How to Win in a down economy

I was recently watching the show 60 Minutes and one of the lead stories were about people facing retirement with no nest egg. My heart went out to the those folks because the story resonated with millions of Americans today. The story showed people resorting to drastic measures in order to survive from going to free food programs, living with friends & family, adult children borrowing from their parents, collecting cans & bottles and so on.

These people were, for the most part, college educated folks following the rules they were taught. You know the "rules" go to school, get a safe secure job, save for retirement and get a gold watch. The problem with that line of thinking is that it is an "Industrial Age" mindset and does not apply to the current "Information Age". Heck, working for a company more than 10 years is a thing of the past. The rules have changed.

The government raid on big business isn't making things any easier (60k new IRS agents). Pensions are all but myths. So the greatest asset you have to recovery what you may have lost is you.

So what options do you have? Well many are dipping into their savings and 401k's to survive but the way I see it is that they are eating their seeds. Your retirement funds are no longer the fruit of your many years of labor but the seeds for your new harvest.

If your 401k is now a "40none k" you may be able to use what you have to rebuild your future.

Here are some options;
Option 1- Continue working or find a job. Now we both know how tough it is and you don't want to work until you die. So that covers the obvious.

Option 2- Start a business. You can take some of your retirement money and start a business. Yes there is risk but you already risked your best working years playing it safe and when the rules changed, playing it safe failed you. So if you can write a business plan, build systems and market a business you could generate a fantastic income.

Option 3- Buy a franchise. If you do not know how to market a business or build an infrastructure you should consider the franchise route. In this way the system is already in place. You are, in fact, buying a system. The primary concern with franchises are the expenses and fees associated with buying a franchise not to mention the time it takes to turn a profit. Just be sure to do your due diligence before investing your retirement money.

Option 4- Invest in real estate. There are so many ways to get into real estate. Residential or commercial, "buy and holds" or "flippers", rent or lease, cashflow notes or foreclosures. Get the picture? You have to find your sweet spot and learn all you can and execute. Real estate can be an incredible wealth builder.

Option 5- Join a network marketing company. In my humble opinion, network marketing presents the best chance to recover some resources you may have lost over the last few years. Why?
-Low starting cost. Most mlm have an average entry fee of $500.
-Training & support. Typically, mlm companies (with a few exceptions) offer excellent training and support
-Leverage. You gain the benefit of profiting from other peoples effort as well as your own. Leverage is your key to freedom. You can't recapture the years of service you put into your job(s) so the only way to make up for time spent and money lost is to use the power of leverage.

Finally, I heard a powerful statistic from a top internet marketer and mlm recruiter, Dave Wood, that said 97% of network marketers who stay with the same company for 10 years make an average of 6 figures per year! That's a high success rate just for toughing it out and building an organization for at least 10 years.

Imagine you are 50 or 55 years old and the lion's share of your nest egg has taken a dive, what other 10 year retirement plan do you have to make a 6 figure residual income? Not a bad retire plan and you even compressed the time. (You don't have to spend another 30 years working)

To be fair, most people wash out of mlm and do not stick around for 10 years. That may be for many reasons but whatever the reasons, the statistics show a 97% success rate if you make it past that threshold. Obviously, you still have to be active and build other leaders on your team.

With a little grit, focus and determination you may not only survive this bad economy, you may even thrive and recover your retirement. I wish you all the best!

"Fighting the evil forces of personal poverty both yours and mine."
Robert E. Reed