Finances

Taking Fear out of Family Finances
An Interview with Financial Planning Expert, Dan Benson, by Mike Nappa
This material appears courtesy of Nappaland

(DB): The seven aspects of financial freedom are so meaningful that it's a challenge to state them in a nutshell, but I'll try.

First and central to financial freedom is a heartfelt attitude of gratitude-a sincere spirit of thankfulness to God for every big and small blessing in your life. From this heart of gratitude comes the natural, joyful overflow of sharing with your community, church, and worthwhile endeavors around the world.

The second pillar is a commitment to health and vitality-because good health is vital (a) to help avoid big medical expenses down the road and (b) to the fitness, energy, and vitality you will want in order to truly enjoy an active, fulfilling life style.

Next comes freedom from debt-breaking and staying free of those Buy Now, Pay Forever habits that rob your future as you pay for your past. In the book I give a specific strategy to break free of debt-for good. As your consumer-debt load lightens, you'll then be able to direct more dollars toward savings for your future.

Which brings us to our fourth pillar: disciplined, tax-advantaged savings. Some of that money will go toward a contingency reserve of three to six months' living expenses to help handle life's surprises. Your major savings commitment, however, is for the long term, because here you enjoy the "turbocharged" growing power of tax-advantaged savings that allow you to tax-deduct your contributions and defer taxes on earnings.

The fifth pillar is investing for growth.. Saving is the simple act of setting money aside; investing is putting those savings to work to grow over time. In Never Retire we examine the rules for investment success, then help readers implement some simple, powerful strategies to help their money grow at annual averages of 10 to 12 percent or better. They'll be pleasantly surprised at the potential!

Next comes the important pillar called asset protection, or "safety nets" to guard against losing what you're working so hard to build. Here I show what types of insurance coverage you shouldn't be without…and where to find the best values. I also point out several types of insurance that are a waste of your money.

Our last pillar, an income you won't outlive, addresses one of today's most prevalent fears among baby boomers, pre-retirees, and retirees: "Will I outlive my resources? Will I have to move in with my children or depend on the government?" None of us wants to merely survive the retirement years-we want to thrive! Thus, our seventh pillar calls deals with how to make our money last as long as we do.

With all seven pillars in place, you can indeed enjoy financial independence throughout your retirement years-freedom to live the kind of life you want to live, with financial peace of mind. The key is to begin now to put the "pillars" in place.

In the book I've devoted an entire chapter to each of these seven pillars to help readers take positive action in each area of their personal finances.

(MN): How did you discover these seven pillars of financial independence?

(DB): As a former financial planner…the seven-pillar strategy just makes sense. Personal finance is not a single-faceted area of our lives-it involves successfully balancing our values, our relationships, our health, and our personal goals and dreams. If you shortchange one or two areas, you're going to miss out on part of the joy and blessing God has in store for you.

(MN): What's the best advice about investing in the stock market you could give Christians today?

(DB): Forget about individual stocks and bonds-utilize the professional management and diversification of mutual funds for investing in the stock market. Likewise, forget about any broker, insurance agent or financial planner who charges a sales commission (or "load") to put you into a mutual fund. Use only no-load mutual funds which perform just as well and spare you the hefty sales charges. I've prepared a good section in the book to help readers sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to mutual funds…and how to use them to reach their financial goals.

(MN): Any last thoughts you'd like to share with our readers?

(DB): In response to the book, some readers are asking for a monthly newsletter advisory which focuses on helping baby boomers prepare financially for their approaching retirement years. Some colleagues and I are studying the possibility, and we invite anyone interested in such a service to e-mail us at NewRetirement@aol.com with their name and address so we can keep them informed. Once we've made a firm decision to go ahead, we'll let the respondents know how they can become charter subscribers with some special benefits.

"Taking Fear Out of Family Finances" by Mike Nappa. Copyright © 2000 Nappaland Communications Inc. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. For permission to reprint this article in another publication, please send your request to: authors@nappaland.com.

For all other comments or questions, you can contact the author directly through the free webzine for families at: www.Nappaland.com.

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