There's No Easy Way: A Case In Point

OK this is the type of story I've been waiting for. I've had a request for anyone who has gotten in trouble with any seminar or get rich course out there since I started this website but haven't heard from anyone. I hope that means there aren't as many people taken in by the late night infomercials as I think there are. Well USA today has done the work for me with a story about Casey Serin who, the article says, is the "poster child for everything that went wrong in the real estate boom." But I think he's really the poster child for believing the hype, for wanting an easy way, for kidding himself. And who do you think was this kid's idol? Robert Kiyosaki.

There is no secret that I think Robert Kiyosaki does more harm than good (see this or see this or this one) but one example isn't enough to prove my point, besides this isn't about Mr. Kiyosaki, this is about Mr. Serin.

The USA Today article does a good job of mapping Mr. Serin's path of destruction pointing out 10 mistakes he made along the way. From lying on mortgage applications (a criminal offense), to buying property without ever seeing it, to underestimating remodeling costs. A smart person would read the article and learn what not to do but maybe Mr. Serin is a bit too closely involved to see the mistakes because he doesn't seem to have learned a thing.

Instead of realizing that the likes of Robert Kiyosaki and Carlton Sheets put him in this situation he's excited to get to meet with Mr. Kiyosaki. He continues to give the guy money (buying his latest book co-authored with Donald Trump) and holds him up as a hero. To me that's like admitting that you're a drug addict but seeking advice from your dealer.

Casey Serin even has his own blog about this mess that has become his life but he almost seems proud of his failure, as if the $140,000 in debt and his possibility of going bankrupt are badges of honor.

Casey's blog has a posting about meeting Robert Kiyosaki which he says is "amazing! I've been reading this guy for years!" Yeah maybe you should stop reading the guy and fix your mistakes. "Robert’s original Rich Dad Poor Dad is what really got me started on getting out of the "'Rat Race.'" It seems to me like he got out of the rat race and onto the rat treadmill with no end in sight.

Casey states that he's always been an entrepreneurial person and wants to retire young. "Reading Robert Kiyosaki's books," he says "cleared things up and showed me the way to get there." Really? Because I wasn't aware the road to early retirement went through bankruptcy (although that stragedy seems to have worked for Donald Trump).

Maybe I'm being hard on him but Casey gambled and lost and it seems like he's going back to the casino to dig himself out of the hole. Learning from your mistakes means you stop doing what got you in trouble in the first place. The one thing he's got going for him is persistence. Besides, even stupid people get lucky so maybe 10 years from now we'll hear about a much more successful Casey Serin but I doubt it.

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