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.
Sincerely,
Mike Spatafora
United States 888-874-9344
mspatafora@livingthedreamintl.com
