Summary: A Time For Reflection Reflecting about what lies ahead is common for this time of year. We all hope for good news but need to remember that the final choice of whether we whether we take it as good or bad is usually up to us. Many of the greatest teachers, coaches and mentors teach their students to be proactive rather than simply reactive. By doing do, they learn how to turn any kind of news to their advantage. Sometimes, the good news we receive is first preceded by not so good news. For example, it's good news when a stoplight is finally put in at a busy intersection. Of course the bad news may be that the reason that it was put in was because of something bad that happened there. Good news can affect us financially, physically or even in other ways where we learn how to prepare ourselves to avoid the negative effects of bad news when it happens. So what do you see in the days ahead? Could there be another financial crisis like we saw in 2007-2008? Yes or no? Whenever Doug asks this question, roughly 98 percent of the audience he's asking answer in the affirmative. Now that's a pretty clear majority. Often, Doug will next ask his audience if they lost significant value in assets such as their IRAs or 401(k)s or in real estate or their homes during those years. Obviously, a majority of people did. Next, he asks them if they wish to see the kind of losses they saw nearly a decade ago. Their answer is always a clear and resounding “no!” The next question is about what they are planning to do to ensure that they won't experience the same result as before. It's a matter of when and not if there will be another financial crisis. The same factors that set in motion the last crisis are happening again and our government continues printing money like crazy. Enormous spending deficits are still there and the markets are becoming volatile once again. The chances are strong that we're going to see the market take another 40 percent nose dive of up in the near future. So, here's a serious question for anyone who was affected by the last downturn. Why would you continue to use a strategy that hasn't worked in the past? Remember, between 2001-2003, the market dropped 40% and it was four years before people could make back what they had lost. In 2008, it happened once again and required another 3-4 years for most of them just to break even. These downturns were a serious challenge for those who had been saving for retirement. If you were one of them, what are you doing different to ensure that it never happens to you again? Could another downturn actually work to your advantage? Now is a perfect time to <a href="http://liveabundant.com/events/" target="_blank">learn how to protect yourself</a> in ways that turns bad news into good news? Start by <a href="http://liveabundant.com/free-analysis/" target="_blank">visiting with a wealth architect</a> today. *Life insurance policies are not investments and, accordingly, should not be purchased as an investment.
