Anti 401k 401k Club - Cause I'm not trying to plan for what year I might die.

Do you know when you’re investing into your 401K you pretty much have to estimate about what age you plan to die? If you retire with “X” amount of money in your 401K and you spend “X” amount per year, you will then have “X” amount of years to enjoy that retirement money. Well shit, God forbid I live an extra 5 years more than I expected to right? Does this sound like a solid plan to you?

“If you invest just $20 dollars a week, by the time you’re 65 years old you will be a millionaire!” How many times have you heard or seen this bullshit being preached repeatedly by financial advisors all around to every single person they can find that will listen to them? They bust out their huge calculators to show you their version of “compound interest” to prove how much money you’ll be making if you just keep investing with them your entire life. Listen, if someone tells you to invest for 40+ years so you can retire a millionaire you better turn around and run in the completely opposite direction. Absolutely no one out there got rich following this process. All the rich people you see who invest in the market are already rich and made most of their money doing something else. Yes, if you’re already rich and need a safe place to put your money and live off the interest then that’s great, but financial freedom is not achieved by putting a small percentage in a 401k for multiple decades. The people who follow this plan are unfortunately individuals who just don’t know any better. They see it as a safe way to invest because they don’t want to take the time to educate themselves on money matters and would rather just put their entire future in the hands of some stranger. Most people follow this route so I’m sure we all know someone who thinks this is the right way to plan for retirement, but in today’s world there is absolutely no excuse with the amount of free education that exists online. You just can’t be naïve. While there is free education to be had, there are also hundreds of salesmen who are out there trying to sell you a dream just to take you on as a client. Know who to trust and know when you see the red flags, but the only way to identify either one of those things is to make sure you’ve educated yourself.

You don’t need to abandon having a 401k altogether – Some corporations offer pretty good benefits when it comes to 401k accounts, and they’ll match the amount you deposit up to a certain percentage which is a great resource you should take advantage of if you’re able to. However, this should not be your primary plan for how you are building your wealth for the future. Some 401k accounts will allow you to take a loan out and use the money for other investments, and I 100% am all about utilizing this tool if you know what you’re doing. This gives you more control of your money rather than having it sit there and collect dust over 40 years. But again, you need to educate yourself – This doesn’t mean take a loan out against your 401k and go buy yourself a nice car. It means take the money and find an appreciating asset that also gives you monthly cash flow, tax benefits, and loan pay down that increases your net worth every single month. Hmmm, I wonder what type of investment offers such amazing benefits… oh that’s right, REAL ESTATE!

Skeptics will read this and say things like you know stuff like this isn’t for everyone… Some people are just content with slowly and safely saving in a 401k account. Or they just don’t have the knowledge or care to learn about any of this. After shedding a few tears, I would recommend they do some more research because at the end of the day, you’re not going to fully understand the risk you’re taking by not acting and putting your finances into your own hands till you’re actually 65 years old and retiring. Only at that point will you look at your finances and say, oh no I only have enough money to live comfortably for about 10 years, and at that point it'll be too late. Do you want to spend your entire life living frugally and saving for retirement, only to spend your retirement living more frugally just so you can guarantee yourself enough money till its over? Or are you going to pray and depend on the government taking care of you with social security. This isn’t the golden years you want, believe me.

If you don’t do it for yourself, do it for your parents because guess what? The above description is going to be the exact scenario your parents find themselves in much earlier than you will and they are going to depend on you to take care of them. Wouldn’t it feel incredible to have this asset which you have all the control over, paying you every month with money that could be used to take care of your parents while also appreciating over the years? And the best part is this asset isn’t something that’s just going to disappear in 10 years. It’s going to be around paying you till the end of time for generations and generations to come. Its pretty much like creating a never-ending flow of money – Who in their right mind would not want this or would not create a few extra minutes during their day to educate themselves on it instead of scrolling through their phones on tik tok?

Do your homework. Learn how your money can best work for you instead of following what every corporate employee does. Don’t follow or believe the myth that a 401k is your path to financial freedom just because that’s what 99% of the people out there do. You just need to take the initiative and grab control of your finances. This isn’t something you want to do – It’s something you NEED to do and that right there is the mindset difference between people who will achieve financial freedom and those who simply will not.