| Michael Angier is the founder and CIO (Chief Inspiration Officer) of
SuccessNet based in
South Burlington, Vermont USA. He’s a father, husband, writer, speaker,
entrepreneur, coach and student. He's also the creator of The World Class
Business™ Conference. |
Financial independence, by its very definition,
means to not be dependent on anyone or anything for our financial needs. That
requires being free from debt.
When asked what they would do if they won the
lottery, most people say they would pay off their debts. Just imagine what it
would be like not to owe any money?
We'd all like to be free from owing money. But
something has happened to us over the past couple of generations--we've come to
accept debt as just another part of modern life.
It doesn't have to be that way.
The average American will earn between $600,000
and $2,000,000 in his or her lifetime. But it's not important what we make--it's
what we keep that makes the difference. The percentage of people reaching 65 who
are financially independent are in the small single digits. Over 25 percent of
the US federal budget is used just to pay interest on the national debt. Debt
has become the new "American Way" and it's not something to be proud of.
Bankruptcies, failed marriages, alcohol and drug
abuse, crime and a host of other things can often be related to the scourge of
debt. Part of the reason we've embraced being in debt for most, if not all, of
our lives can be attributed to the fact that every one else--including our
government--is doing it. Owing one, two or even three times as much as we earn
in a year would have been horrifying to our grandparents. Had consumer debt--a
term unheard of only 30 years ago--not crept into our society gradually, it
never would have been embraced.
Just think what it would be like if you owed
absolutely nothing to anyone for anything. All the payments you pay each
month--all the interest, all the worry, the limited choices--would disappear. No
more would you have to stay in a job or profession you despise with people you
don't respect. You would feel not only free from debt, but would experience
freedom in many other aspects of your life.
Imagine, if you would, what your life would be
like if you only had to pay for utilities, food and entertainment. Would it make
a difference in the quality of your life, the quality of your relation ships,
your health? Of course it would.
We can all become debt-free and in less time than
you might think. But first we have to get serious about it. It won't happen by
itself. The forty-forty- forty plan won't cut it. That's working forty hours a
week, forty years of your life and retiring at forty percent of what you were
making before.
Most people work into May of each year, just to
pay their taxes to the state and federal government. How many more months do we
have to work to pay the interest and principle payments on what we owe?
Let's say that you owe $40,000--not counting your
home mortgage--credit cards, furniture, cars, etc. If the average interest on
this debt was 14 percent, you'd have to pay $5,600 just in interest each year.
On top of that, of course, are principle payments. That could easily be another
$5,000 to $10,000. Even if you were only paying $10,000 in payments on this
debt, you would have to make over $13,000 before taxes to service this
liability. If you made $35,000 annually, you'd be working almost five months of
that year just to make your payments. Add to that the five months to pay taxes
and what have you got left? Is that any way to live? No wonder so many people
feel trapped.
How Do You Get There?
Getting out of debt and staying out of debt is simple.
SIMPLE, but not easy. I want to encourage and support you and your businesses to
become debt-free. I'm confident that you will have more fun, encounter less
stress and be more productive.
My wife and I have made our plan, we've
simplified our lives, and we are well on our way to reaching this objective. Our
company has no debt and we will personally be free of all debt in a short while.
You can do it, too.
Debt-Free, Then Wealth
Albert Einstein was once asked what he considered to be the greatest invention
of all time. "Compound interest," was his reply. When you've eliminated your
debts, you can then start to use this "great invention" and make compound
interest work FOR you instead of against you. You will develop an investment
portfolio that can make you truly wealthy in only a few years. You can become a
true capitalist in the real sense of the word--one who creates capital. And you
will be free.
You owe it to yourself and those you love to free
yourself from the power-robbing, creativity-stifling, worry-causing scourge of
debt. After that, you can begin to develop real wealth.
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