Wealth Building DNA

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Category Archives: Total Financial Freedom

Building Wealth Is About Building Plans

Wealth Building is Wealth PLANNING!

Your children will learn a lot about money when they finish college and get into the real work world. But I believe that as a parent, your job is to start when they are young, teaching them about money, business and the principles of wealth.

The earlier you start the better. That leads me to a major point I want to make about the “P” word. PLANNING!

It’s not enough to get your kids through school with straight A’s. That’s nice but although their grades are important, most schools are not teaching anything about financial or business planning. We are continually amazed in our wealth coaching programs how little information adults have, let alone their offspring, about the importance and power of PLANNING.

In fact, for the rest of this post, I’m going to put the word PLANNNING in all caps in hopes that you’ll notice how passionate I am about this!

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a wealthy doctor, dentist, or lawyer…”

It doesn’t matter if you’re a wealthy doctor, dentist, or lawyer, your income has little to do with your long-term wealth. Unfortunately, I’ve run into a lot of broke doctors, dentists and lawyers who had plenty of income but way too much outgo. Their lack of PLANNING created an endless cycle of working harder and creating more stress versus working smarter and finding more peace.

Your wealth is a result of your PLANNING not your income. Here are a few things to teach your children about PLANNING (some of this might work for parents as well).

1.       LIVE like this is your last day on earth but PLAN like you’re going to live forever. In other words, enjoy this moment, let go of worry and be present to the joys of life all around you. And of course, that’s much easier to do when you’re PLANNING process gets those little worries out of your head and onto paper.

It’s easier to relax about money when you’ve automated your savings, you pay yourself first, your investing takes place automatically, the important things are insured and you have a clear understanding of where your money is going. This is part of the “First things first” philosophy that allows us to enjoy the day because our minds aren’t cluttered with unfinished business.

2.       Teach the positive and negative power of interest. We love earning interest and we hate paying it. Watch your child’s horror when you teach her that that brand new $30,000 car will really cost her $40,000 if she finances it. Watch her amazement when you show her the power of compounding interest. Show her how quickly she will double her money by teaching her the simple formula of the rule of 72. Divide 72 by the interest rate being earned on the investment to determine the number of years the investment will need to grow in order to double in value.

For example, if she’s making eight percent on her mutual fund you set up for her, then the $2000 she makes over the summer working at McDonald’s turns into $4000 in nine years. Now that might seem like an eternity to a teenager but putting this on paper in front of your children now is a powerful motivator for teaching them the power of PLANNING!

3.       Model the concept of Delayed Gratification. Teaching your children how a “cooling off period” before making a major purchase is in itself, a money maker! Teaching your child how to be aware of their purchasing process will save them from a lot of financial stress in the future.

Teach them to practice wealth building skills such as  – Research, Negotiation, and Saying No. Teach your children that the marketing campaigns bombarding them every minute of every day are based on hard core research. Big business has studied all the ways to play on the emotions of fear, greed and vanity to get us to buy things we don’t really need.

4.       Start PLANNING today! Keep it simple. Sit with your kids and write down three things they want to have, do or know in the coming year. That’s a plan! Now, tie in the financial components and you’ve got a good start on some highly beneficial long-term PLANNING!

I’m not saying that any of this is easy to teach or to practice but at the same time, they’re not really that hard! It doesn’t really matter if you have kids or not, these principles are powerful PLANNING principles that any of us can start using today!

And by the way, when you’re ready to start developing a solid long-term wealth plan for YOUR life, give me a call.

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby Huguenin

HURRY! The Tax Man Goes Retro! Tax Savings for 2011 Only!

The Clock has Been Turned Back on Certain Taxes but not for Long!

In my ongoing Axe the Tax campaign, I have been asked by a lot of doctors and other clients what some of the new tax changes will mean to their tax-reduction strategies.  It may seem a little strange but Uncle Sam really does give us ample money-saving opportunities to lower our taxes.  Unfortunately, the tax gods tend to make things a little too complicated for busy small business owners, doctors with thriving practices, and other mere mortals to grasp.

There are tons of new tax deductions available for the tax enlightened out there. So, if you have not been enlightened yet, let me tax-enlighten you a bit! Here are a few Tax Tips to look into and discuss with your tax advisor and/or CPA right now because they are going fast! Literally.

Retroactively Reinstated Tax Break – Extended through 2011

The following tax breaks for individuals that came to a screeching halt at the end of 2009 are back! They’ve been extended through the end of this year. Not perfect, but not bad! Take ‘em while you can get ‘em!

1.       The $250 above-the-line deduction for certain expenses of our beloved elementary and secondary school teachers. Yeah! They deserve a little extra help!

2.       The election to take itemized deductions for local and state general sales taxes instead of the itemized deductions permitted for local and state income taxes.

3.       An increased contribution limit and a carry forward period for contributions of appreciated real property for conservation purposes (may include partial interests in real property).

4.       An above-the-line deduction for your qualified tuition and other related expenses.

5.       This one’s BIG!  URGENT- The provision that permits taxpayers aged 70 ½ or older to make tax-free distributions to charities from their Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA) in amounts up to $100k per tax payer per tax year. In addition, those individuals will be allowed to treat their IRA transfer to charitable organizations during January of 2011 as if it was made back in 2010. Retro is good! Talk to your tax advisor today!

6.       The treatment of any mortgage insurance premiums as a deductible of qualified residence interest and the exclusion of 100 percent of the gains on certain small-business stocks.

7.       Retro-refrigeration news: The energy efficient appliance credits may apply but they will be in new amounts and with some new requirements.

8.       The Code Sec. 25C credit for energy-efficient improvements made to existing homes. Reinstating the credit as it existing prior to the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The standards for which property is eligible under Code Sec. 25C have been updated to reflect improvements in current energy efficiency standards.

That’s the retro news and the tax-saving views from here! The clocks have been set back for a little bit so check with your tax pro and find out which way to go. The list above is far from complete but these are all tax-saving opportunities you should be aware of. Chat with your advisor or give me a call!

Understanding how to use the tax rules to your advantage is what I teach my students in a variety of programs. Find out more about our coaching programs and let’s Axe the Tax from your life! I’ll cover more on the tax changes soon but move quickly, some of these tax savings are only good for January 2011! Here’s more info on tax extensions.

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby Huguenin
Wealth Coach
208-263-7202

Six Ways Physicians Can Lower Taxes – Now!

Doctors  Can Lower Taxes If They are Willing to Act…  I say, “Axe The Tax!” Tax reduction for physicians is my specialty. I love doctors. I hate taxes. The problem most doctors have when it comes to taxes is that they don’t want to take the time to slow down and deal with the reality that making a great salary or generating substantial revenue does not automatically equate to more money in your pocket.

“Taxes will always be a bigger threat to your wealth than the markets”

Here are a few tax planning tips for physicians (and other professionals) that want to lower taxes and reduce future taxes:

1.      Get Your Head out of Your Assets. Just because you’ve created a beautiful office and a nice revenue flow doesn’t mean you’ve created a successful business model. Get your feet on the ground, your head out of the clouds and quit looking at the symbols of success and start focusing on the “systems of success.” An asset protection strategy is critical but if you don’t have a strategy you may not have those assets as long as you’d like.

2.      Prescribe a New Entity. After a deeper diagnosis, get serious about what you can and can’t control. You can’t control your patients. You can’t control the market or the economy. But… you CAN control your taxes. One of the best ways to do that is with the proper entity structure. That might be a physician’s corporation, an LLC, a partnership, or another combination of legal structures that allow you to minimize your tax liability.

3.      Pay Yourself first to Pay Less Later – Generating money and keeping it are two different things. Most doctors want to pay fewer taxes but you must pay yourself a little to save yourself a lot. By paying yourself a small salary, your overall tax liability may be lower because you will not have to pay FICA taxes on the dividends taken from a physician corporation.

4.      Be a Little Un-civil – Not your bedside manner of course, what I mean is that civil judgments in most states cannot attack your retirement accounts. So, contribute to your retirement accounts because it will reduce your taxes and it will protect your assets. Retirement plan contributions are not subject to income or FICA taxes so these contributions reduce your tax bill and protect your assets simultaneously.

5.      Did I Mention the Pension? If the physician corporation is the right legal entity for you, as its owner you may be able to establish a physician pension for yourself. Now you can fund a retirement vehicle for yourself and a deductable expense for your business. You do not need to take a significant salary in order to contribute to this type of pension and it does provide additional asset protection from legal predators.

6.      Hire an Expert – Find someone you trust to give you the honest and accurate feedback you need about your unique situation. In business, you must leverage your resources to get ahead or you are just trading your time for money. A wealth coach, a financial adviser, you tax professionals all have the ability to give you the leverage you need to go beyond where you are today. You don’t have to do it all alone and you don’t have to be a victim of the tax systems just because you are able to generate significant revenue.

Of course, all of the above are just education tax-saving tips! Every situation is unique so give me a call if I can be of assistance with any aspect of your wealth building or tax planning education.

Have a prosperous day.

Gabby Huguenin
Wealth Coach

208-263-7202

Disclaimer:
This information does not constitute a complete description of all or any one aspect of financial planning. There is no offer to sell or buy any financial product in this video or on our website. Please consult with a qualified financial, legal and/or tax professional before investing or modifying any aspect of your taxes, assets or finances. This information is strictly educational.

Wealth Building Requires Health Building

Any wealth building strategy should include a health building strategy. So here are a couple of wealth building tips based on health building tips.

Stress can take the health out of wealth real fast unless you learn how to manage it. Stress is linked to major diseases like cancer, heart failure, even arthritis! Now don’t go getting all stressed out over these nasty stats, there are some simple solutions you can do today to reduce your stress levels while you make your millions.

Stop pulling your hair out and read a little more. The best anti-aging program is a stress release program. And, since you’re working so hard at creating your wealth building strategy I know you’re going to want to be around a long time to spend all the money!

Here are three effective ways to lower your stress levels today!

Practice the 3-D’s!

The three D’s are: Do it, Dump it, or Delegate it. It’s not rocket science but it can be a lifesaver! Look at everything on your to-do list today with your 3-D glasses on!

  • Do it – if you run across something that can be done in two minutes or less, just do it now and get it off your list. One less thing to stress about
  • Dump it – Get brutal with the junk mail, email, and mindless tasks that waste time and energy. Get protective of your time and focus your energy to the most important tasks of your job or your personal life. Dump the stress that comes with doing things you really don’t want to or need to be doing.
  • Delegate it- Leverage your time by letting others do what you’re not good at or committed to. Ask for help, develop support systems, but don’t do it alone! Share the love, the work, and the stress! If it’s not an activity that is creating you money then you shouldn’t be doing it.

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby Huguenin

Legacy Wealth Building, LLC208-263-7202

Learn more about our wealth building programs. Whether you make $1,000 a month or $100,000 a month, we have a financial education program you can use to start building lifelong wealth. Call me!

Gabby

Legacy Wealth Building, LLC

208-263-7202

Money, Taxes, Assets, what are we doing to prepare to rely on ourselves in this financial climate?

Faith is not always enough to Save the Day: sometimes re-evaluating how we approach things is necessary.

There is a famous saying: if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. Sounds logical doesn’t it?! However, when applied to our finances or business success that point of view can sometimes lead to complacency. That, as anyone knows, can spell out a slow and painful death of all we have worked hard to achieve.

People are so busy that they don’t take time to look around them and really notice what is happening to their financial health, life, money, retirement, assets, and taxes!

Looking outside of our current list of advisors can sometimes yield unexpected results. In addition, if we begin to edge a little further out and explore some new ways of thinking or approaching an old subject something amazing can happen. We can find that what we needed was sitting here all along.

You want advisers that have a VESTED interested in your financial health and are in it to win it with a win / win playing field.

I have a long term friend of mine, whom I consider family, has elderly parents with failing health, the bills have been piling up, and their attorney has instructed them to keep their assets in their names, and let their children fight over the assets upon their death. Why do you think that is?? It is simply because the attorney will earn more money for himself by letting the assets go through probate upon their deaths, and then the heirs will be left with not only the pain of losing their parents, but the pain of paying the estate taxes, probate tax, and losing the things that they grew up with.

How to turn that corner is often the hardest step to make. It means acknowledging that what has worked so well in our wealth building journey for so long no longer has the horsepower to work. It means acknowledging that our financial education is a little rusty, and our long-held goal of financial independence is slowly slipping away,

In fact, financial freedom may have completely gone off the tracks. Avoidance of this fact is easy in the short term. Unfortunately in the long term, it will mean that our retirement has often been eaten up by shoring up our current situation or our hard won assets are now at risk.  Not such a pretty picture is it.

However, there is a point of view – a skill set – available to everyone who believes their family, business, retirement, assets, tax planning and every other aspect of their lives is worth protecting. It is when you recognize that you need help and that help can come in the form of an advisor or wealth building coach.  If you think of any successful sports person or team, wealthy person or business you know they have at least one top-notch coach they can depend upon.  You can have the same level of commitment as well.

Try looking around for the coach (and their approach) that will work best for you. Look at their references, past track record and important information that backs up all their claims. For instance, if they talk about saving money on taxes: just how much have they saved and can they prove it? How do they protect assets? What is their proposal for long term financial health for you and your family? Is it customized to YOU personally? Is it able to be implemented? Will your advisers be able to support it, and does the IRS and laws of the nation we live in support it?! All of these things are very important when choosing the right wealth building coach for you.

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby