Is Your Money Keeping Up With Inflation?
August 28, 2008
In today’s unpredictable global economy, you obviously never know what is going to happen next. Uncertainties and concerns regarding the Iraqi threat, North Korean crisis, and hidden terrorist cells and networks continue to loom in the back of the minds of consumers. Moreover, the stock markets and industries around the world.
Price inflation is another major concern for everyone. The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) number released by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics states that prices, in all U.S. cities, are up 0.1% in the month of December for the calendar year of 2002. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a program that produces monthly data on changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services. Furthermore, the national unemployment rate continues to remain steady at 6.0% for the month of December 2002. Believe it or not, this may not be as bad as it sounds.
Economic theory suggests that an increase in the inflation rate will lead to a decrease in the national unemployment rate. But since the unemployment rate is currently 6.0%, this may also suggest that in order for this rate to eventually decrease, we should expect more inflation in the future. The recent upsurge in oil prices together with precious metals supports this theory and may also be a hint of what’s to come.
Simple Strategies to Making Financial Gain
July 18, 2008
Now is a great time to make it a habit to manage your resources instead of your resources managing you. What is meant by that when we are stating that “Your money manages you”? Here is a well known example:
“There is more month than there is money so that new purchase, trip, or splurging will need to wait a month or two and maybe never. You’ve opted to instead delay and pay later making the problem much worst and your perceived lack of resources in control.” Here are some proven techniques to making financial gains an achievable goal by repositioning and changing spending habits while gaining more control of your situation so that there are available resources and time to spend with friends, family or loved ones.
One of the most overstated, undervalued and available resource accessible to anyone is time. Effective time management when applied consistently is a key element toward making financial progress. Even spare time moments resourcefully used contribute toward steady progress when used in combination with any of the following:
Who Will Become Wealthy in the Information Age?
June 4, 2008
As you know, we’re now well and truly in theInformation Age. It began about 10 years ago. In fact,many economists say it began in 1989, with the Fall ofthe Berlin Wall (and the start of the World Wide Web).
To understand who will become wealthy in theInformation Age, first we need to understand how theInformation Age differs from the Industrial Age (bornabout 1860, died about 1989).
In fact, let’s get a complete overview and go back tothe Agrarian Age.
In the Agrarian Age, society was basically dividedinto two classes: the landowners and the people whoworked on the land (the serfs). If you were a serf,there wasn’t much you could do about it:land-ownership passed down through families and youwere stuck with the status you were born into.
When the Industrial Age arrived, everything changed:it was no longer agriculture that generated most ofthe wealth, but manufacturing. Suddenly, land was nolonger the key to wealth. A factory occupied far lessland than a sheep farm or a wheat farm.
With the Industrial Age came a new kind of wealthyperson: the self-made businessman. Wealth no longerdepended on land-ownership and the family you wereborn into. Business acumen and factories were creatinga new class of wealthy person. But it still requiredenormous capital to build a factory and start abusiness.
Retirement Planning the Offshore Way
April 24, 2008
Retirement Planning the Offshore Way Why do so many of us constantly push the thought of retirement planning to the back of our minds? Reluctance?! 1 Reluctance to save for an event that seems so far off 2 Reluctance to tie in to an inflexible pension scheme 3 Reluctance to put a large portion of our current income out of reach for the long term But in terms of retirement planning, putting off until tomorrow that which you could get done today will end up costing you very dearly. Every month you delay your retirement savings planning, you significantly reduce the value of your future potential retirement fund.
Or put another way, every month you delay your retirement savings planning you significantly increase the amount that you will need to invest to achieve the same level of retirement income than if you’d started today. If a 25 year old and a 35 year old were to start saving for retirement at 55 and the 25 year old invested £300 a month towards retirement, the 35 year old would have to increase his contributions to £803 a month to achieve the same potential returns. At the state retirement age of 65 the average man will have some 19 more years to live and the average woman, 22 years. You will have to support yourself without work and, very likely, without state income.
Business After The Iraqi War
March 13, 2008
The rewarding of high compensation packages to top executives who turned over weak quarterly earnings, or who were involved in corporate scandals, adversely affected short-term investing, and collectively contributed to the downturn of the global economy over the last couple of years. Even the help and expertise of Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and several notable Nobel Prize winning economists in the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, wasn’t enough to revive the economy. September 11 then turned our attention towards terrorist threats against the markets.
Many, including the Bush administration, believed that a short war was the answer to both of these enormous problems. That is, if done quickly, a war would induce an increase in government spending that will be injected into the economy and a multiplier effect will, in turn, create jobs for the unemployed. But now that it’s over and coalition forces have taken control of Iraq, should we expect to return to business as usual? Unfortunately, this is easier said than done.
Financial Intelligence - Natural Marketing For Lone Rangers
January 31, 2008
“Ooooooh,” you may say, “I could NEVER be good at marketing, I’m just not that sort of person. I’m just not pushy enough”.
Well, if that is your reaction to the title of this article, I would like to kick off by giving you permission to hate marketing (and its cousin, “sales”). I am not going to try to turn you into a marketeer or a salesperson - but will you open your mind (just a chink!) to the possibility that you CAN stay just as you are and STILL be more successful at what you do?
Marketing and sales are inextricably linked in most people’s mind and everyone knows sales people are scuzz-bags - right? The very words “marketing” and “sales” conjures up images of people being brainwashed by ads and parted from their money, in exchange for something they don’t want. By people in dodgy suits!
Well, the first concept to get your head around, is that people are generally very sophisticated and astute. You cannot generally sell people something they don’t want, no matter how heavy handed your tactics. And generally, even by very clever marketing, you cannot persuade or brainwash people into wanting something, that they hadn’t wanted before. You couldn’t massage someone who didn’t want it, could you?
Financial Intelligence - Compounding (The Ninth Wonder of the World)
December 21, 2007
Compounding: The Ninth Wonder of the WorldBy Nicola Cairncross
Compounding is often described as the ninth wonder of the world. It is a concept that initially sounds quite dull, but when you understand how compounding just quietly works its magic - or conversely its naughtiness ? it’s a very exciting concept to grasp indeed!
Compounding is the difference between linear and exponential growth, or put more simply, about earning (or incurring) interest on the interest on the interest, generated by your savings (or your debt). On an energy level, it’s about making sure that every little bit of effort you expend, works on many different levels to bring a reward greater than the original effort required.
It’s a very powerful tool and can be likened to the wind under the wings of a jet. The plane creeps slowly, slowly along the approach runways, then moves into position, then starts down the runway slowly, but as it picks up speed, the power of the engines and the wind lifts its wings and it takes off, climbing very quickly and steeply into the sky.
The Wealth Connection ? 2 Steps to Brighten Your Golden Years
November 9, 2007
Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes — Envision your life 10 or even 20 years from now. Where do you plan to be? What are you doing and with whom?
Most of us between the age of 35 and 50 years hope to be retired to some degree in 15 to 20 years or less. We see ourselves living on retirement funds enjoying life and family. I have never had a client tell me they see themselves penniless or sick. Yet, these same clients fail to have a full plan.
They may have a retirement fund at work and other investments but how are these performing? Did you plan a financial foundation? What does your Wellness Investment program look like?
Many people tell me they don’t have a financial foundation program or Wellness Investment program in place. Regardless of age and health it is never too late to start planning. It is better than no plan at all. In this article I will give you 2 of the 21 most important Wealth Connection Steps I offer in my online course.
Your Money Or Your Life
September 29, 2007
Have you stopped to realize that although you go to school to learn about important subjects, no one teaches you how to manage your money?
Money is an essential part of life in our pursuit of happiness, yet very rarely will a parent sit down and tech their child how to handle their money.
This is true in grade school, high school and worst college. So what happens? Many of us end up in an extremely large amount of debt. We can’t seem to get it together even if we make more money.
I found myself in this trap about 13 years ago. I had an okay job, a car, and an apartment. Nice I thought soon I would buy a house and live the "American dream". Wrong! I could never save enough to buy a house. I had plenty of credit cards, so many that I never had enough money due to many payments to put aside for my dream home.
Who Else Wants To Know Oprahs Secrets To Wealth & Success?
August 18, 2007
Before I had a lot of money, I was really quite happy,” said Oprah Winfrey. “And I will tell you this–you may not believe it–I never would have gotten the money if I wasn’t happy to begin with. I never would have gotten it.”
I’ve noticed that we’re a culture that doesn’t stop long enough to enjoy its finances. We’re so far off into the future, envisioning the cash that we’re going to get, we’re never here long enough to enjoy it. Here, however, is home.
All of us work many hours for profit, yet when it comes in, and we open up our purse to spend it on what we like, how much time do we spend enjoying our acquisition?
The other day I got a beautiful armchair. The first time I saw it, I fell in love. I just had to take it home. It was big, a shocking pink color, and broad. When I sank in it, it supported me just perfectly. Visions of many hours in the bookstore, a good book on my lap, a comfortable armchair surrounding me drifted into my mind. Now, every time I sit and read a book on that chair, a deep sigh of contentment rises out of me.
