Robert Kiyosaki, 1947 - Robert Kiyosaki Robert Kiyosaki was born and raised in Hawaii, and is a fourth-generation Japanese-American. He attended college in New York, and after graduating, joined the Marine Corps and served in Vietnam as an officer and helicopter gunship pilot. After the war, Robert worked for the Xerox Corporation as a salesman. In 1977, he started a company that brought the first nylon Velcro 'surfer wallets' to market. In 1985 he founded an international education company that taught business and investing to students throughout the world. In 1994 Robert sold his business and retired at the age of 47. During this somewhat short-lived retirement, Robert, collaborating with… co-author Sharon Lechter, a C.P.A. and his business partner, wrote the book "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." Followed by "Rich Dad's CASHFLOW Quadrant," "Rich Dad's Guide to Investing" and "Rich Kid, Smart Kid." Each earned spots on the bestseller lists of the Wall Street Journal, Business Week, The New York Times, eTrade.com, amazon.com and various other publications. "Retire Young, Retire Rich" was released in January of 2002 and climbed to the top of the Business Bestseller Lists. "Rich Dad's Prophecy will be released in October of 2002 by Time Warner Books. A Committment to Financial Education Prior to becoming a best-selling author, Robert created the educational board game -- CASHFLOW 101 -- to teach individuals the financial strategies that his Rich Dad spent years teaching him. It was those financial strategies that allowed Robert to retire at the age of 47.