According to CNN.com 76% of Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. Living in one of the most affluent counties in America (Johnson, state of Kansas), it would be easy for me to dismiss this as alarmism, but even in this very county, and in the surrounding KC metro counties, it is easy for me to imagine that this CNN.com article is probably not too far off the trail.
Now, that being said, I am an optimist by nature and I do not re-post this article to point out the negative nature of how this article feels for so many who do live pay check to pay check, we get enough of that in this age. I do re-post, because no matter what you or I think of the news service reporting (good or bad, legit or not) I think the vibe of the article is certainly valid and perhaps even fairly close in percentage of people in this situation.
My family was in this state in 2008 and mounting unsecured debt was the norm. I was sooooo sick of living paycheck to paycheck. Lots of discipline, implementing some Dave Ramsey principles, implementing tools and thoughts by Joseph Sangl, and implementing the Infinite Banking concept by Nelson Nash through Life Success and Legacy all have helped us to reduce and eliminate massive debt, correct poor habits, begin new better habits, and get our family back up on its feet into a brighter future. In these five years since beginning the above principles, we now see a hope that we do not have to live paycheck to paycheck and we are hopeful, real hopeful. This, my friends, is called a testimony. It's our story after our financial tests and we thank God for his provision through the tests and now beyond debt into a better future. I'd love to share more - maybe you should just send me a note of contact and we could talk? I'd like that.
If you'd like a copy of Nelson Nash's book, Becoming Your Own Banker, I'll send one to you for $20 and I'll cover shipping. Write to mzimmeribc@gmail.com with mailing details.
Retirement for Teachers Looks Shaky
Thinking about my father, wife, mother (who are teachers or have worked in the public school system) and countless numbers of teachers I've known through the years it occurred to me that state supported retirement funds, such as KPERS (here in Kansas) have been shaky at best lately in terms of funding and promises to deliver on future funds to its retired teachers. Coming across this article from the KNEA home page and inset articles like this one from the Wichita Eagle make me wonder in honest inquisitiveness, will these propped up plans and recovery systems to ensure proper funding really work? The better question is will the money paid in to "the system" by lifetime educators really be there?
If, according to the article, the state is supposed to contribute a set amount but underfunds or the state goes to a defined contribution plan (which KNEA opposes) then who's stuck at retirement time? You guessed it - teachers and other vested KPER contributors. Then I have to ask myself, with retirement numbers jumping higher and higher as boomers retire from service and more dollars pouring out than in "the system," what's a younger generation to think about this whole deal? This thing looks shaky. This post is not meant to say that KNEA can't handle its business regarding the best care for its teachers or vested employees, this post is simply to ask - could there be a better more assured plan for retirement for teachers who want a more sure foundation to stand on in regards to retirement income?
The whole intent here is to ask do we REALLY believe in what we thought we knew about our retirement pension as public educators? Could there be another incredible option/financial vehicle for teachers that is better suited for some teachers who are willing to step out of "the box?" I believe there is, and it's called The Infinite Banking Concept. The concepts taught through IBC flies in the face of what we thought we knew, but it is most assuredly worth the investigation.
Retirement Tougher for Boomer Children
I came across this article through my feed reader of choice the other day talking about how it will be pretty tough for children of boomers to retire. The level of expected standard for living is as high as boomer parents but maybe not achievable for Xers etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Collapsing Social Security system, so on and so on and so on. I'm not trying to be glib or trite here because I think what the article is suggesting has some real merit. But on the other hand I think we should pause and consider that government propped programs will struggle in the days ahead as many have in the past and do even now in the present.
If you read this you now as a Gen Xer or even as a boomer you question IF you will have a Social Security assistance. You question IF your 401(k) or 403(b) or those mutual fund holdings are all really safe and accessible as funded. Let's be real - the picture isn't so bright in this area. And most of us have been pretty much taught to suck it up and just sink more money in, because that's what we should do - no plan B.
But the retirement picture can look better. The picture gets brighter and more colorful when we keep an open mind and explore what Infinite Banking can do. This is what I teach through Life Success and Legacy. We can read articles like the one mentioned nearly every day, so why not keep an open mind and just see what Infinite Banking could mean for you and your retirement future. Send me a note if interested.
What We Thought We Knew
I'm so excited about this blog I'm starting because it coincides with my new career path which is telling and showing people how to think in different ways about their finances than what main stream media, our parents, or our government has taught us or expects us to think and behave. I'll just say at the outset that this will be a very simple weekly blog. I'll post a couple times a week mentioning various media articles that I've come across and ways that we could rethink what's being said or "pushed" in light of what I'm teaching through the principles I teach as a part of Life Success and Legacy.
At Life Success and Legacy we feel like the information we teach and share from the book How to Be Your Own Banker by Nelson Nash do and will continue to set before us new options and ways to consider the flow of money in our lives in order to be able to pay off debt, finance cars and other large ticket items, plan for college expenses, plan better for retirement, and of course leave an incredible financial legacy for kids, grandkids, even great-grand kids.
This blog is written from the generational perspective of a Gen Xer, which is what I am. My hope is that other Gen Xers will be open minded enough to entertain the thoughts and ideas I present and perhaps dialog with me about the concepts presented. Finally, it is my hope that those who comment would be generally inquisitive and civil in their comments and that even if disagreements occur we can agree that what Nelson Nash presents to us in this age is at least food for thought. I'm fully aware that we all think the way we think and know what we think we know, but this is a blog for ideas and if you have a mind to explore these ideas, you are most certainly welcome to follow along on this journey in exploring...what we thought we knew.
