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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
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