Do You Believe That You Can Be Financially Independent?

If you know that you could be financially independent by this time next year, would you do anything at all to make it happen?

But the real question maybe "Do you really know what financial independence is for you?"

Or are you allowing yourself to be distracted by the reality of just living day to day and paying bills? Are you too busy thinking about paying the mortgage or how you are going to pay for your child's school fees?

Say what - Financial Independence - what's that?

I am so glad you asked, because if you don't know what financial independence is, or what it means, or how much money it would take to reach it, then how could you ever believe it could happen?

Where would you even start, or why would you start?

I understand. I really, really do. With things the way they are now, you don't want to think of anything other than the challenges of today as that in itself is overwhelming enough.

Really, what's the point of looking further until you have figured out how to make today's money work for today?

What if everything you needed to make today and tomorrow work were right there in your 'hand' and all you had to do was make them work for you?

And if you are having difficulty even believe it's possible to change your
situation, now is a good to step back and ask yourself WHY?

It may just be that you have lost hope!

You may have tried all sorts of strategies and 'sure things' that have turned up empty handed. You have told your family and friends of your plans many times, and you are afraid of looking foolish one more time.

So you have retreated to your safe and familiar place - a nice, safe, secure job - someplace where as long as you show up and do your work, you'll be paid. And, if you stay long enough, and discipline yourself to be patient, and put aside some money, and don't over spend, you'll be able to wait it out and eventually leave the job and start living your life.

But is this really the way you want to live your life?

You have probably had a hard time just surviving that the idea of financial freedom
now seem so distant that even if it was possible; you couldn't imagine
where the time - energy and money would come from to make anything
different happen.

You are probably exhausted, and even the thought of one more thing makes you want to cry.

What's the point? You've tried it all before and you just got further and further
behind and have given up what feels like your whole life and all your money and
all your time for nothing - or at least that's how it feels.

I know how you feel but I also want you to believe that you can start changing your situation - Today!

And you don't really have to totally believe - you just have to start with a
little bit of hope. And if you have hope, then you can begin to do something to
make a difference.

And with hope we can work together to make it happen for you.

What's the worst that can happen, really? You might end up further ahead than
you are now? You might learn some things? You might actually change your life?

So, if you are prepared to make at least one small step, and implement it consistently, I assure you that you will see the results you are looking for more quickly than you ever thought possible.

Here is what you need to do Click Here and Complete The Form.

Now you're going to be thinking, okay here he goes - he's going to sell me
something - maybe a business or investment or other get rich quick program -
well, I'm not.

I'm trying to sell you on you - I'm trying to re-sell you on yourself. I want you
to know that regardless of where you are today, the situation is only hopeless, or
static, or unrealistic if you choose to make it that way.

If you're truly sick and tired of being sick and tired then let's get moving.

Here is what you need to do Click Here and Complete The Form.

Do You Know The Difference Between Investing & Savings?

No matter your age you need to ensure that you are saving and investing your money if you are going to achieve financial independence. But do you know the difference between the two? If you you're not sure just keep reading and you'll soon find out.

While the terms saving and investing are often used interchangeably, they are distinctly different and usually serve different purposes.

Saving is short-term— within a five-year period and usually with a specific goal or purchase in mind. With saving, your returns on the money set aside is minimal because of the short term nature of the instruments used, ie bank accounts or certificate of deposits.

Investing, however, refers to long-term— greater than five to ten years with the goal of a greater return on your dollars.

The objective of investing is to yield a return on your money over the long-term. With investing, you allocate part of your savings to purchase financial instruments such as individual stocks and bonds or stocks and bonds mutual funds. Over the long term, stock-related investments have demonstrated their ability to outpace inflation.

Inherently, risks come with investing, which means you can expect to see a decline in your portfolio value from time to time, as was clearly indicated over this past year. So, risk is the uncertainty associated with the expected financial gains. And your age, time horizon, risk tolerance and financial goals help determine the ratio of stocks to bonds and cash as you design and build your investment portfolio.

One way to reduce your risk is to keep contributing to your investment on regular basis. This is know as dollar cost averaging - you are allocating a designated dollar amounts on a strict, periodic schedule.

As a rule of thumb you should be setting aside at least 20 % of your income for savings and investing. My suggestion is that you place 5% on savings and 15% in investment.

The Secrets That No One Is Telling You About Retirement

While you are racing toward the inevitable here is a little secret about retirement that no one is telling you about. No, they don't mean to keep it a secret the fact is most persons don't really know. So here is what you should know about retirement that no one is telling- Retirement Ain't What it Used To Be!

Historically, retirement planning was based on a three-legged stool model approach. So our parents had the expectation and could comfortably retire with a company pension, Social Security benefits and their individual investments. But that retirement model has changed and you can no longer rely on company pension. Not only can you not rely on a company's pension plan but your anticipated National Insurance benefit is now in doubt as current funding method is being forecast to drain the available resources by 2029.

All of this uncertainty means that you will have to take responsibility for your own retirement and you must move quickly because time is running out - So you've got to start planning your retirement now!

While money is not the only consideration, the sooner you begin regular contributions to your retirement plan, the more manageable it will be to fund it with a portion of your income.

Consider the following age guidelines and contribution rates:

• Starting at age 25— invest 10-15% of your income until retirement.
• Starting at age 35— the contribution rate needs to be 15-20% of income until retirement.
• Starting at age 50— requires approximately 50% of income contributed to an investment plan in order to maintain a desirable standard of living.

So what should you do?

1. Join Your Company's Pension Plan. If there is a plan at work join it as soon as possible. Your savings dollars should first go to your company's pension plan up to the company match, if there is one. Most employers provide some level of match, based on the employee’s contribution amount.
2. Get an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). After funding your company plan up to the company matching contribution, then consider adding addition voluntary contribution to the plan based on your age or start an IRA. Your devision will be based on which plan is providing the better rate of returns.
3. Start Investing. Get information on other investments and invest. You may want to consider government treasury bills, mutual funds or certificates of deposit.
4. Get help. Just as you would not leave your health to change you should not leave your retirement to chance either. “Strategies for Achieving a Comfortable Retirement- Yours” is a useful resource to get you started.

Here are a few more secrets that they are not telling you – if Bahamian continue to plan for retirement at their current rate:

1. 95% of Bahamians will retire not being able to afford their retirement after working for at least 40 years.
2. 67% will have to continue working
3. An increasing numbers of retirees are now dependent on their families, government of charity for support.

Now that you know the secrets, use them to your advantage and you'd have a comfortable retirement!

Got a question about retirement issues you're facing - any question at all.
Just Ask Glenn!

What Michael Reminds Me of

You can’t turn on your radio or television without hearing about the king of pop, Michael Jackson who died much too young last week.

And Despite Michael's remarkable talent and contribution to the world of music and dance most of the news surrounding his death seem to be focusing on his financial life.

But what Michael reminds me of is how little money really matters in the end.

Even with all of Michael's success and money - Almost One Billion dollars in earnings - it could not buy him what he seemed to have wanted and needed most - acceptance, love and happiness.

Michael is a reminder that no matter how much money you have it cannot:

1. Heal a broken heart.
2. Protect or make you feel safe.
3. Make you feel good about yourself.
4. Make you feel whole and beautiful.
5. Give you a sense of self or self-acceptance.
6. Heal the pain you hold or the loneliness you feel.

So I encourage you to took a few moment to reflect on and honor just how much joy, beauty and music Michael brought into our lives in spite of his pain and use the energy and messages he shared to deepen your relationships and enjoy the short life you have - despite what you may not have!

Michael also reminded me of the "Lessons From Anna Nicole" you should give it a read.

Do You Have The Power To Change Your Destiny?

Do You Have The Power To Change Your Destiny?

I have a prediction for you. Would you like to hear it?

I predict that THIS is the year of your Financial breakthrough! Isn't that great news?

Even better, the first half of this year is over ... and that means your breakthrough for 2009 is just right around the corner!

But, you need to decide to do some things differently or the next six months is going to look alot like the last...

When you purchase your copy of "Taking Control of Your Money" ebook, you are taking the first steps toward creating your successful financial future.

In these next six months, you can witness the start of your journey to financial freedom or, you can continue along the same path of the last six months. It's really up to you.

"Taking Control of Your Money" gives you the tools and insight you'll need to finally begin creating the successful financial future you deserve. So don't let this opportunity pass you by ...

Decide today to make your next six months a thriving period of explosive growth in your financial life! Get the ebook ... and when you do, I predict a very bright future.