I am not an economist. However, in my opinion, this post is about our survival which ultimately is about our health. Our dollar has lost about 40% of its value in the last year alone. This is evidenced by Gold going from $600/oz. to $950/oz. in last 12 months. In other words, what used to cost you $650 now costs $950.Your money is worth less so you need more of it to buy the same thing. House prices are plummeting and our country has lost all moral authority in the world In other words, the government borrows money from the private bank, then charges us taxes so we can pay the bank back the interest.This is a pretty good deal if you are a bank, for the rest of us it sucks! For every $10,000 a person makes, $2000-$3000 goes to taxes (about $1500 goes to interest on money lent by Fed bank), $3000 for a house payment ( $2800 is interest paid to a bank early on), $500 in auto payments ($250 pays interest to the bank), $500 in credit cards ($400 in interest to the bank). etc. Are you getting my point? When all is said and done, you have a few bucks left for you and your family- hopefully. What then? we sit around the TV and watch Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and gossip about Britney Spears and Dr. Phil….. what is this world coming to? we ask ourselves, as we drink our Starbucks Venti Latte with an extra shot.

PENSIONS WERE once considered one of the central features of the American Dream. Workers might not be rich, went the argument, but at least those with union jobs were paid a wage you could raise a family on–and they could look forward to a retirement where regular pension checks would provide a comfortable living. That was the dream, but U.S. workers are waking up to a different reality today–that pensions are fast becoming a thing of the past. Today, when companies offer any retirement benefits at all, the favorite method is a “defined-contribution” plan, like 401(k) plans. The eventual amount of retirement checks is “defined” by contributions to individual accounts by employers and employees. But unlike pensions, “defined-contribution” plans aren’t guaranteed by the government–and can disappear altogether, as employees of Enron, WorldCom and other companies found out when they lost their retirement savings amid the wave of corporate scandals. Even when the company survives, 401(k) programs fall short of meeting retirees’ needs. With two-thirds of companies that offer retirement plans using the 401(k) system, retirees will be squeezed by falling Social Security benefits and too little in their private retirement accounts. “Most people are going to arrive at retirement and not have adequate money,” Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research, told the Christian Science Monitor. Munnell estimates that under the 401(k) system, the bottom one-third of new pensioners will fall into poverty, more than three times higher than the current poverty rate for retirees. In addition to the turn to 401(k) plans, Corporate America is out to gut the existing pension system.

Considering the actual situation of the Country i don’t think a mutual fund is a smart bet. If you are hoping your IRA or your 401(k) plan will be enough to have a good living, maybe you still believe in Santa Claus. I strongly suggest you start looking for a solution.

I would say “Network Marketing” is a good option, with a small investment to start you can make a better living. Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki always said if they had to start all over from scratch they’ll find a good network marketing company and get to work. We are living in a new century, the century of the world wide network - the internet. There’s plenty of online businesses where you can generate an extra income just by working part-time so you can keep your full-time job while you make enough money to fire your boss. Do your research and find the best company you feel comfortable with, try to learn all you can about it and with a good mentor and coaching you can literally make a fortune.

From: David Salebe Author and Creator of “The Guide To Abundance”