Robert Kiyosaki is a fourth-generation Japanese American, born and raised in Hawaii. After graduating from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in New York, Robert joined the Marine Corps and served in Vietnam as an officer and helicopter gunship pilot. Following the war, Robert went to work in sales for the Xerox Corporation and, in 1977, started a company that brought the first nylon and Velcro surfer wallets to market. He founded an international education company in 1985 that taught business and investing to tens of thousands of students throughout the world. In 1994 Robert sold his business and, through his investments, was able to retire at the age of forty-seven. During his short-lived retirement, he wrote the international bestselling book
Rich Dad Poor Dad, and in 2006 coauthored with Donald Trump
Why We Want You To Be Rich. An entrepreneur, teacher, and investor, Robert also writes a monthly column, Why the Rich Are Getting Richer, for
Yahoo! Finance, and a monthly column, Rich Returns, for
Entrepreneur magazine.
Barbara Emi Kiyosaki grew up in Hawaii with Robert and the Kiyosaki family. While Robert took the path of war during the Vietnam era, Emi took the path of peace, exploring alternative and spiritual journeys. Emi began her studies at the University of Hawaii and then traveled to Colorado, Alaska, and India to deepen her studies and practice of Buddhism. Emi was ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1985 and today is known by her ordination name, Bhikshuni Tenzin Kacho. For six years, Tenzin was the Buddhist chaplain at the United States Air Force Academy. She has a master of arts degree in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan Language from Naropa University. She is the assistant spiritual director and teacher at Thubten Dhargye Ling Buddhist Center in Long Beach, California, and is a visiting teacher at Thubten Shedrup Ling in Colorado Springs. She occasionally resides at Geden Choling Nunnery in northern India. Tenzin also works as a hospice chaplain in Los Angeles, California."
