《富爸爸穷爸爸》第47章

〃Then　what？〃　I　asked。 〃What　was　the　catch？〃
〃I　told　him　the　3；000　was　his；　but　he　could　not　directly　buy　a　car　with　it。　He　could　use　it　to　buy　and　sell　stocks；　find　his　own　stockbroker；　and　once　he　had　made　6；000　with　the　3；000；　the　money　would　be　his　for　the　car；　and　the　3；000　would　go　into　his　college　fund。〃
〃And　what　are　the　results？〃　I　asked。
〃Well；　he　got　lucky　early　in　his　trading；　but　lost　all　he　gained　a　few　days　later。　Then；　he　really　got　interested。　Today；　I　would　say　he　is　down　2；000；　but　his　interest　is　up。　He　has　read　all　the　books　I　bought　him　and　he"s　gone　to　the　library　to　get　more。　He　reads　the　Wall　Street　Journal　voraciously；　watching　for　indicators；　and　he　watches　CNBC　instead　of　MTV。　He"s　got　only　1；000　left；　but　his　interest　and　learning　are　sky　high。　He　knows　that　if　he　loses　that　money；　he　walks　for　two　more　years。　But　he　does　not　seem　to　care。　He　even　seems　uninterested　in　getting　a　car　because　he"s　found　a　game　that　is　more　fun。〃
〃What　happens　if　he　loses　all　the　money？〃　I　asked。
〃We"ll　cross　that　bridge　when　we　get　to　it。　I"d　rather　have　him　lose　everything　now　rather　than　wait　till　he"s　our　age　to　risk　losing　everything。　And　besides；　that　is　the　best　3；000　I"ve　ever　spent　on　his　education。　What　he　is　learning　will　serve　him　for　life；　and　he　seems　to　have　gained　a　new　respect　for　the　power　of　money。　I　think　he"s　stopped　the　burning　of　holes　in　his　pockets。〃
As　I　said　in　the　section　〃Pay　Yourself　First；〃　if　a　person　cannot　master　the　power　of　selfdiscipline；　it　is　best　not　to　try　to　get　rich。　For　while　the　process　of　developing　cash　flow　from　an　asset　column　in　theory　is　easy；　it　is　the　mental　fortitude　of　directing　money　that　is　hard。　Due　to　external　temptations；　it　is　much　easier　in　today"s　consumer　world　to　simply　blow　it　out　the　expense　column。　Because　of　weak　mental　fortitude；　that　money　flows　into　the　paths　of　least　resistance。　That　is　the　cause　of　poverty　and　financial　struggle。
I　gave　this　numerical　example　of　financial　intelligence；　in　this　case　the　ability　to　direct　money　to　make　more　money。
If　we　gave　100　people　10；000　at　the　start　of　the　year；　I　gave　my　opinion　that　at　the　end　of　the　year：
80　would　have　nothing　left。　In　fact；　many　would　have　created　I　greater　debt　by　making　a　down　payment　on　a　new　car；　refrigerator；　TV；　VCR　or　a　holiday。　16　would　have　increased　that　10；000　by　5　percent　to　10　percent。　4　would　have　increased　it　to　20；000　or　into　the　millions。
We　go　to　school　to　learn　a　profession　so　we　can　work　for　money。　It　is　my　opinion　that　it　is　also　important　to　learn　how　to　have　money　work　for　you。
I　love　my　luxuries　as　much　as　anyone　else。　The　difference　is；　some　people　buy　their　luxuries　on　credit。　It"s　the　keepupwiththeJoneses　trap。　When　I　wanted　to　buy　a　Porsche；　the　easy　road　would　have　been　to　call　my　banker　and　get　a　loan。　Instead　of　choosing　to　focus　in　the　liability　column；　I　chose　to　focus　in　the　asset　column。
As　a　habit；　I　used　my　desire　to　consume　to　inspire　and　motivate　my　financial　genius　to　invest。
Too　often　today；　we　focus　to　borrowing　money　to　get　the　things　we　want　instead　of　focusing　on　creating　money。 One　is　easier　in　the　short　term；　but　harder　in　the　long　term。　It"s　a　bad　habit　that　we　as　individuals　and　as　a　nation　have　gotten　into。　Remember；　the　easy　road　often　bees　hard；　and　the　hard　road　often　bees　easy。
The　earlier　you　can　train　yourself　and　those　you　love　to　be　masters　of　money；　the　better。　Money　is　a　powerful　force。　Unfortunately；　people　use　the　power　of　money　against　them。 If　your　financial　intelligence　is　low；　money　will　run　all　over　you。　It　will　be　smarter　than　you。 If　money　is　smarter　than　you；　you　will　work　for　it　all　your　life。
To　be　the　master　of　money；　you　need　to　be　smarter　than　it。　Then　money　will　do　as　it　is　told。　It　will　obey　you。 Instead　of　being　a　slave　to　it；　you　will　be　the　master　of　it。　That　is　financial　intelligence。
9。　THE　NEED　FOR　HEROES：　The　power　of　myth。　When　I　was　a　kid；　I　greatly　admired　Willie　Mays；　Hank　Aaron；　Yogi　Berra。　They　were　my　heroes。　As　a　kid　playing　Little　League；　I　wanted　to　be　just　like　them。　I　treasured　their　baseball　cards。　I　wanted　to　know　everything　about　them。　I　knew　the　stats；　the　RBI；　the　ERAs；　their　batting　averages；　how　much　they　got　paid；　and　how　they　came　up 1　from　the　minors。　I　wanted　to　know　everything　because　I　wanted　to　be　just　like　them。
Every　time；　as　a　9　or　10　yearold　kid；　when　I　stepped　up　to　bat　or　played　first　base　or　catcher；　I　wasn"t　me。　I　was　Yogi　or　Hank。 It"s　one　of　the　most　powerful　ways　we　learn　that　we　often　lose　as　adults。　We　lose　our　heroes。　We　lose　our　naivete。
Today；　I　watch　young　kids　playing　basketball　near　my　home。 On　the　court　they"re　not　little　Johnny；　they"re　Michael　Jordan；　Sir　Charles　or　Clyde。 Copying　or　emulating　heroes　is　true　power　learning。　And　that　is　why　when　someone　like　O。J。　Simpson　falls　from　grace；　there　is　such　a　huge　outcry。
There　is　more　than　just　a　courtroom　trial。　It　is　the　loss　of　a　hero。　Someone　people　grew　up　with；　looked　up　to；　and　wanted　to　be　like。　Suddenly　we　need　to　rid　ourselves　of　that　person。
I　have　new　heroes　as　I　grow　older。　I　have　golf　heroes　such　as　Peter　Jacobsen；　Fred　Couples　and　Tiger　Woods。　I　copy　their　swings　and　do　my　best　to　read　everything　I　can　about　them。　I　also　have　heroes　such　as　Donald　Trump；　Warren　Buffett；　Peter　Lynch；　Gee　Soros　and　Jim　Rogers。　In　my　older　years；　I　know　their　stats　just　like　I　knew　the　ERAs　and　RBI　of　my　baseball　heroes。 I　follow　what　Warren　Buffett　invests　in；　and　read　anything　I　can　about　his　point　of　view　on　the　market。　I　read　Peter　Lynch"s　book　to　understand　how　he　chooses　stocks。　And　I　read　about　Donald　Trump；　trying　to　find　out　how　he　negotiates　and　puts　deals　together。
Just　as　I　was　not　me　when　I　was　up　to　bat；　when　I"m　in　the　market　or　I"m　negotiating　a　deal；　I　am　subconsciously　acting　with　the　bravado　of　Trump。 Or　when　analyzing　a　trend；　I　look　at　it　as　though　Peter　Lynch　were　doing　it。 By　having　heroes；　we　tap　into　a　tremendous　source　of　raw　genius。
But　heroes　do　more　than　simply　inspire　us。　Heroes　make　things　look　easy。　It"s　the　making　it　look　easy　that　convinces　us　to　want　to　be　just　like　them。　〃If　they　can　do　it；　so　can　I。〃
When　it　es　to　investing；　too　many　p