“If you don’t find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die”, Warren Buffett.
That’s the power of investing! There are many financial products and services out there in the world designed to help us climb the wealth ladder. The problem is that most of us only know how to make money and spend money. Most of us grew up in households where we weren’t taught anything about money other than “it doesn’t grow on trees”, not to mention real financial literacy is not taught to us in schools either.
The truth is, we can never truly be wealthy until we change our mindset. Contrary to what seems to be the norm for the past few decades, conspicuous consumption does not equal wealth.
Pharrell Williams once stated: “Wealth is in the heart and mind, not the pocket.”
It is more than just having money; it’s understanding the concept of making wise investments and finding ways of improving our financial standing.
Not too many of us are born into money or inherit family businesses. So how do we navigate this foreign financial world if we were only taught to work and pay bills until the day we die? The simple short answer to such a diverse question would be, life insurance and investments. Two simple but reliable ways to accumulate wealth over time for yourself and the generations to come.
Proverbs 13:22 tells us “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children.”
Building that inheritance is not as complex as you may think. So, what makes life insurance and investments such powerful tools?
First, the easiest way to create tax free, SIX figure wealth for your family is through a life insurance policy. A policy you own to insure your life, a spouse, a parent, or a grandparent’s life, preferably a private policy, outside of your employer, is essential for many reasons. The main reason being that you own the policy, not your employer, which eliminates the fear of losing the policy if you lose or leave your job. A private life insurance policy is also important if you have multiple dependents, a mortgage or income to protect, and it helps if you have outstanding debt that your family members can cover if you’re gone, as well as covering funeral and burial costs. Bye-bye GoFundMe.
Second, when it comes to investing, these accounts include, but are not limited to, annuities, IRAs, and mutual funds. You want to earn compound daily interest. This means your money is working for you instead of you working for money. Unfortunately, when money is kept in a basic checking or savings account, you lose money over time because it earns little to no interest.
Remember several years ago when milk, gas, and even cars and homes were much cheaper? Well, the rising costs are due to inflation. Inflation will always be a constant. But investing can help you beat it by ensuring that the rate of return is higher than the rate of inflation, and your cash won’t lose its value over time.
Another benefit to having an investment account is that you can also designate a beneficiary. Therefore, in the future, you not only get the luxury of enjoying the money you’ve accumulated over the years, but you also get to pass the wealth on for your children, or assigned loved ones to collect that wealth and give them the opportunity at a fresh advantage to begin their wealth journey.
To conclude, I wish I could tell you that I’ve always known about money, wealth, and finances. Unfortunately, growing up in my Jamaican culture, it seemed almost taboo to discuss those topics! It wasn’t until a few years ago when I began to study and got licensed in the financial service industry that it seemed as if I had stepped into a wonderland where the rabbit hole of information just got deeper and deeper. I’ve since made it my mission to edify and educate others on the importance of financial literacy and help them understand that knowing where to place your financial chess pieces is what will yield generational wealth.
Are you ready to begin your wealth journey? Then, do not hesitate to contact me and follow me on Instagram for more financial literacy tips.
Claudia Box
Contact: 561-235-0865
Instagram: claudiabox.44
