Does that seem like a crazy or dumb question?

If you bought into Wall Street’s mantra that as long as you invest for the long haul you’ll come out ahead, you need to watch this video today.

Click the play button below to see the shocking truth Wall Street doesn’t want you to know…

Because of this, most baby boomers have been forced to postpone retirement an average of five years.¹

I’m often asked how using the Bank On Yourself method to save for retirement compares to traditional plans, so I put together this short video that reveals seven reasons Bank On Yourself makes an excellent retirement plan alternative.

Click the play button in the video below and see how many of these seven advantages you’d like to have in your financial plan…

1.  Bankers Life and Casualty Center for a Secure Retirement, May 2011

It’s easier to do than you might think and hundreds of thousands of people are already doing it!

To show you how it works, we’ve created a fast-paced video. This video reveals…

• A way to make major purchases that beats financing, leasing or even paying cash for them!
• How the Bank On Yourself method lets you use your money to buy things…  but still have it earning interest and dividends for you
• Six ways this method beats using traditional financing
• How famous people like Walt Disney and J.C. Penney used this method – when no banker would lend them a dime
• How the average family can add $500,000 – or more – to the their lifetime wealth, simply by running their car and vacation purchases through a Bank On Yourself plan

Click the play button below to watch the video…

Here’s another video you may be interested in…

Would you like to see a specific example showing how much guaranteed and predictable income you could have in retirement, using the Bank On Yourself method?

Click the play button in the video below to see a fascinating example:

Many readers of this blog have asked to see more specific examples showing how much guaranteed and predictable income you could have in retirement, using the Bank On Yourself method. So I’ve included a fascinating example on this video.

If you have the feeling your financial plan has been treading water (or going backwards) for far too long, you’ll want to be sure to watch this video now. It’s got some pretty cool animation in it, too!

Click the play button to watch it and tell us what you think in the comments box below…

401(k) savings reach a 12-year high

However, half of all workers aren’t confident about their retirement future. No wonder, considering 56% say they’ve saved less than $25,000.¹

According to an article in USA Today², many 401(k) participants increased their contribution some this past year.  If you’re one of them, or are considering doing that, here are some things to think about:

• After a “lost” decade for stocks, before the market turned around in 2009, the 10-year returns of the S&P 500 were negative. Even after a near-record recovery, the 10-year returns remain meager – just 2.7% on an annualized basis for the ten years ending in April.³

That just about equals the inflation rate for that period, wiping out any real gain you might have had for the decade.  It also assumes you have no fees or costs (401(k)’s have some of the highest costs) AND assumes you’ll pay no taxes!

• And speaking of taxes… what direction do you think tax rates are going over the long term?

If you think they’re going up, as most people we’ve surveyed do, and you’re successful in growing a nest-egg in your 401(k), you’re only going to pay higher taxes on a bigger number!

• And speaking of 401(k) fees, have you read the shocking exposé Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist Dean Rotbart and I co-wrote? Millions of people have become “Zombie Investors” in their 401(k)’s and needlessly give up 40% or more of their hard-earned money. Read it now and find out if you’re one of them.
• Don’t forget that the balance you have in an account that’s invested in the stock market is only a number on paper. It’s meaningless until you sell your assets and (hopefully) lock in your gains, as so many retirees and pre-retirees have discovered. The result is uncertainty and broken dreams of retirement.

An amazing video tribute to human ingenuity

I get lots of videos sent to me, but this one is truly worth watching…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Get on your knees and say “no” to shopping?

The “Reverend Billy” believes consumerism has come to control our behavior.  So he started the Church of Stop Shopping – replete with a gospel choir – to help and inspire Americans to resist the urge to buy “stuff” and focus instead on enjoying the simple things in life that bring us happiness.

Learn more about it here and tell us in the comments box below what you’ve found helpful, to remind you to keep your spending in check.

Great Father’s Day gift idea!

Why not gift your father a copy of my New York Times best-selling book for Father’s Day?

The book, Bank On Yourself: The Life-Changing Secret to Growing and Protecting Your Financial Future, is available on our website at a 38% discount – less than Amazon sells it for.

Buy it now and give your father the priceless gift of financial wisdom.

1.  Employee Benefit Research Institute 2011 Retirement Confidence Survey
2.  401(k) Savings Are on the Rise, USA Today, May 12, 2011
3.  NoLoad FundX Newsletter, May, 2011 issue

Dan is a vice president of technology engineering, very analytical, and he has spent hundreds of hours investigating .

His conclusion?  “The more I look into Bank On Yourself, the better it looks,” says Dan.  And he has implemented it for his family in a big way.

Dan shared the findings and conclusions of his research in a fast-paced interview.  I encourage you to check it out now, if you haven’t already done so.

But what if you’re in debt?

Dan told me he was talking to a friend who was complaining that he and his wife were always in debt and confessed, “There are things we want to do – we don’t want to deprive ourselves of life.  We can’t really afford them, but we do them anyway.”

Maybe you can relate to Dan’s friend’s situation.  It’s a seemingly endless cycle of living beyond your means, using high-cost borrowing, which means you have interest to pay – leaving that much less for everything else.

Perhaps surprisingly, it has little to do with how much you make – people of all income levels suffer from this.  After all, as the late British economist, C. Northcote Parkinson noted…

C. Northcott Parkinson

Expenses rise to equal income”

It’s part of “Parkinson’s Law.” He also said that, “a luxury, once enjoyed, becomes a necessity.”  I can definitely relate to that, can’t you?

When Dan described to his friend how Bank On Yourself could be used to become his own source of financing and help free him from the endless cycle of debt, his friend’s first reaction was, “Yeah, it sounds great, but we could never do it – we have to get ourselves out of debt first.”

But as Dan explained more about it, his friend realized he didn’t have to wait.  He could start now and reduce or eliminate debt while at the same time increasing savings.  He realized Bank On Yourself could help his family “move to the right side of the line.”

What side of the “line” are you on now?

If you’re on the “wrong” side of the line, you know it.  You’ve probably tried to get to the other side of the line, but it’s not an easy journey to make.

The good news is that if you’re truly fed up with your situation and ready to make a change, Bank On Yourself can help you get there. My New York Times best-selling book, is filled with stories of folks of all ages and incomes who have done just that.

One woman who shared her story in the book is Rose Hillbrand (Chapter 8). Rose knew the feeling of hopelessness that came with the crushing debt she had incurred.  The video below updates her inspiring story of how Bank On Yourself helped her move to the other side of the line.  It was filmed when I was in Ohio speaking to a standing-room-only crowd of over 250 people…

And, if you’d like to get a no-obligation Analysis and a referral to a knowledgeable Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisor like the one Rose got referred to, who can show you how much your financial picture could improve if you added Bank On Yourself to your financial plan, simply request a free Analysis here.

Better than debt free?

Most financial experts say that the way to avoid getting into debt is to save up and pay cash for things.

They are wrong! There is actually a better way to purchase things.  I call it the “better than debt-free” method, and it actually beats paying cash.

How is that possible?!?  The conventional wisdom says that paying cash for things is the answer.  But this ignores an important, but little-known principle of finance…

What do I mean by that?  Let’s say you’ve decided you’re going to beat the financing and leasing rackets by paying cash for major purchases.  So you start putting money aside into a savings or money market account.  When you hit your savings target, you pull your money out to pay cash for that item.

Now how much interest are you earning on that money?

You’re earning ZERO interest, of course.  Which is why financing, leasing and paying cash are all losing scenarios.

Fact:  You’re either going to pay interest to others to finance things, or you’re going to lose the interest or investment income you could have earned, had you kept your money invested instead.

When you Bank On Yourself, you do pay interest on your policy loans.  But the interest you pay ends up in your policy, as I explain in detail on pages 100-102 of my book.

But far more important, as Dan Proskauer puts it…

The Bank On Yourself method offers something you truly deserve, but may not have – financial security and peace of mind.  With Bank On Yourself, you can sleep well knowing your savings can only grow, never shrink.  With Bank On Yourself, you know, rather than hope.”

Bonus:  Some companies have a feature that allows you to continue to earn the exact same interest and dividends – even on the money you’ve borrowed!

However, only a handful of companies offer a dividend-paying whole life policy that meets all the requirements to maximize the power of this concept AND pay you the same interest and dividends, regardless of whether you’ve borrowed from your policy .

And if your policy isn’t structured properly, your cash value won’t grow nearly as fast, you could lose the tax advantages, or both.

When you request a free Analysis, you’ll get a referral to one of only 200 financial advisors in the country who have met all the rigorous requirements to be a Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisor.

So, whether you’re on the side of the line that Dan Proskauer is on, and you want to strengthen your financial position and have predictability and peace of mind… or you want to be on that side of the line, chances are excellent that Bank On Yourself can help!

Why not find out today, if you haven’t already started to Bank On Yourself?

As I’ve said numerous times, I know Suze and Dave have helped many people get out of debt and get their financial act together.  However, there are two critical areas we strongly disagree on.

Neither of them has taken me up on the offer to debate me – yet. But I can’t help but wonder if they’ve ever actually checked into Bank On Yourself.

What would it be like to be a fly on the wall as Suze and Dave discuss Bank On Yourself? No need to wonder any longer, as our hidden video camera captured it all. Click the play button below…

In case you’re wondering, the statements made by Suze and Dave in the video about why you should invest in mutual funds and why you should avoid whole life insurance are direct quotes from their books.

And Suze really did tell the New York Times she doesn’t follow her own advice about investing in the market.

And yes, John Bogle, the founder of Vanguard – the largest mutual fund company in the country – really has written a stunning exposé about the smoke and mirrors mutual fund companies use to pull the wool over your eyes regarding the real returns you’re getting…

The conventional rates of return (we rely on) to measure performance reflect performance that is higher, and in many cases much higher, than returns earned by shareholders.”

- John Bogle¹

So why don’t Suze, Dave and most other financial gurus know about Bank On Yourself-type policies?

The three main reasons for this are:

1. Very few insurance companies even offer the kind of policy that maximizes the power of the Bank On Yourself concept
2. Insurance agents and financial advisors who help their clients implement this strategy take a 50-70% cut in commissions to do so
3. Probably because of reasons #1 and #2, this kind of policy is not even covered in most (and maybe all) of the training programs insurance agents take to get their licenses. It’s also not covered in the training they take to receive advanced designations, like CLU, ChFC, etc.

In fact, advisors who pride themselves on their 30+ years of experience and the “alphabet soup” behind their names often admit they’ve never heard of these kinds of policies!

That’s a big part of the reason why the Bank On Yourself Authorized Advisor Training Program was created.

To receive a free Analysis and get a referral to one of only 200 advisors throughout the U.S. who have met the rigorous qualifications, simply request it here. There’s no obligation to find out what your bottom-line numbers and results could be if you added Bank On Yourself to your financial plan.

Many people have been willing to keep an open mind and look into the facts about Bank On Yourself, and people have been flocking to it, in order to have peace of mind and financial security.

But if you’re reading this, and you still have a few questions holding you back, you can find the answers here:

• What’s the rate of return of a Bank On Yourself-type policy?
• What do the companies used for Bank On Yourself invest in?
• How are these policies different from the ones the financial “gurus” talk about?
• Where do I find the money to fund a plan?
• I have good savings habits and little debt – how will Bank On Yourself help?
• How do I get started?

¹Common Sense on Mutual Funds, by John C. Bogle – 2010 (updated 10th Anniversary Edition)

Perhaps one of the most inspiring stories was shared by Greg and Christy Gammon. Since I interviewed them, their lives have taken some interesting twists and turns, and their Bank On Yourself policies have come to the rescue in surprising ways.

This short video update, filmed during my national book tour, reveals the details. Just click the play button below…

No two Bank On Yourself plans (policies) are alike. Each is custom-tailored, so yours would be uniquely suited to your goals and dreams. It’s easy to find out what your bottom-line numbers and results could be. Simply request your free Analysis here… and take the first step towards taking back control of your financial future. Why not do it now, while it’s fresh on your mind?

The first video (filmed during my national book tour) reveals how the Corey Family is using Bank On Yourself to accomplish a number of goals and dreams, including:

• Funding their kids’ college educations without going broke
• Getting back their real estate taxes… and the cost of custom-made furniture they bought for their home
• Being on track to a six-figure-a-year retirement income they can predict and count on

Just click the play button below to find out how the Corey’s are doing all this…

No two Bank On Yourself plans (policies) are alike. Each is custom-tailored, so yours would be uniquely suited to your goals and dreams. It’s easy to find out what your bottom-line numbers and results could be. Simply request your free Analysis here… and take the first step towards taking back control of your financial future. Why not do it now, while it’s fresh on your mind?

Now find out how the Bowsher Family used Bank On Yourself to help raise $100,000 for their church

This next video reveals a very creative way to raise funds for your church, temple or favorite charity that almost anyone can use.  Just click the play button below and enjoy!
 

Would you like to find out how Bank On Yourself could help you achieve your short-term and long-term goals and dreams? Why not request a free, no-obligation Analysis that will show you how you could benefit from a program custom-tailored to your situation?

The ways you can use Bank On Yourself are truly limited only by your imagination. You can learn more here about what Bank On Yourself is and how it works.

And if you’re wondering where to find the money to get started, here are eight of the most common ways to fund a Bank On Yourself policy.