Page 192 - Rich Dad's Increase Your Financial IQ: Get Smarter with Your Money

cheap cars, wear cheap clothes, or live in a cheap neighborhood. It’s a
matter of mirror neurons and of standard of living.

Today, neuroscientists believe that mirror neurons are the most powerful
learning parts of our brains. In the classroom, it explains why some students
are teacher’s pets. Since most classrooms are led by left-brained people,
they tend to favor the kids with the same intelligences. On the flip side,

these teachers tend not to like kids who are artistic, musical, creative,
physical learners, or not easily intimidated. By the time college comes
around, most of the kids who are not linguistic and logical-mathematical are
gone. They have been labeled and eliminated. Sadly, the kids who are

eliminated often leave school feeling stupid. Imagine if that happens to you
at an early age. How does this label affect the rest of your life?
In an experiment conducted by Harvard professor Robert Rosenthal and
Lenore Jacobson in 1966, teachers were told that certain kids in their

classes were geniuses even though they were not. In almost all cases, those
kids received exceptionally high grades. In other words, researchers found
that it was the teacher’s perception of the child’s intelligence that had the
greatest influence on a child’s learning. In the world of investing this is

called a bias; in race relations it is known as a prejudice. This is an example
of the impact of mirror neurons.
In simple terms, mirror neurons mean our brains are like television
transmitters and receivers. Even though we are not physically talking to one

another, our brains are communicating at very deep levels. For example,
when we walk into a room, most of us can immediately sense who likes us
and who doesn’t, even though nothing is said. This is the worst part. I
learned that if I did not feel good about myself, people did not feel good

about me. In many instances, another person is only sending back what I am
broadcasting. In other words, if I think I am a loser, other people will think
of me as a loser.
The good news is that you and I can change their perception of us by

changing our perceptions of ourselves. This can be done by adapting our
mirror neurons. It is not easy, but it can be done. For example, if I had not
changed my perception of myself, I would never have met and married a
beautiful woman like Kim, someone like Donald Trump wouldn’t be my

friend, and I wouldn’t be financially secure today. If I had not consciously