Navigating Your Finances in Uncertain Times

8.30.24: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

8.30.24: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Speaker1:
Welcome to Nationwide's Peak ten fixed indexed annuity, designed to help provide guaranteed income for life. Peak ten offers protection against market losses, plus protection for a spouse through a joint option and an immediate 10% penalty free withdrawal. Call us now at 704 5601573. That's 704 5601573. Guarantees and protections referenced within are subject to the claims paying ability of nationwide life and annuity insurance company nationwide. Peak ten is issued by Nationwide Life and Annuity Insurance Company, Columbus, Ohio.

Speaker2:
Any examples used are for illustrative purposes only and do not take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs and may not be suitable for all investors. It is not intended to predict the performance of any specific investment, and is not a solicitation or recommendation of any investment strategy.

Speaker1:
Welcome to Money Matters with Mike, with your host, Mike Zeno. Get set for a full hour of financial information and economic news affecting your bottom line. Mike works hard each day to educate Americans like you on how to reach the financial freedom they've worked so hard for. And he can help you too. So now let's start the show. Here's Mike Zeno.

Speaker3:
What's up, what's up, what's up? It's Mike Zeno coming to you from Fort Mill, South Carolina. Happy Saturday people. What a great time to be alive in these United States of America. Money Matters with Mike is a show designed to arm you with information and give you plenty of meat on the bone to chew on each and every week. And today we are absolutely bringing the heat again. On today's show, we're going to show you how to prepare for retirement during times of uncertainty and what to do if you haven't heard from your advisor lately. All right. As always, I have the distinct honor and privilege of being joined by the one and only my co-host and producer extraordinaire, Mr. Matt McClure. Matthew, how are you today, sir?

Speaker2:
I am doing great, Mike. I hope you are as well and haven't been haven't been too risky. This week. We're going to talk a lot about risk today. So you know, if you haven't, if you haven't, you know, been doing any skydiving without a parachute or anything like that.

Speaker3:
I don't think anybody ever wants to go skydiving without a parachute. No, I've just been very, very busy this week, uh, protecting people's life savings after, you know, what happened a couple of weeks ago. A lot of concern with this being an election year, a lot of concern with what's going on in the Middle East, a lot of concern with basically all of the events globally and how they can affect folks, uh, retirement savings. Okay. And they have no control over any of those things. And yet all of those things can, you know, negatively impact their value of their retirement dollars. So we've been employing a lot of of safe money strategies that offer people a reasonable rate of return and guarantee them safety to never lose a penny of principal due to market volatility. And folks, especially those that are knocking on the doorstep of or are already in retirement. Love that idea. Matt. So that's what I've been doing this week. Been very, very busy doing all of those things.

Speaker2:
A lot of great work going on there. And we want to thank you for listening to the show here as well, because, you know, the whole point is, Mike says, every time we do a new show here, the whole point is, you know, to to really give you that education and information about finances so that you, you know, have the knowledge that you need to make more sound decisions. So thank you, thank you, thank you for listening to us. Whether you're, you know, in the greater Charlotte area, listening on WRC, or whether you are listening via the podcast, which is available anywhere you listen to podcasts or on the website. Money matters with Mike comm. We really do appreciate it. And the big thing that we want you to know is not only can you get the show pretty much anywhere you are around the globe, you can also get a free consultation. It's 100% complimentary, and you can do that by going to the website Money Matters with mike.com. Or you can call Mike Zeno (700) 456-0157 three. You know, listeners can meet with Mike regarding their own financial situation with their family or their business, whatever the situation kind of is for you, however, your financial picture, because everybody's is different. There is no obligation, as always. So a lot of great resources there that are available to people. Mike, by just reaching out to you, really.

Speaker3:
They they do. We love meeting with folks and discussing how we can help them fulfill the retirement of their dreams. Right? And so, I mean, bottom line is we can help you with things like risk management, estate planning, overall just retirement planning and a whole lot more because building sound financial plans. Matt. Well, that's what we do.

Speaker2:
That's absolutely right. Just, you know, day in and day out, as you say, that's what you've been busy doing all week. And so that's what you do as you say all the time. Once again, the website folks to go to Money Matters with mike.com. All right. So I mentioned, you know we're going to talk a lot about risk here on the show this time around. And do you know your retirement risk level. We're going to talk about that and tell you some reasons why you should reduce financial risk as you age. Avoiding the number one fear of retirees. Boy that's running out of money even more than death. People fear running out of money. So how to ensure that your income lasts throughout your retirement lasts as long as you do. Right. We'll do an inflation demonstration about some current interest rates, and what you need to know about how prices have been rising of investments to avoid if you want to retire with peace of mind, and so much more. First, though, we need to get a little bit of inspiration here for our conversations this week, and we'll do that with our quote of the week.

Speaker4:
And now for some financial wisdom, it's time for the quote of the week.

Speaker2:
And this time around, the quote comes from Dave Ramsey, who, as I'm sure you know, unless you've, you know, unless you live under a rock, I guess. Dave Ramsey is a kind of a, you know, a big, big time in the financial area, especially on the radio, podcasting and all of that kind of thing. He's done a lot of books, has his own company that does a lot of different things in the financial world. So Dave Ramsey says this a good financial planner is going to do more than pick your funds. That is. That's very true. You know, I mean, it's not just like, okay, here's buy this, buy this. Um, it's really a lot more comprehensive than that when it comes right down to it.

Speaker3:
It is. Matt. I mean, a good financial professional can be a valuable partner in helping you manage your finances. And, you know, it goes beyond, like he said, just picking stocks.

Speaker1:
Hungry for something to chew on. Here's some meat on the bone.

Speaker3:
Number one, they need to understand both your goals as well as your needs. And so, you know, a good advisor will start by understanding what those financial goals are, what your risk tolerance is and overall what your situation is. Right. Because somebody who's 20 and single is not going to have the same plan as somebody who's in their mid 40s, in the middle of their career, married with children. Right. And so discussing short term goals, long term objectives and any specific concerns like retirement planning, education funding, debt management, all of these things kind of come into play, and then they should be able to help you create and, you know, put into fruition a personalized financial plan so tailored to your unique situation, covering areas like budgeting, saving, investing, tax strategies, insurance, estate planning, and basically providing you with a roadmap for achieving your financial goals with clear steps as well as clear milestones. Okay, and it goes beyond just the providing of investment advice. What about people who may think of taxes and building them into a plan, making sure that you are minimizing any tax liabilities by recommending tax efficient strategies, retirement account contributions, and other tax saving opportunities. And you know what about guiding you through some of those major life events? Okay, whether you're buying a home, whether you're getting married or getting divorced, whether you're having children or whether you are knocking on that doorstep or already in retirement, what happens if there's an unexpected financial crisis? Right? Well, a good professional can help you manage the situation and adjust your plan accordingly and then provide ongoing education, ongoing advice empower you, okay, to make the best decisions about your money and then provide that continuous support. And above all, they have to act in your best interest, right? So they're legally and ethically bound as a fiduciary to do what is best for you. So all of those things, I think, Matt, um, go well beyond just picking stocks. Yeah.

Speaker2:
Yeah, absolutely. Because I mean, you know, you could literally take a, not even a, not even a trained monkey, an untrained monkey, and they can pick some stocks for you. That's just that that's kind of the baseline of, of things. But the thing is it's got to be a lot more comprehensive than that, as you said. And it's got to be based on your individual situation because everybody's situation is different. And you know what's good for, you know, your neighbor or your Uncle Joe or your, you know, your friend from high school or whatever is not necessarily going to be the thing that's good for you when it comes to planning for your retirement. Like I say, everybody's situation is different. And so it's got to be tailored specifically to you. And I know a guy who's pretty good at that. And by the way, his name is Mike Zeno.

Speaker3:
Matt, I appreciate those that you know, that those kudos right there. I am happy to help anybody establish a well thought out and reasoned plan that you can have confidence in, and that provides you with peace of mind. And all you have to do is call (704) 560-1573 or reach out through Money Matters with Mike comm.

Speaker2:
Yep. Absolutely right. And we're going to go through some reasons here. You know, one of the things that you mentioned kind of in the meat on the bone there, Mike, was about risk and about assessing people's risk. Right. Like just knowing that things are appropriate for someone's risk tolerance as far as their investments go and, and where things are placed. Well, retirees and investors approaching retirement as a general rule, and one that we like to follow around here, should reduce their They're at risk. And so we've got some moves to make here for a secure future. You mentioned sort of alluded to this a little bit earlier, Mike. A couple of weeks back there was this, you know, largest single day sell off in years in the stock market in two years, actually, due to a disappointing jobs report, there were fears of recession as well, that it was just kind of a big a big spiral after a couple of days that were down significantly on Wall Street. But despite a recovery, the volatility highlighted risks that could affect retirees and those who are near retirement. But, you know, many older investors have portfolios that are weighted too heavily in stocks for their age and ideal level of risk. So, you know, it comes to knowing what you should have where first. And that of course starts with meeting with a financial professional. If you don't know what your risk tolerance is or should be, and all of that kind of stuff. So talk about the importance of especially Mike as you get closer to your retirement years, why people should reduce risk.

Speaker3:
Yeah. I'm sorry, I almost I cut into you right there. That's my bad. But I think it's very, very important to rebalance and make smart adjustments to your plan as you age. So if you haven't heard from your financial advisor lately, especially during times of volatility, I know a lot of advisors just like to, you know, put their head in the sand like an ostrich and hope that it goes away. Right. But the good ones will be proactive and say, hey, let's start addressing some of these needs because based on your current asset allocation, you may be too exposed okay. And so a portfolio that used to be 60% stocks and 40% bonds a decade ago could now be outbalanced just due to market gains, which again will increase potential losses. So Matt, we have some tips for actually reducing risk. Okay. Retirees and those nearing retirement should be absolutely sure that the level of risk in their portfolio matches their overall personal risk tolerance. So ask yourself this question. At my current age, how much of my hard earned retirement savings am I willing to risk just for some potential gain? Okay. I think that's the first and foremost question that everybody needs to ask themselves.

Speaker2:
Yeah, that's absolutely right. I mean, that's a great way to give yourself a check, you know, on like how much am I willing to lose? Because that really is what it comes down to. If you have a significant amount of your investments at risk in the stock market, that means, quite frankly, you are willing to lose that for, as you say, those potential gains that could come. But you need to make sure that it's balanced with safety and you have an amount of money in something that's going to be safe and guaranteed so that you know you're not going to lose that. And then, you know, potentially with that riskier bucket, you could see higher gains. Absolutely. But if you don't, it's not going to be a devastating loss for you. Like it would be if you were just overly invested in the market.

Speaker3:
No doubt. So give yourself a checkup from the neck up, so to speak. Right? Current interest rates on top income products. By the way, folks that have principal protection can help people reduce risk as well as help them create pension like income for their retirement and beyond. Okay. And so working with a licensed professional who can help you properly allocate your portfolio and develop a plan for creating the income that you're going to need for your retirement years is critical.

Speaker2:
Yeah, and I know a guy. By the way, his name is Mike Zeno. Money matters with Mike. Comm is the website. The phone number will give it to you again here momentarily, but I'll give it to you now as well. 704 5601573. And, you know, I mean, it all starts really, Mike, with a free consultation. And when we say free, we actually do mean free. No cost, no obligation. Right.

Speaker3:
Yeah it does. And so that risk analysis consultation can help people like our listeners understand the current risks that they're actually taking with their investments, and as well how all of their investments are working together. And like you mentioned, Matt, as always, there is no obligation. You are free to receive the information and use it as you wish. But at least you have the information. And having the knowledge means nothing if you don't apply it right.

Speaker2:
Applied knowledge is true power there. And once again the number (704) 560-1573. You can also go online to the website Money Matters with mike.com. All right. So you know if you're getting closer to your retirement uh, what is it, Mike, that you always say proper prior planning prevents pitifully poor performance. Um, our, our, uh, sort of altered version of that that is safe for the radio. Um, as Mike gives me the thumbs up there, proper planning is essential to ensuring financial stability in your retirement years. So you want to make a plan beforehand, right? You don't want to. That's why it's proper prior planning. You don't want to just start getting close to retirement. You say, oh, well, I'm going to retire in a year. Let me start planning now. No, that's not the best potential situation for you. You've got to have a plan in place to replace the paycheck from your working years. And so that is going to help you avoid what is the number one fear of retirees? Really, Mike? And that is running out of money before you run out of lifetime. Yeah.

Speaker3:
And even if you have caught yourself in a position where you are a year out, guess what? Planning now is still better than not planning at all. So it is never too early, never too late, never too often to plan for retirement. But in order to enable you to make sure that your money lasts as long as you do at least right, you need to plan for a future. Okay? And so everybody have a plan on how to replace their paycheck from their working years. Most people are working and their earning their income, whatever it is. But then in retirement, you know, it's a drastic a drastic drop off in income. So the first step is to start building a retirement plan and put it in writing. Okay, identify your goals for retirement and ask yourself, what is my smart vision? What am I doing in retirement? Who am I doing it with? And most importantly, how am I going to fund it? Okay. Assess all of your expected expenses and then hold them against your retirement savings. When you add your last two months of expenses together. And then divide by two to see what your average spending is, it'll at least give you a plan, uh, to somewhat address. I mean, two months is is is just a really good short term barometer. But I mean, if you look at your annual expenses and divide them out on a month to month basis, you're really going to pinpoint exactly how much you need each and every single month. And then above that would come All of your wants, your desires, your travel, your spending time with family and doing all the things that you want to do.

Speaker2:
Yeah, 100% correct. And money matters with Mike comm, by the way, folks, is a place to go to get in touch if you need some help along those lines. Step number two here to, you know, really avoid the number one fear of retirees, which is running out of money. Step number two is to determine your guaranteed income percentage and any income gaps. If you've got an income gap and and you know, if you've got more month than money, in other words, you kind of want to fill that gap and you know, otherwise you'll find yourself in a bad way and running out of money pretty soon.

Speaker3:
Yeah. And sometimes, you know, Matt, that means, hey, you know what? I may have to work a little bit longer than I expected, okay, but the ability for someone to identify and then evaluate all of their sources of what we called guaranteed income, such as pensions, which not that many Americans have these days. But if you have one, awesome. Okay. Other things like Social Security, like maybe personal pensions that you've generated on your own from the purchase of an annuity, if you have rental income, if you have dividends, all of the guaranteed sources of income, you need to evaluate each and every single one of them. And then once you know the total of how much all of that brings in on a monthly basis, we can work with you to help fill any of those income gaps in your plan, and we can help implement strategies to supplement your income so that you are never living paycheck to paycheck in retirement.

Speaker2:
Implement to supplement. I love it a little. A little bit of a rhyme there and it makes it easier to remember. All right. So step three Then to avoid that, uh, number one, fear of retirees, which is, of course, again, running out of money is to prepare for financial risks in retirement. You know, I mean, I guess people in some way might think that, well, I'm cutting out a lot of my risks and my financial risks in my retirement years. But there are not that all of your risks are going away. They just kind of become different risks in your in your retirement years. Right.

Speaker3:
Yeah, I think so. And so a lot of people think that a retirement plan is is a set it and forget it type thing. And it's absolutely not okay. Nobody should set it and forget it. It is a living breathing plan okay. And so your plan should be flexible and allow for changes in things like the tax rate, environment inflation as well as market downturns. And expect the unexpected so that you can reduce risk whenever possible. Right. We always say pray for peace, but prepare for war. At least that's what we said when I was in the military. Um, protecting an appropriate portion of your portfolio from market losses by implementing maybe a bond replacement, uh, strategy and or investing in a personal pension, again, to me just makes sense, because the more guaranteed sources of income that you can generate for yourself in retirement, the happier that you will be. And it's not going to get any easier for those who are 65 and older. Because did you know that the global population of people that are aged 65 or older is actually expected to double folks by the year 2060, due to the fact that most of us are living longer. And at the same time, though, 61% of Americans actually fear running out of money more than death itself. And that's according to an Allianz annual retirement study that was just completed at the end of 2023. So do not let your retirement years be filled with worry. Okay. If you are in the retirement red zone, meaning that you plan to retire within the next ten years, or you've just retired in the last ten years, then please give us a call so that we can help you strengthen your financial plan, because you cannot afford to lose too much during these years. Which means that protection as well as growth is key.

Speaker2:
Yeah, 100%. And of course 704 5601573 is the number to call 704 560 1573. You can also go online to the website Money Matters with mike.com. And Mike you know we've mentioned it a couple of times here, but let's go into in Depth just a little bit for our listeners, maybe somebody who's tuning in for the first time here and hasn't heard exactly what the whole free consultation thing is about. Like they hear it, maybe they'll hear, um, you know, other radio shows or, you know, even on TV or whatever, say they'll call for a free consultation. What is that? What does that actually mean? And what do you get with that? So what actually comes along with that free consultation? What happens when people give you a ring?

Speaker3:
Yeah. So the first time they give me a ring, it's just a hey, you know, who are you? Who am I? Let's get to know each other and see if there's a need to set a follow up. Full, in-depth consultation. Most of the time there is that need. And so during that consultation, we are going to discuss your financial goals and what your vision is for retirement. Uh, if you have a financial plan or a portfolio of assets Well, then we're going to examine where you are currently. And then we may make some tweaks. Or we may say, hey, you know what? You're good. Stay the course with exactly what you're doing. Um, if there are tweaks, then we're going to walk you through what our recommended plan is for you, and we'll answer as many questions as you have about your retirement. People are like, I hope I'm not asking too many questions. And I'm like, not at all. I want you to feel comfortable with, you know, all of my answers. And I find that I have an uncanny ability to break down very complex strategy into plain English to where anybody can understand it. And until you understand it, I'm not going to feel comfortable because I want you to understand the why behind the recommendation. So, you know, all you have to do to take advantage of that complimentary consultation and retirement plan is pick up a phone and call 1573 or visit us on the web at Money Matters with Mike comm and simply click on the Contact Us page.

Speaker2:
Yeah, and it's true. I mean, even if you have an advisor or a financial professional that you work with already, but you haven't heard from that person lately, or you haven't been, you know, receiving any attention and the attention that you deserve really through your work based retirement plan. Certainly not from the HR department at work. Right? Um, yeah.

Speaker3:
Their job is not to provide guidance. Right? They're trying to process paperwork.

Speaker2:
So. Exactly, you know, push the pencils around and just, you know, make sure that things get taken care of from a logistical standpoint, but not going to be, you know, saying, oh, well, here are your portfolio options and this is what you should do. No, that's not that's not a thing. But Mike Zeno can actually provide you with great service during that complimentary consultation. So I would encourage you listening to the show to to just reach out because it's at no cost and there's absolutely no obligation, as we've been saying.

Speaker3:
Yeah. No. And to, you know, just go a little bit deeper into what we can provide. We can show you things like exactly how much you're paying in fees, uh, maybe where you can cut costs through strategies, uh, by using bond replacement or personal pensions or smart tax strategies, like the appropriate use of life insurance, or maybe converting some of your IRA assets over to Roth IRAs. So lots of different ways that we can help you. And again, even after we build a plan for you, there is no obligation to work with us. We only want you to work with us if it makes sense for you. So again (704) 560-1573 or Money Matters with Mike comm.

Speaker1:
Want to know where your hard earned money is going? It's time for an inflation Demonstration.

Speaker2:
So we talk a lot of course, about inflation as we have you know, it has its very own segment here on the show, which is this one, the inflation demonstration. Um, but we also, you know, want to explain and take a moment here to, to kind of burst through some of the, some of the confusion, clear up some of the confusion about what is actually happening as far as the relationship between high interest rates and inflation. And so what you need to know about rising costs and high interest rates, that is what this inflation demonstration is about. So my first question here is how do high interest rates slow inflation. I mean, you know, we hear about that from the fed all the time. And that's their response right to high inflation. Well we're going to raise interest rates. So how does that relationship kind of work.

Speaker3:
Well I mean if interest rates are raised and inflation is high that means you are paying much more money for your goods and services, right? So high interest rates will typically slow down economic activity because people are not as willing to pay that, you know, inflated rate. Okay. And that makes borrowing more expensive. It makes saving more attractive. Right. Because if the interest rates are high, even though the cost of borrowing money costs us more, we're typically able to save and get a much higher interest rate. So the reduction, the net effect is a reduction in spending can help cool down and over otherwise overheated economy, which will thereby slow down inflation.

Speaker2:
So there you go. And right now, you know, interest rates are at their highest that they've been since 2001. That was you know, kind of if you think about that right around the time the tech bubble burst and all of that. Um, and so, you know, we're looking at Things being much more expensive than they just were. I mean, we went through a time of very low interest rates for just about, you know, a ten year period after the 2008 market downturn and the and the crash, really there with them, you know, all the subprime mortgage crisis and all the things that happened in the late 2007, 2008 time period.

Speaker3:
Yeah. No doubt. I mean, if you look at where we are now, we're at about the same levels as precipitated the recession back in 2008. Now, I think that the economists and the lawmakers learned a lot. So I don't think that we're necessarily heading for a recession. Please don't take me the wrong way. I'm not here to induce fear. All right. But if you don't learn from history, you're doomed to make the same mistakes. And so I think that, you know, when interest rates are high, people should be saving more money. And when they are low, people should be doing things like, you know, paying off high interest debt and investing maybe in real estate and creating different additional sources of income. It's just, again, understanding what is going on and knowing how to take advantage no matter what the economy is doing.

Speaker2:
Yeah, absolutely. And we hear a lot too, from the Federal Reserve over the years and just working in this space, you know, before I was doing what I'm doing now, I was a business reporter in New York and worked on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for a while and all that. And every time we would hear from the the powers that be at the Federal Reserve, they would say, you know, inflation is at or near our 2% target. They would always talk about that, that 2% being the target inflation rate. So people might think, okay, shouldn't it the target be zero. Like shouldn't we not want inflation to be happening at all? Um. What is what's the situation there? Why is there that 2% target?

Speaker3:
Yeah. I mean, a zero inflation target might seem ideal, like perfect world scenario, especially for those folks like retirees who are on fixed incomes. However, comma, most economists will argue that a small amount of inflation is beneficial as it provides a buffer against deflation, which can be far more damaging than inflation. So that 2% inflation rate allows a little bit of flexibility in monetary policy, which helps to stabilize the economy without eroding purchasing power too quickly when it's only at 2%.

Speaker2:
Yeah, there you go. And you know, the election, of course, is, uh, just kind of getting to be around the corner here. Um, it's something that we've been looking toward all year long and looking toward, you know, ever since the last major election, really, it's been coming into focus. Things have, of course, certainly changed as far as the election picture goes over this last month or so here. Um, but how has an election in the past kind of affected the inflation picture? Does it have a big impact on on inflation generally and a presidential election?

Speaker3:
Yeah, I think I mean, if you again just look back at history, election years can bring uncertainty, all right. With promises and policies that are designed to affect inflation. But for retirees, understanding those patterns can help in planning their financial strategy around the election cycles, potentially safeguarding their investments against policy induced volatility. Okay. So you know I think yeah, it does absolutely affect it. We see it every single especially presidential election cycle. Yeah.

Speaker2:
And the effects are largely, you know. Well, I can say largely, but at least partially kind of a mental, emotional thing. And we've been talking a lot here recently about how emotions can affect your, your investments and all of that. And so, you know, the economy kind of at large can be affected by those sorts of things as well. And then so the question goes, I mean, we've been talking about inflation for so, so long now it seems. Why is it taking so long for inflation to ease off a bit.

Speaker3:
Yeah, I mean persistent inflation can be extremely stressful for retirees who may see their cost of living just steadily increase. And so there are many, many factors that contribute to sustained high inflation. Uh, among those is, you know, supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and just I mean, a whole lot more. We could spend the entire show on why it's taking so long for inflation to ease, but I will, uh, I'll not subject our listeners to that. But instead, you mentioned something just a second ago. If you guys have not heard last week's show. Okay, talking about emotions and investing, please go back and do yourself a favor to listen to that show, because there was a lot of good content in last week's show as well as this week's show. But if you haven't heard that, go back and do yourself a favor. Uh, and listen to that one.

Speaker2:
Yeah, you absolutely can. You can find it on any of the podcast apps that you like to frequent. You can do that, or you can just go to the website Money Matters with Mike comm. That's Money Matters with mike.com. That is also the place to go, that particular website to reach out to Mike Zeno for that free consultation. I will say now is an absolutely great time to meet with a financial pro like Mike Zeno and start putting that formal retirement plan in place because he can actually help you plan for the increasing cost of living so that you don't have to worry about your budget in retirement. I mean, you know, of course, one place that doesn't seem to worry about its budget all that much, Mike, is, is Washington, because the the national debt is there. You say that's now that's what we call in the business a segue. Um, the national debt is now above $35.1 trillion. That is just huge.

Speaker3:
Yeah. Again, I've done this before. People have no no real comprehension of how big the number 1 trillion is. That's whatever number followed by 12 digits after that. Okay. And and you know, Washington likes to toss it around like it's oh, just a few bucks here. A few bucks there. Um, if you go back in time 1,000,000 seconds ago or, you know what? We're not gonna do the back in time thing. If I say, all right, I'm going to give you, um, $1 million. But you have to spend $1 every single second. Matt. Guess how long it'll take our listeners to spend $1 million? $1 per second.

Speaker2:
Oh, yeah, I mean, years, but I would hate to even venture a guess as to how many.

Speaker3:
Yeah, it's actually 11 days.

Speaker2:
Oh, really? Okay. Wow. Yeah.

Speaker3:
I mean, is 1,000,000 seconds ago okay. Uh, or $1 million? One per second would take you 11 days to spend. Now, if we say. All right, uh, listeners, we're going to give you $1 billion, that's B with a, you know, billion with a B, but you have to spend $1 per second. How long would you think that would be? Matt?

Speaker2:
That's definitely got to be years. I overestimated the million. But that's got to be you know, probably, I don't know, a couple of decades at least.

Speaker3:
Yeah. So it's actually a little over three decades, 32 years, if you spend a dollar a second. So that's a huge jump, right? 11 days to 32 years. Um, really, really big jump. Okay. Now, if we said, all right, folks, we're going to do like the government and give you an opportunity to spend $1 trillion, but you got to spend $1 per second guess how long it would take you to do that?

Speaker2:
I mean, I would say it would be until the time of we're living like the Jetsons with our flying cars and and all that kind of stuff like I would. It's got to be I mean, just to venture a guess hundreds of years. I don't know if that's going to be anywhere close, but.

Speaker3:
Yeah, we're we're going to be having life on other planets. It's 34,000 years in the future. Okay. In other words, nobody alive would be able to do it. Yet our government does it to the tune of $10 billion, just in interest alone each and every single week. And so, you know somebody's going to have to pay for this. What happens if the the countries that hold our debt say, all right, it's time to pay up? Well, you're so far in debt, we don't think you can pay us. What then? Okay, so we're talking about potential, um, you know, just catastrophe. And think about this. If you stack up a stack of $1 bills to the tune of 35 trillion of them, that would that would reach approximately 238,384 miles high. Okay. Which is roughly equivalent to the distance from the Earth to the moon. So that stack would stretch almost all the way to our moon. Matt. It doesn't make sense that the government gets to spend more money than they have, because, I mean, I can't do it. You can't do it. Once our credit cards are maxed out, we're done spending, right? Yeah. That the United States of America.

Speaker2:
That's absolutely true. I mean, we we got to live within our means. Um, so, you know, I mean, why doesn't it work that way at the top? It's a question for the ages. Uh, definitely. So. But, folks, you know, here's here's the thing. No matter what happens in the future, you want to have a plan for it. No matter if taxes go up in the future because of the high national debt, no matter if there is some sort of economic downturn or, God forbid, recession or whatever that happens in the future, that you want to be prepared no matter what. So that is what you need to do is get a plan in place, because without a plan, you're going to be unprepared. And we want you to be prepared no matter what is going to happen. Money matters with mike.com. Money matters with Mike. Comm is the place to go. Or you can call Mike Zeno directly. And when I say directly, I mean directly to his phone. 601573. All right. So maybe some maybe somebody should have done this next segment of the show with the government at some point. Mike, some troublesome investments for your retirement savings here. Um, places not to put your money. In other words, maybe that should have been a a lesson for our lawmakers at some point, but we're kind of entitling this segment just don't Do It some troublesome investments for your retirement savings. There are some things that you want to avoid as you get closer to your retirement years, right?

Speaker3:
Yeah. There are. I mean, the first one I'm going to start with is illiquid investments. When you are retired, the last thing you want to do is tie up your money for a long period of time. You will likely need access to cash in a short period of time at some point once you stop earning a regular income. So whether that's for an unexpected medical expense, whether that's for a vehicle repair, whether that's for home maintenance, um, or any countless other type of emergency expenses, you're going to want to have access to a reasonable portion of your savings. So if the investment is entirely illiquid, it might be better to just don't do it. Okay. Um, the second one that I want to talk about are these meme stocks. Okay. They have been all over the financial news over the last few years, as online investors have piled into otherwise unextraordinary stocks and pushed them up to stratospheric highs. Okay, names like GameStop or AMC entertainment are examples which seem to trade in very unpredictable manners based on emotions and based on online posts, rather than from earnings and profits. Okay. For an example, GameStop gained 700% in January of 2021 alone. Okay. And moves of 75% or even more in a single day are not unheard of. But the downside can be just as treacherous. So in June, this past June 2024, GameStop fell 40% and then 12% on two successive days. And the stock still to this day remains more than 70% below its January 2021 high.

Speaker3:
So the point is that this type of volatility will not only get, you know, keep you up at night, but it can also devastate your retirement portfolio. Okay. And then the last one that I'm going to talk about is kind of a double edged sword, because I personally know people who've made millions, but I've also know people who have lost, uh, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars investing in cryptocurrency. All right. Cryptocurrency is one of the most volatile investments, and it doesn't have the characteristics that most investors need in retirement. Okay. It doesn't generate any revenue. It doesn't generate any earnings. It doesn't pay any dividends or interest. And it isn't a hard asset, which makes it very difficult to value. So, you know, some famous investors like Jim Rogers even think crypto will eventually become worthless. I don't necessarily share that. I mean, look at people who invested in Bitcoin. Um, and yeah, Bitcoin has done extremely well. And then it tanked to, you know, really, really tanked a few years ago. But then it went back up to $70,000. I mean most people in retirement don't need that wild Mild volatility. And so with no consumer protections and scams, regular scams and fraudulent activity tied to cryptocurrencies, it's better in retirement to either just do a very small portion or just don't do it at all. Matt.

Speaker2:
Yeah, kind of like do it. Do it with your with your play money, with a little bit of fun money there. And you know, something that you can afford to lose because like you say there are no consumer protections involved. You know, I did a story not well I guess it was probably it was probably last year at some point about some congressional hearings and things that had taken place that where they were trying to, you know, get the reins around the crypto space. Right? Because it is kind of like the Wild West when it comes to crypto, because there are no, uh, barriers there to protect American consumers or consumers in general, like there are with even, you know, the banks. And there is a lot that can be wrong, you know, or that you can point out with those types of regulations where, you know, banks are only at most required to have a 10% financial reserve on hand. That kind of a thing. Um, and then, you know, there are other rules and regulations that that could be adjusted in that space, but at least there are some safeguards. At least there are some safety safety rails. There's the FDIC and all that stuff. So so at least you know you're protected up to a certain point of your deposits. But the crypto, it's not that way. So you just want to be you want to proceed with caution when it comes to cryptocurrency.

Speaker3:
It's it's kind of like playing poker or going to a casino. Like, don't ever sit down at a table with more money than you are prepared to set on fire. Okay. And as long as you are prepared to literally set it on fire, walk away and not have any remorse, then, okay. You're good. If if that's what you want to do. Okay. But you know, for for a retirement plan. Um, I don't think that should be any portion of a retirement plan. It's just play money.

Speaker2:
Yeah, exactly. And that's the thing. If you if you put that money down on the table and you lose it, and then you can't afford to pay the mortgage next month, you're going to be in a, in a bad way. So yeah, it's it's got to be that money that, that you can definitely afford to, to lose there. And really I mean the bottom line here, Mike, that we want to, to stress is that you want your money working as hard as you have worked for it. Right. You know, you you and you want it to be doing so in the right place. That's why we go through these this list of kind of things that you don't where you don't want to put your money because there are so many places that your money can be protected and still be working hard for you.

Speaker3:
Yeah. I mean, if you have, uh, been preparing for retirement or maybe you've just recently retired, um, since Covid, you've likely seen your assets drop over the last, you know, three, 4 or 5 years. And so we encourage you to reach out to us because you could be at risk of actually running out of money, which again, happens to be the number one fear of retirees. So let us put a plan together or tweak your plan and at least send you on the way with actionable guidance that you can have confidence in. And you know, once you have that confidence again, there's nothing there's no price tag you can put on peace of mind.

Speaker2:
Absolutely. And you can call Mike Zeno at (704) 560-1573. That's 704560 1573. Just go to Money Matters with mike.com. Otherwise, if you are more technologically inclined here and want to just venture onto the website to set up a free consultation, you can do that. Once again, the website is Money Matters with mike.com. Well, speaking of being more technologically inclined there, Mike, um, I actually just spoke with a guy from AARP about a new report that they have that is going to be, I think, really helpful to a lot of our listeners. And I wanted to play this interview so that you folks listening at home or wherever you are can get this information, because I think it really is something that's going to be applicable to a lot of folks. So listen about this. We'll chat about it briefly, and then we will wrap up the show on the other side. I'm speaking with Jim Lenehan, editor of AARP The Magazine's 2024 annual Tech Made Easy Guide. Jim, thank you so much for taking a few minutes for me. Really appreciate it.

Speaker5:
Oh, thank you very much for having me on.

Speaker2:
Well, I know that, you know, technology obviously is is everywhere. It's it's allowing us to have this conversation today as a matter of fact. And, you know, we use it all the time. Um, tell me a little bit as we get started about this tech made easy guide. I know that, um, it's probably something that comes in handy for a lot of folks.

Speaker5:
Oh yeah, we get great response for it. It's a third year that we have published it in AARP The magazine, and one of the reasons why I think it really works is we're not taking the same kind of approach for a tech guy that you might see in other media that tend to focus on what's the latest gadget that just came out or is about to hit the market? What we really focus on is how to use the existing technology that is common, that is prevalent, that is mainstream, how to use that better, how to get the best use out of it to make your life easier.

Speaker2:
You know, and I would imagine that a lot of folks who are, you know, subscribers maybe to AARP the magazine are not necessarily the big techies who are looking for the newest and latest gadgets. They want to just know all of the things that you just described, right? How to use the the things that are in their lives already and how to do that more easily. What are some of the things that are featured in the Tech Made Easy Guide this time around?

Speaker5:
Yeah, so let me start with smartwatches. So smartwatches have been on the market for, you know, a few years now. But what I think maybe older people don't realize is there's some really beneficial health technology that's built into a lot of these devices. There's things like heart rate monitors, even sleep monitors that can help you get, you know, deeper, more restful sleep by sort of analyzing the data. And you can use that to sort of make changes to your sleep routine to improve that for you. A lot of things that older people may find really helpful just right there on their wrist.

Speaker2:
Yeah, it's great information that's just available right there. I love that. And also, you know, every time I feel like a new, um, model year of vehicle comes around, for example, there's new technology in inner vehicles and, you know, right there on the dash to things that just sort of happen automatically and different ways of being notified about things. You know, what are some of the things that maybe folks need to know about the tech in their cars? Yeah.

Speaker5:
So our favorite feature that you'll find in, uh, in many new cars or recent model cars, uh, something called adaptive cruise control. And this can be really helpful for safe driving, uh, for less stressful driving for, you know, maybe even staying behind the wheel longer. Uh, what this does is, unlike regular cruise control, where you set a speed, then you have to disengage whenever there's a car around you or in front of you, uh, and then re-engage. Um, what this does is allows you to just set it. Once you have sensors on your car that can detect other vehicles around you, and your car will automatically slow down to maintain a safe distance from the car in front of it. When that car moves out of the way, you'll go back up to cruising speed. It really does make driving less stressful once you sort of get used to it and get the hang of it. Yeah, on.

Speaker2:
A long road trip, I know that my car that I bought just a couple of years ago has that, and it is so, so helpful, especially on one of those long trips. Yes. Um, now, obviously, you know, folks are handling their money in, in, in their pockets with their, their devices and all of that as well. Um, what about, you know, maybe some tips for payment apps and just money management as far as, you know, using technology goes.

Speaker5:
Yeah. So these payment apps are so common now. Uh, people are using them to, you know, pay back friends if you, you know, went out to lunch together or went to a concert together or that sort of thing. Um, they're common ones are, you know, like Venmo and PayPal and Apple Pay. They're very easy to use. You can download the app and you can connect it to your bank account really within minutes. Um, but the one thing we do want to stress to people when using these payment apps is to be extra careful that you have the right user account name when you're sending somebody money, check with your friend. Double check. Take a deep breath. Take a moment. If you send it to somebody else who has a similar sounding name or the same name by accident, it can be very difficult. It can be impossible even to recover that money. So just be sure to double check and make sure that you're sending it to the right person.

Speaker2:
Yeah, very very important. And kind of along those same lines, speaking about money, um, are there apps out there that folks can use to maybe help them find, find deals? Um, maybe around either online or in their local neighborhood?

Speaker5:
Yeah. This is actually some of the, the the best news right now is that pretty much any retailer app of any store that you like to go to or, or do shopping online or, uh, you know, even like restaurant apps, especially for takeout, things like that. Pretty much all of them now have deals in the apps. It's important in this case to download the app of that retailer, sign up for their loyalty program, but you'll find exclusive deals in the apps. They really encourage people to use the apps. It's beneficial on their end. And so to get people to do that, they put a lot of deals that you won't find anywhere else. They're great.

Speaker2:
Well, Jim, just about time for us to wrap things up here. But anything else that you wanted to touch on or any other bits of tech to mention quickly?

Speaker5:
Well, you know, I would encourage people to check out our Tech Made Easy guide in AARP the magazine. If you are a member, you receive that magazine. You can also go on our website. Anybody can go there. Aarp.org/tech where you can find articles, how to's, videos, all sorts of resources that will help you understand the technology better. And also I should mention to AARP members, there are ways you can, uh, get exclusive discounts on technology like cell phone plans and ID theft protection and things like that.

Speaker2:
Very good. Jim Lenihan is technology editor for AARP. Really appreciate your time, Jim. Thanks so.

Speaker5:
Much. All right. Thanks for having me.

Speaker2:
So a lot of great information there. And yeah, I think some really helpful stuff for seniors. One of my favorite things there that he said Mike was about making things just easier. It's not about looking for the new tech and all the gadgets and stuff. Like if you're like kind of maybe a little bit younger, technical, techie type people, you know, might be looking for the latest and greatest gadgets. This is all about how to just use the stuff that you already have, or maybe some easily accessible things that you might not even know were out there.

Speaker3:
Yeah. No doubt. I mean, I think a lot of our listeners can relate to that. I always tell people, look, I finished college the year before the internet was invented. So, um, you know, I know my skills are limited. I know what I know, you know very, very well. But outside that scope It's not where perhaps it needs to be. Who knows? I'm continuously trying to learn. But you know, the folks that finished their schooling well before I did, I know that they're nodding their their heads in agreement with everything that I've just said. But, you know, um, man, this is a good show today.

Speaker2:
Yeah, I think so as well. And, and really as I'm looking at the clock here, that's going to do it for our time together once again folks, money matters with mike.com is the website. Get that free consultation from Mr. Mike Zeno. But I want to say thank you to you Mike, for everything that you bring to the table each and every week. And we'll do it all again next time.

Speaker3:
Awesome. Matt, thank you for what you bring to the table. But most importantly, thank you to each and every single one of our listeners. Whether you're listening to us live on the air or whether you're listening to us on podcast anywhere, that you might be on this great green earth. Um, without you, we do not have a show. So from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Whatever you're doing this weekend, we hope you enjoy it to its fullest extent and as always, make it a great day.

Speaker1:
Thanks for listening to Money Matters with Mike. You deserve to work with a licensed financial and insurance professional who can offer strategies for protecting and growing your hard earned money. To schedule your free, no obligation consultation, visit Money Matters with mike.com or pick up the phone and call 704560 1573. That's (704) 560-1573. Not affiliated with the United States government. Mike Zeno does not offer tax, legal or investment advice. Consult with your tax advisor or attorney regarding specific situations. Opinions expressed are subject to change without notice. These opinions are not intended as investment advice, nor do they predict future performance of any product. All information provided is believed to be from reliable sources. However, we make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of any statement. This information is intended to be educational in nature and does not provide a guarantee or a specific result. All copyrights and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Amara Life assumes no responsibility or liability for the content of this message. The information contained herein is provided on an as is basis with no guarantees of completeness, accuracy, usefulness, timeliness, or the results obtained from the use of this information. Fixed indexed annuities can help protect your retirement savings against market ups and downs. Nationwide's peaked end can help protect against market risk and provide guaranteed income for life. Peek ten also has an optional rider that offers an immediate 20% bonus based on your principal applied to your income benefit base. Call us now at 704 5601573. That's 704 5601573. Guarantees and protections referenced within are subject to the claims paying ability of Nationwide life and annuity insurance company. Nationwide Peek ten is issued by Nationwide Life and Annuity Insurance Company Columbus, Ohio.

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