Happy Chinese New Years!

Hello Friends,

Although, most celebrated New Years less than a month ago(myself included). For my family, it's new years again...Chinese New Years. An ancient Chinese proverb states that New Years day is a celebration of change. For many Chinese, 2008 was a bittersweet year with an 8.0 magnitude earthquake on May 12th causing huge casualties and damage and the successful Olympic Games making China a focus in the world. Whether you celebrate traditional New Years or Chinese New Years, the message of change should ring true.

"Out with the old and in with the new."

On the path to a life of abundance(monetary fortune, good health, unstoppable spirit) will come tough decisions, unexpected turns in the road, people who may disapoint you and even self doubt. However, as you continue to live a life of passion and purpose, your challenges can become the driving force toward victory. Yesterday has no bearing on where tomorrow takes you. It's the steps you take today that determine your quality of life tomorrow. With that, I wish you and yours great fortune and success.

Wishing You Wealth in all its Greatest Forms,

Alex

Buy Yourself A Retirement

Most of us know that it’s a good idea to save up for those big ticket items that we want to buy. A plasma TV, A car, a home, but what am I forgetting? While you might have each of these items for years, there is one item that we often leave off the list. That item that you forgot is your retirement. It is the most expensive thing you will ever need to buy and must last for decades. With the advancements in medicine, it is very possible that you may spend more years in retirement than you did working.

Most people don’t see retirement as a “purchase,” but the truth is every time you put money into your 401K at work, put money in an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or toward your Keogh Plan(self-employed) you are putting money away today for the cost of your retirement tomorrow. On top of that, the cost of the living in retirement years is going up. Without even factoring in inflation, many are spending 20, 30 or more years in retirement. The days of sitting back in a rocking chair are gone and have been replaced with traveling and doing all those things that we didn’t have time for while punching the clock.

More retirees will have to shoulder more of the retirement burden, since Social Security is may be run out of funds to pay benefits. Plus, fewer companies are providing traditional pension plans and 401K’s are primarily funded by the employee and not the employer. Unfortunately, little more than half of all employees are even earning benefits at work. Many others are unfamiliar with the basics of sound investing.

In short, a comfortable retirement is going to need pensions, personal savings, and investments. If Social Security is still around, it will just be the icing on the cake. Since paying for the retirement you dream of is your responsibility, start buying your retirement and financial future today.

Wishing You Wealth in all its Greatest Forms,

Alex

Got Health Insurance?

Statistics show that every single year

• 1 out of 112 people die
  
• 1 out of 75 people have an auto accident
  
• 1 out of 8 people suffer from some extent of disability
  

Health care is so expensive today that without adequate coverage, a major accident or illness could wipe out all your savings. It is believed that one third of uninsured people have trouble paying health care bills and illness is a leading reason for bankruptcy. A study also showed that uninsured people tend to die sooner than the average population...Yikes!

You should protect what you have before moving on to getting a return. For instance, don't make a full contribution to your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) if it means you can't pay for health insurance. If you had to choose between making more money or protecting the money you have, choose the protection first.

Today, I will focus on health insurance. You can insure against an accident or illness. You are effectively trading a smaller loss (the premium) for a potentially larger loss (accident or illness). Imagine not having health insurance and getting a serious illness. You will probably face a financially life threatening situation. Why not pass the risk onto someone else and get insured for pennies on the dollar? First off, people who don't have health insurance get charged higher prices than people who are insured. The insurance companies negotiate with doctors and hospitals to get lower prices for their insurance policyholders. The insurance company buys medical services in bulk, just like you buy milk in bulk at Costco and get a cheaper price.

The first place I recommend getting health insurance is through your group plan at work. Typically, it is cheaper than an individual policy and your employer will pick up part of the tab. If your employer doesn't offer health insurance benefits, you can get a private policy. You can start with a high deductible health plan that has a lower premium. It has comparably less benefits, but would shield you from skyrocketing medical expenses in the case of a catastrophic loss…insurance speak for being really sick or injured. There are plenty of insurance companies out and different combinations. I recommend speaking with your local health insurance broker, since they typically have more than one company to choose from and can give you the ins and outs of each insurance carrier.

Wishing You Wealth in all its Greatest Forms

Alex