Mind Your Own Business 111 Again, a picture is worth a thousand words. Here is a diagram of the income statement and balance sheet that best describes Ray Kroc's advice: lucom* Work tor \. Owner expense Work lot Boternment Asset Liability Work lor Baak Your Business Our current educational system focuses on preparing today's youth to get good jobs by developing scholastic skills. Their lives will revolve around their wages, or as de- scribed earlier, their income column. And after developing scholastic skills, they go on to higher levels of schooling to enhance their professional abilities. They study to become engineers, scientists, cooks, police officers, artists, writers and so on. These professional skills allow them to enter the workforce and work for money. There is a big difference between your profession and your business. Often I ask people, "What is your business?" And they will say, "Oh I'm a banker." Then I ask them if they own the bank? And they usually respond, "No, I work there." 112 Rich Dad, Poor Dad In that instance, they have confused their profession with their business. Their profession may be a banker, but they still need their own business. Ray Kroc was clear on the differenceBerweehTiis profession and his business. His profession was always the same. He was a salesman. At one time he sold mixers for milkshakes, and soon there- after he was selling hamburger franchises. But while his profession was selling hamburger franchises, his business was the accumulation of income-producing real estate. A problem with school is that you often become what you study. So if you study, say, cooking, you become a chef. If you study the law, you become an attorney, and a study of auto mechanics makes you a mechanic. The mis- take in becoming what you study is that too many people forget to mind their own business. They srjend their lives minding someone else's business and making that person rich. To become financially secure, a person needs to mind their own business. Your business revolves around your asset column, as opposed to your income column. As stated earlier, the No. 1 rule is to know the difference be- tween an asset and a liability, and to buy assets. The rich. focus on their asset columns while everyone else focuses on their income statements. That is why we hear so often: "I need a raise." "If only I had a promotion." "I am going to go back to school to get more training so I can get a better job." "I am going to work overtime." "Maybe I can get a second job." "I'm quit- ting in two weeks. I found a job that pays more." In some circles, these are sensible ideas. Yet, according to Ray Kroc, you are still not minding your own business. These ideas all still focus on the income column and will Mind Your Own Business 113 only help a person become more financially secure if the additional money is used to purchase income-generating assets.