Wealth
Accumulation
Is America Still The Land Of
Opportunity?
A
recent Survey of Consumer Finances
conducted by the Federal Reserve
Board revealed these statistics
about the state of America’s
finances.
Do
any of these facts hit home with
you?
- The typical
American family earns about
$45,000 per year. From 2001
to 2004, family debt increased
33% (adjusted for inflation).
Surprisingly little of this
debt stems from unnecessary
spending. Instead, credit is
being used to pay for necessities
like housing, household expenses
and health care, particularly
in low- and middle-income families.
- Average net
worth, which grew rapidly during
the boom of the 1990s, rose
only 1.5% between 2001 and 2004
for the average American family.
In other words, for most of
us, the worth of our investments
is not keeping up with the inflation
rate.
- The middle
class is being squeezed more
tightly than ever. Among the
wealthiest 10% of Americans,
net worth rose to $831,600,
or a 6.5% increase from 2001.
Meanwhile, the net worth
of those in the bottom 25%
fell 1.5% to $13,300.
- More than
a third -- 36% -- of those who
owe more than $10,000 on their
cards have household incomes
under $50,000. 13% who owe that
much have household incomes
under $30,000. The percentage
of disposable income used to
pay debts is near record highs.
The
report doesn’t point out these
more unsettling statistics:
- In February,
2007, the US Commerce Department
reported that the personal savings
rate for 2006 was a negative
1%. The rate for 2004 was a
negative .4%. For comparison,
in the midst of the Depression
in 1933, the PSR was -1.5%.
If 2007 figures show a decrease
similar to those of 2006, we’ll
have a worse record than during
the Depression. (Source:
Associated Press)
- “The
US is becoming less of a meritocracy,
where skill and intelligence
determine success, and becoming
more of a class-bound society,
where economic background, including
the better education money can
provide, matters more. There
are still many rags-to-riches
stories. But there's stagnation
in the underclass.” (Source:
Christian Science Monitor)
- According
to a new Federal Reserve data-based
economic analysis commissioned
by the Consumer Federation of
America, “...more than
half of American households
(56 percent) are behind where
they should be in saving for
a comfortable retirement.”
A related CFA public opinion
survey found that 59% of Americans
do not expect to maintain their
current standard of living in
retirement.
Does
this sound like a nation of people
who believe in and are profiting
from the American Dream—or
simply a nation of people who want
to live the Dream lifestyle without
really being able to find a way
to finance it? In fact, we have
to ask...
Is the
American Dream still alive and achievable?
Defining
the Dream
The
immensely popular 19th-century author
Horatio Alger is largely credited
with defining the American Dream
as well as the means to achieve
it. His books told the rags-to-riches
stories of people who succeeded
because of the opportunities they
had in the Greatest Nation on earth.
It didn’t matter who they were.
No matter how hopeless their situations
seemed, his characters found wealth
and success through determination
and hard work—and of course,
because they believed in the American
Dream.
The
Dream Today
We
believe the American Dream is alive
and well. The 21st century continues
to offer incredible opportunities.
Escalating wealth is mostly a matter
of finding the right opportunities
and having the determination and
guts to follow them through.
The materials and methods for
accumulation of wealth have changed,
but the opportunities are greater
today than at any other time.
One simply needs to learn about
the new materials and methods!
So
Many Things Have Changed:
Dealing With Fear and Uncertainty
The
events of September 11, 2001, permanently
changed our country and its citizens.
Our assumptions that we are safe
in our own land faded to fear and
uneasiness. Maybe you used to enjoy
travel, but now airports make you
nervous. Perhaps you dwell on the
possibilities of another terrorist
attack. We’re all dogged by
an unstable job market where mass
layoffs and outsourcing threaten
our livelihoods. The future is fraught
with uncertainty about whether we’re
making wise investments, whether
the CEO will abscond with the pension
funds, and whether Social Security
will be there for us.
Even weather patterns are unstable,
taking lives with devastating hurricanes,
tornadoes, tsunamis, heat waves,
and blizzards. Fear can make you
want to simply maintain the status
quo and not take any chances—yet
that is exactly what you must do
to avoid becoming a victim of fear,
because fear is the only thing that
can prevent you from taking advantage
of all the possibilities that are
open to you. FDR’s famous statement
still applies: “The only thing
we have to fear is fear itself.”
But think about this: All kinds
of fears have always held people
back from trying to improve their
lives. We’ve used fear as a
convenient excuse not to get on
with the lives we’d like to
live. It’s so much easier to
stay where we are, complaining that
we’ll never get ahead.
The opportunity is there for the
taking, but you must be prepared
to leave your comfort zone, summon
up your strength and determination,
and set a course towards wealth
accumulation. While money isn’t
everything, it can certainly do
a lot to alleviate uncertainty and
to enrich your life and the lives
of those you care most about.
Worrying about the future doesn’t
change it. No one has ever been
able to predict what will happen,
or when, or why. You only have
today and the lessons you have learned
from your past. You can take charge
of today’s reality and make
it sing with tomorrow’s dreams.
Accumulating
Wealth:
The Opportunity Has Never Been Better
Horatio
Alger may have been right in the
1800s when he claimed that anyone
willing to work hard could succeed.
Today, the picture is different.
It is painfully possible to work
very, very hard and not get
ahead. If you live from
paycheck to paycheck and worry constantly
about how you will meet your financial
obligations, you’re living
in a world of stress. You don’t
even have the luxury of worrying
about the stock market, because
you’ve got nothing to invest.
Yet more people are amassing wealth
today than at any other time.
True,
the financial picture for many of
us doesn’t measure up to the
rosy pictures we hear of a growing
economy. We worry about the war
on terror, how we’ll afford
gas to get to work, and whether
our jobs will still be there for
us tomorrow.
Yet you can begin your
journey to financial success today.
Instead
of the dubious prospect of accumulating
wealth working for someone else,
you can take control of your finances
by owning your own business. It
is much, much easier than you can
imagine because you can do it with
your own home-based business.
Did you know that two thirds
of all American millionaires are
self-employed?
Think about it. Who makes the most
money? The restaurant manager or
the restaurant owner? The car salesman
or the dealership owner? Owners
are self-employed, and they are
much more likely to be wealthy than
the people who work for them.
We’re not suggesting that you
buy a restaurant or an automobile
dealership. It isn’t necessary
to take that kind of risk or put
in that kind of work. You own home-based
business can be every bit as lucrative
and much less stressful than a bricks-and-mortar
business.
You probably already have the only
equipment you’ll need—a
computer and a telephone. That’s
all! Now all you need is the information
that has transformed so many people’s
lives.
Take
Control
Don't
let someone else decide your future
for you. Take the first step today
toward assuring a secure financial
future for you and your family.
And don’t wait until it’s
too late. Today is the time to
get started in an extraordinary
business that has already changed
the lives of so many, freeing
them of fear and worry and showing
them that they can live lifestyles
they thought were meant only for
others.
When you accumulate wealth, you
generate a steady residual income
that pays you every day. Are you
ready to discover how you can begin
to build that kind of income-producing
resource? Then you’ve come
to the right place.
Simply fill out the form below,
and I will get back to you with
additional information.
