I nodded slowly. "Well, that's all I've been doing... think- ing about it. The pay is OK, and benefits are good. And be- sides, my flight training has been pretty intense," I said. "I've become a pretty good pilot after flying in combat. If I fly for a year with a small airline and get some multi-engine time, I will be ready for the major carriers." "So is that what you think you are going to do?" asked rich dad. "No," I replied. "Not after what has happened to my dad and after having lunch at Mike's new home. I lay awake for hours that night and I thought about what you said about in- vesting. I realized that if I took a job with the airlines I might someday become an accredited investor. But I realized that I might never go beyond that level." Rich dad sat in silence, nodding ever so slightly. "So what I said hit home," rich dad said in a low voice. "Very much so," I replied. "I reflected on all the lessons you gave me as a kid. Now I am an adult and the lessons have a new meaning to me." 'And what did you remember?" asked rich dad. "I remember you taking away my 10 cents per hour and making me work for free," I replied. "I remembered that les- son of not becoming addicted to a paycheck." Rich dad laughed at himself and said, "That was a pretty tough lesson." 44 Rich Dad's Guide to Investing "Yes it was," I replied. "But a great lesson. My dad was really angry with you. But now he is the one trying to live without a paycheck. The difference is he's 52 and I was 9 when I got that lesson. After lunch at Mike's, I vowed that I would not spend my life clinging to job security just because I needed a paycheck. That is why I doubt that I will seek a job with the airlines. And that is why I'm here having lunch with you. I want to review your lessons on how to have money work for me, so I don't have to spend my life working for money. But this time, I want your lessons as an adult. Make the lessons harder and give me more detail." 'And what was my first lesson?" asked rich dad. "The rich don't work for money," I said promptly. "They know how to have money work for them." A broad smile came over rich dad's face. He knew that I had been listening to him all those years as a kid. "Very good," he said. 'And that is the basis of becoming an investor. All in- vestors do is learn how to have their money work hard for them." 'And that is what I want to learn," I said quietly. "I want to learn and maybe teach my dad what you know. He is in a very bad way right now, trying to start over again at the age of 52." "I know," said rich dad. "I know." So on a sunny day, with surfers riding the beautiful waves of the deep blue ocean, my lessons on investing began. The lessons came in five phases, each phase taking me to a higher level of understanding . . . understanding the thought process of rich dad and his investment plan. The lessons began with preparing mentally and taking control of my- self ...