Retirement Savings Plan - How To Start Your Own
A retirement savings plan is essential to your future financial security. Where to put the money is not the question. The choices of where to put the retirement savings are endless. The question for most people is where do they get the money for the plan. Here's how to start one on your own, RIGHT NOW!
The old-school advice, Pay Yourself First, is some of the best money management advice you will ever get. If you don't pay you, who will? How do you do that? Here's how.
Out of every bit of income that you make, immediately carve off 10% and stash it in your retirement savings plan. I know that is a scary idea for a lot of people who have debt and past due bills to pay. My advice? JUST DO IT! Making the firm commitment to yourself to operate on 90% of your income is half the battle. As the weeks and months go by, you'll find you have adjusted to operating on less money.
The best benefit of this self created retirement savings plan is the peace of mind you'll have just knowing the money is there and that you are building your own financial security. You will find that you actually stop worrying about money. Just knowing that cash is there will make you sleep better at night.
Think you cannot possibly put away the whole 10% to start with? Take a look at your income from a different point of view. Look at all of the vendors you pay out of your income every week and get the idea that these suppliers are all on your payroll. Is there anyone you can terminate and not really miss? Is there anyone you can cut back to part timer status? Just look at the bills that come in every week, and those automatic fees deducted from your accounts and you'll see exactly who is on your 'payroll'.
Here is an example. I was working with the owner of a company who was having a difficult time cutting company expenses by 10% to put away in his retirement savings plan. We looked at every expense from the viewpoint that the vendor was on his 'payroll.'
Right away we were playing a game of firing vendors like the extra $9.95 per month third-party fraud protection on each of his credit cards. We didn't renew the contract on some advertising that wasn't bringing in any new business and found a less expensive alternative and saved $280 a month. We consolidated part of his debt to a low interest loan and saved over $300 in monthly finance charges. We sold a lease-purchase piece of equipment he had no use for and paid off the balance. That saved him $239 a month. We even fired his bank and moved his accounts to one with no monthly account charges and got the old bank off his payroll to the tune of $25 a month. Now he has a nice pension fund building up each month.
Why is controlling the flow of money so important? It is the energy and life blood of a company. It is vital to channel it through the income generating areas first to keep it running well. Everything runs much more smoothly when enoughcash is available. And that includes you, the owner of the business. Our Money Management Software guides you towards making the most advantageous decisions about how to use your money to make more money.
You can make a fun retirement savings plan building game with your company's cash just by changing your viewpoint about how you will use the money. Be the Donald Trump of your own company. Take a really close look at who you are paying out of your hard earned income. Don't be shy about saying 'You're Fired!' and pay yourself 10% first by setting aside that cash in your personal retirement savings plan.
Sandra Simmons, President of Money Management Solutions, has years of experience helping business owners and individuals manage their income to get out of debt. To learn more about the Money Management Software she created, visit her website and watch the FREE 5-minute demo video at www.moneymgmtsolutions.com
Published December 24th, 2007
Filed in Home Business