by Michael Romsleo

Times have certainly changed. Markets are different. The economy is in a state of complete turmoil. People who openly bragged about their awesome returns in the stock market are quiet and livid. Because they lost not only their impressive gains, but their principal as well.

Like Warren Buffet said, “It’s not so much a return on your money than it is a return OF your money that’s important”. If only everyone followed his #1 rule of “don’t ever lose money”. (Rule #2 is “don’t forget rule #1)

Is there any such vehicle out there that still gives a decent rate of return, but with protection from any downside risk?

Retirement vehicles that are directly tied to the stock market, such as IRAs, mutual funds and 401Ks have been impacted so terribly that Americans who were planning to retire in 2009 must work at least 10 more years, just to break even!

Financial experts did predict something like this would happen. However, they did not know when or how bad it was going to get. How long must we endure this?

It is a matter of having the best tools, rebuilding slowly, but surely, to create a retirement worth looking forward to. It does take a little discipline, but more importantly, it takes the right person to help.

According to the Social Security Administration, only 4% of Americans will ever reach financial independence. (Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, SSA Pub. #13-11871). Another statistic states that only 4% of Americans actually seek the advice of a financial planner or wealth strategist.

To throw another curveball, not all financial advisors are really out to help you. It’s not always their fault. It’s simply that the only system they know is flawed. Does it make sense that an advisor, who just lost a ton of their clients’ money, is still receiving a percentage of that account?

A competent financial advisor will help you beat these two battles: taxes and inflation. To become part of the 4%, these two battles must be won.

Imagine if you didnt have to work another day in your life. You had put away enough into your nest egg, safely, so that the return from that nest egg paid you even more than what you make now on a monthly basis. What if you worked only because you wanted to make a difference in other peoples’ lives? But your life was basically a life-long vacation. And you could do whatever, whenever, however, with whomever, without having to worry about money.

Sounds like a pretty good definition for retirement. True financial freedom is within your reach.

About the Author:
Don’t be too disappointed about the economy and building your nest egg. There really are ways to build financial indepenence without losing to the market. Consult a financial advisor who can aid you in achieving your financial goals.

No related posts.

Tagged with:

Filed under: Finance

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!