I'm Game What hot, new pastime is inspiring entrepreneurs to launch businesses?

A business-based board game is actually inspiringentrepreneurial startups. Ed Patisso is just one of many who havelaunched businesses after playing Cashflow 101, which was createdby Robert Kiyosaki, author of the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Some entrepreneursare finding the board game, which teaches financial principles foraccounting and investing, can create wealth-and not only in aMonopoly-money kind of way, but in real-world dollars.

Patisso, for instance, founded American Real Estate Equities in Mineola, NewYork, after playing the Cashflow game. The company, started in2002, offers solutions for homeowners in pre-foreclosure, mortgagefinancing and real estate services. "[Cashflow 101] suppliedthe missing link," Patisso, 30, says. "I'd takenaccounting courses in college, but there's nothing like how theCashflow 101 game is structured-it helped me learn to managerisk. [Before I played], I didn't really understand a balancesheet or income statement." Patisso, who still plays the gameoften with gaming and business community group NYC Cashflow,expects his sales to hit $250,000.

New York City isn't the only Cashflow mecca. Many groupsmeet around the world to play the game. People can go to www.richdad.com forinformation and to http://cash flow.meetup.com members to meet otherinterested Cashflow 101 players. Several local groups meet throughYahoo! Groups online as well.