away from negative people, at all costs! This may sound harsh but dump your friends! If they aren’t helping you then they’re hurting you. Success breeds success. In order to get success you need to go where there already is success.

Quickplan D.I.Y, a free on-line business plan course, is launched. It brings the tools, support and knowledge needed to design and launch new businesses. When used by existing firms, it will provide new insights.

“Everybody needs a new set of skills,” says Peter Mehit, co-founder. “The changes to our economy will be structural. It’s critical that people learn how to evaluate a business idea and then launch and run it, because the world is going to look very different a few years from now.” The company believes that acquiring these business skills is a prerequisite for prosperity in the new reality.

The course contains eight instructional videos, a MS Word business plan template and a MS Excel financial model template, available at the company’s web site. The program is also offered on DVD at a nominal charge for those living in low bandwidth areas, having limited computer access or who just want to have the program in video format.

The program, which has been taught to hundreds of students, business owners and entreprenuers, takes users through how to figure out if a business idea will be profitable, the reasons for a business plan, building pro forma cash flow models, doing market research and pulling the written narrative together. The company also offers support for the D.I.Y. course as well as guided development courses.

“Whether the program is used to write a complete business plan or not, the fundamentals discussed are important for anyone that needs to create their livelihood,” says Mehit. “I heard someone say ‘this is bad as it’s going to be’. The fact is, nobody knows what’s next. You have to become your own rainmaker”

For more information about Quickplan D.I.Y., visit www.wbpllc.com/quickplan/.