Economics is one of the central tenets of Max Living. We aim to help people progress to financial freedom, whatever that means for them, and give them tools and resources that help them exert more control over events in this part of life. If you’re worried about your financial future, chances are you will not be able to give very much attention to the other key areas of Max Living.

In Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant, which is described as Rich Dad, Poor Dad Part II, Robert Kiyosaki helps readers see how they can reach financial freedom. Kiyosaki writes, “If you are ready to begin your journey or are already on your journey to financial freedom, this book is written for you.”

Readers of Kiyosaki should already be familiar with his “ESBI” Quadrant, with four distinct categories of earning—Employee, Self-Employee, Business Owner, Investor. Kiyosaki states that “financial freedom can be found in all four of the quadrants, [but] the skills of a ‘B’ or ‘I’ will help you reach your financial goals more quickly. A successful ‘E’ should also become a successful ‘I’.”

Part one of the book explains the differences between quadrants, and will help you see where you are now. Part two is about personal change—who you have to be rather than what you have to do. Part three provides seven steps that get you on the “right side” of the quadrant—Business Owner and Investor. These include “take control of your cash flow,” “know the difference between risk and risky,” and “seek mentors.” In this last step, Kiyosaki encourages readers to consider who they spend their time with. What quadrant are they in?

Whether you have or haven’t read any of Kiyosaki’s other books, Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant is recommended reading because it helps you evaluate where your money is coming from and how you can move to the “B” and “I” quadrants. Kiyosaki doesn’t provide specific “here’s how you make money” advice. If success is a journey from one point to another, then what Kiyosaki does is give you a compass to help you navigate—in this case, from “E” and “S” to “B” and “I”. I’m confident you’ll find it useful.

A new edition of Rich Dad’s Cashflow Quadrant will be released on May 10. You can purchase it then from Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble, or you can find a used copy from numerous outlets.

“You’ve heard of people calling in sick. You may have even called in sick a few times yourself. But have you ever thought about calling in well?

It’d go like this: You’d get the boss on the line and say, ‘Listen, I’ve been sick ever since I started working here, but today I’m well and I won’t be in anymore.’ Call in well.” -Tom Robbins

Are you ready to call in well?

Research has shown that money motivates well for rudimentary tasks but isn’t that effective for more complex work.

What we really crave is self-direction, mastery and the desire to make a contribution.

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Many would-be leaders, in their quest to produce value, end up taking on unnecessary tasks that others are responsible for and thus feed irresponsibility in those around them.

Leaders understand their unique role and do it with excellence, and they allow others to also fulfill their individual roles without depriving them of opportunities for growth by doing their job.

Leaders don’t do what others should do and then think that they’re doing them a favor.

Misguided actions that lead toward dependence often masquerade as charity. If your actions toward others does not lead them to increased self-reliance, you can know with a surety that you are hindering, not helping them.

True accountability is based on real love; if we truly love others we will allow them to fulfill their responsibilities without giving them a crutch.

Help others around you to rise to their potential by holding them accountable for their responsibilities.

Recommended Reading: The One Minute Manager Meets the Monkey by Blanchard, Oncken, and Burrows.

Leaders recognize areas of improvement in any endeavor and seek positive avenues and methods for enacting change.

They don’t whine when people don’t listen to their advice; if their message is important enough, they keep working on how they share their message.

In the face of opposition, leaders work on the one thing that they have control over: themselves.

If you feel that people aren’t listening to you on a consistent basis, that should tell you it’s time for you to change.

As Stephen R. Covey says, “Any time you think the problem is out there, that very thought is the problem.”

Suggested reading: The 8th Habit by Stephen R. Covey

Much financial failure is the result of players simply not knowing the nature and the rules of the game.

How could you win a game of Monopoly if you didn’t know the purpose of placing hotels on your properties?

How long would a basketball player last on a football field if he didn’t know what football was?

If you feel like you are losing the game of finances, take a step back and ask yourself if you know what the rules are and what the purpose of the game is.

After you’ve identified the things that you think you know, find out if the rules you’re playing by are principles or strategies.

If your knowledge is based on strategies, the rules will be constantly changing. Principles never change and hold true in every context.

When all else fails, ask for or read the directions from an experienced and successful player.

Where are you on the CASHFLOW Quadrant? Rich Dad, Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki explains.

*If you’re reading this in an RSS reader or e-mail, you may need to click the title of the post to view the video on our blog*

How many of us can hardly stand to get up in the morning, yet we do it any way because we’re like a beast of burden pursuing a carrot that’s been dangled in front of us?

In the movie “Jerry Maguire,” starring Tom Cruise, there’s a humorous — yet saddening — scene that illustrates the destructive lure of “golden handcuffs.”

Tom has just been fired from his job, and as he’s leaving, he asks everyone in the firm, “Who wants to come with me?”

There’s dead silence for a moment, then one woman speaks up and says, “I’d like to, but I’m due for a promotion in three months.”

Like fish chasing bright objects, we’re lured by the temptation of greater pay and benefits to remain in companies and positions that contribute to misery.

This happens when we believe that money is power, and when we place more value in material things than we do in people.

A sure sign that we are not on the path toward reaching our full potential is if we are working only for money. If we’re not working to create the greatest amount of value in our present moments, then we must take deliberate action to solve this problem.

Jim Kouzes said that,

“Leadership is the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for shared aspirations.”

In other words, we must learn how to inspire, as opposed to require.

People will only follow you with their heart and soul if the goal is something that they want, not something that you want. To consistently inspire others we must constantly be working on improving ourselves.

We must stop blaming others or making excuses when our ideas weren’t implemented, or we feel like nobody listened to us.

Become a better leader by focusing not on how external circumstances or other people need to change, but on how you need to change.

A high form of production is to use systems to duplicate our efforts in order to produce the greatest amount of value for the greatest amount of people.

Most small businesses fail because the owner does everything himself without creating duplicable business systems.

Robert Kiyosaki calls this the difference between hauling buckets and building pipelines. This is also the difference between true business owners and the self-employed.

Bucket haulers are limited in the amount of value they can create because they alone can only do so much in a day.

But pipeline builders can create virtually unlimited amounts of value because they duplicate and replicate their processes of production. It is also through sustainable systems that we can have intergenerational impact for centuries to come.

Exponentially increase the value you provide by duplicating yourself through business systems. Specifically to network marketing, this means building a team, rather than relying on product sales.

Building pipelines, as opposed to hauling buckets, will ultimately serve more people than you can serve alone.

Recommended Reading: The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber and Cash Flow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki