I bought my first Kiyosaki book (Rich Dad Poor Dad) in 2001 and have been an avid reader of his books ever since.  I first played the Cashflow game years ago, and the education I got from that first game stuck with me, and I continue to learn more until today.

I remember we were asked to randomly pick a card to get a profession and I ended up playing as a Janitor.  All of us were either employees or self-employed professionals, such as Teacher, Engineer, Airline Pilot, Truck Driver, Doctor, Lawyer, Mechanic, etc.

We then had to pick a rat and cheese color and put the cheese on our chosen dream.  Examples are “Be a Jet-Setter,” “A Kid’s Library,” visit the “7 Wonders of the World” first class, “Buy a Forest,” “Dinner with the President,” etc.  Each dream is worth at least $100,000.

We filled out an income statement, which showed our income, expenses, and monthly cash flow or pay check.  Everyone started with zero passive income and relied only on our salaries for income.

We also filled out a balance sheet, which showed our assets and liabilities.  All of us started with no other asset but savings and with liabilities, such as home mortgage, car loan, credit cards, etc.

Expenses may increase if you land on “Baby,” meaning you’ll have additional child expenses.  It is a lot like real life and was actually designed by Robert Kiyosaki to be that way.  You can also get downsized if you land on “Downsized” and lose 2 turns.

There are 2 tracks in the game, the inner circle being the Rat Race and the bigger, outer track being the Fast Track, where the ‘rich’ play.  The idea of the game is to get out of the Rat Race so you can then go on to the Fast Track, where you will get your dream.

So, how do you get out of the Rat Race?

IMPORTANT:  To get out of the Rat Race, you must build up your passive income to be greater than your total expenses.  If this happens, you can then get out of the Rat Race, i.e. leave your job and salary, because your passive income can already cover for expenses.

At first, I thought the game would be so hard to play, because we had to update our own statement and balance sheet (boring!).  I found out that you don’t have to be an accountant to understand it, and it is very exciting, especially when you start making BIG money from investments, which you can then reinvest to grow your passive income thru assets like real estate and businesses.

During the course of the game, you can invest in the stock market, buy properties, trade, and loan from the bank using paper money:

  • You will get your monthly cashflow as you land or pass by “Paycheck;”
  • You may also land on “Doodads.”  Doodads are unexpected and often unnecessary items on which money is spent like going on a shopping spree, dinner out, or going to a concert;
  • You may also land on “Opportunities,” which may be small or big deals.  The largest small deal costs $5,000 to get into, and big deals begin at $6,000;
  • “Market” cards include economic events which may affect each player’s financial position and where you can also find buyers for your investments;
  • You may also land on “Charity,” which is optional.  You may choose to give 10% of your Total Income in exchange for using 2 dice on each of your next 3 turns.

Once you are out of the Rat Race and on the Fast Track, you win the game if you land on your dream and buy it or if you increase your passive income on the Fast Track by $50,000 or more by buying Fast Track businesses.

I will not go into further details here and spoil the fun for you.  The game rules may take time to get used to, but once you get the hang of it, it is a tremendous educational tool that’s really fun to play.

Find friends who are serious about becoming rich.  When you play with friends, you learn from their experiences too.  Plus, you can help each other develop the mental habits of the rich.

A really great advantage that I see is that you’re getting your financial education using play money instead of real money.

It’s a game that will change your mindset forever from poor or middle-class to the millionaire mindset… It is a must for aspiring entrepreneurs!

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