Why would I title a blog about building wealth, “how to fail”? Because part of a viable success strategy means figuring out how we could screw it up – and eliminating failure as a possible outcome.
While it may seem there are endless ways to fail, the good news is that there are only three. I call them three failure traps:
- Fail to start saving and investing in the first place
- Put your money into things that can (and often do) lose value
- Die before the job is done
Can you think of any others?
If we save diligently, invest wisely, and keep drawing air long enough – we can’t help but succeed.
Can the three failure traps be avoided?
Now if you’re not adequately motivated to save and invest in the first place, there’s little I – or anyone else can do to help. You’re on your own. I suggest you look into the eyes of those who count on you. That should be all the motivation you need. Now can we cross that one off the list?
Let’s jump to failure trap number 3. While we certainly can’t predict the future, we can quite easily and inexpensively ensure that the financial consequences of premature death don’t get in the way of our family’s financial future. It’s called life insurance. It’s available, cheap, and easy to get. You don’t have to like it – but you do have to have some. Life insurance is the only way to ensure that the job of securing your family’s financial future will be completed if you’re not here to do it yourself.
Now – all we have to do is figure out how to keep from investing our money into things that can lose value. Here’s the tease: it is entirely, 100% possible. Stay tuned.
