When Can I Retire? Think Again!

By Len Mooney

I have been reading Tony Robbins' Book, "Money Master The Game" and I highly recommend it. Do you ever ask yourself, "When Can I Retire"? Are you in a JOB where your employer has given up on managing a retirement plan and you have a self-managed 401 K and all your money is in it? You have carefully selected a reputable company and are invested on good mutual funds and you think you are secure. Think Again!

First, let's discuss retirement age. Are you thinking, "When can I retire?" Maybe 65? OK. How long do you expect to live in retirement? The life span is closing in on 100 years. You may live 20, 25 maybe 30 years or longer in retirement. The vast majority of Americans are going to run out of money long before they run out of retirement.


And there is a myth that retirement is cheaper than going to work. Bull pucky! What happened to all those dreams you are putting off until retirement? Maybe travel and taking the grandkids to Disney World is in your retirement plan. Those things cost money.

Worse than that, 96% of mutual funds do not beat the market over sustained periods of time according to Tony Robbins. In addition, they are loaded with hidden fees that you don't know about because they don't tell you about them. What they show you for returns is not what you really get on your money. They have some clever ways of disguising the real performance of the funds over a long period of time.
According to consumer reports, "If you're counting on a traditional defined-benefit pension, there's reason to worry that you might not get everything you've earned. About 80 percent of the 29,000 private-sector defined-benefit plans insured by the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. have been underfunded by $740 billion. State and local public employee pensions were recently in a $1 trillion hole." So once again, the answer to the questions, "When can I retire?" might be a lot older than you think or prefer.

These are staggering numbers especially if you are approaching retirement age. Don't be surprised if your retirement plan evaporates or at best pays out reduced benefits.

One of the biggest fears that baby boomers have is they are going to run out of money before they run out of retirement and that is a valid concern. So a perfectly valid question is, "When can I retire?"

There are some things you can do to shore up you retirement (besides becoming a greeter for WalMart). Many middle ago and older people are turning to the internet to find additional income streams. There are many options but one of the most viable is network marketing or MLM. Quite simply, network marketing involves recommending a product or service to others and getting a commission when they purchase. It can also involve building a team of people such as yourself (frequently called a "downline") who you earn commissions from when the make a sale.

Over the years network marketing has gathered a bad reputation but only because there have been a few poorly run companies. Over all there are millions of people making billions of dollars in network marketing. The business model is endorsed by some highly effective and visible leaders such as Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and Warren Buffet. Robert Kiyosaki (author of "Rich Dad Poor Dad") called network marketing the business of the 21st century.

So are you sure your retirement is secure? Maybe you should consider a plan B. Ask yourself, "when can I retire" Then get a copy of Tony's book and calculate how much you will need for retirement. Evaluate your retirement plan to see if it is up to the task. Then let's go to work on plan B. You can do it, I can help!

For more tips and tricks on how to succeed in network marketing, be sure to visit my website at http://lenmooney.com.

Len is an experienced author, speaker, coach and internet and network marketer. To learn more about joining Len's team and working with Len visit make money with Len

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Len_Mooney/1774823