I recently had the opportunity to play the CashFlow board game with a group of Bay Area real estate investors.  CashFlow is a game designed by Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad, Poor Dad) to teach basic financial and bookkeeping skills.  It’s something of a cross between Monopoly and Life, with the object of the game being to escape the “Rat Race” by growing your passive income enough to cover your monthly expenses.

CashFlowIn the Rat Race, players go around in a circle, collecting paychecks, buying “doodads,” and making investments.  There are a number of ways to increase your passive income including buying dividend-paying stocks, rental real estate, and small “auto-pilot” businesses.   In my game, I had a number of rental properties but the investment that really put me over the top was a car wash business.  That acquisition increased my passive income beyond my monthly fixed expenses, allowing me to quit my teaching job and escape the Rat Race.

After that, I was onto the “Fast Track” — another loop of spaces on the board filled with potential big business deals and living-large experiences.  At the beginning of the game I’d put my “dream” piece of cheese on the “Heli-Skiing in the Alps” square.  I managed to get divorced and sued along the way, but eventually made it to my heli-skiing dream.

I had some serious beginner’s luck, but I think CashFlow is a pretty fun yet educational game.  It gets you thinking about how to better put your dollars to work for you.  Since I’m a huge nerd like that I had a hard time sleeping that night after playing; my brain was firing on all cylinders.  It may not be the most realistic depiction of life, but it definitely gets you thinking about how to apply some of the same strategies personally.

The CashFlow boardgame itself is super-expensive, like $260.  But I suppose that cost is justified if it gets people to make better financial decisions, and I imagine they’ll be more likely to take it seriously with that kind of upfront cost.  The best bet may be to find a local group playing and join them.  My game was $5 and I reconnected with an old friend as well as met some other interesting and motivated people.

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