2964: Financial Fear and Resistance by Alacias Enger of My Sense With Cents on Money Advice

[00:00:00] Have you ever noticed how a calm mind can really set the stage for a good night's sleep? That's the idea behind our new podcast, Good Sleep. Greg, our host from Optimal Relationships Daily, is here to help ease you into a peaceful night's rest with some positive affirmations. And these affirmations aren't just comforting. They can help ease anxiety and nurture positive thoughts, setting you up for true good sleep.

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[00:00:40] This is Optimal Finance Daily, Financial Fear and Resistance by Alacias Enger with MySenseWithCents.com

[00:00:49] Once upon a time, the average American graduated from high school, maybe attended college, maybe not, and found a job in a nice company where he or she would work for 30 plus years, at which point they'd be thrown a nice party, be gifted with a beautiful company watch, retire, collect the company pension, and take up a hobby like gardening or golf.

[00:01:11] As you can imagine, all of those parties, watches, and pension checks became quite the expense for the corporation, an expense they'd rather do without.

[00:01:21] So, corporate America sent their finest lobbyists to D.C. to protect corporate profits under the guise of helping the American people save more for retirement.

[00:01:31] Thus, the Revenue Act of 1978 was born, an IRS code 401k.

[00:01:37] In theory, the 401k was intended to be a supplemental retirement investment vehicle that an American worker would utilize to save up additional funds for retirement.

[00:01:49] It wasn't originally designed to be the only retirement vehicle utilized by workers.

[00:01:55] Unfortunately, as years went by, more and more corporations retired their traditional pension plans,

[00:02:02] placing retirement planning almost exclusively in the hands of the individual worker.

[00:02:07] It's a terrifying prospect for a nation of people that aren't required to take a personal finance course in high school.

[00:02:14] But that's where we're at.

[00:02:15] And fear isn't a terribly useful emotion, as it often has us manifesting in the direction of which we do not want.

[00:02:24] Unfortunately, fear is often a tool that's used against us, and I think it's important for us to recognize that for what it is.

[00:02:30] I have a client that has endured a lot in her life and has given me permission to share a small slice of her story.

[00:02:38] She lost everything at the age of 40 and has had to rebuild from there.

[00:02:43] Thereafter, as she was repairing the ruins of her financial life, she came to a meeting with a financial advisor that was associated with the administration of her 401k plan.

[00:02:53] She was eager for the meeting, seeing it as another opportunity to begin rebuilding.

[00:02:59] At that point, there wasn't a lot in the account.

[00:03:02] She was contributing a small amount in addition to the funds contributed by her company through their profit-sharing program.

[00:03:09] She was prepared to be told that she needed to increase her contributions.

[00:03:12] But what she wasn't prepared for was the fear-mongering beatdown that she received from a person that was supposed to be there to educate and help her.

[00:03:21] She tried to tell him that she had other assets from a recent inheritance, but he wouldn't listen to her and continued to use fear as a tool against her.

[00:03:31] Had he listened to her, he could have taught her how to use her 401k plan to supplement the assets she had recently acquired and secure her retirement.

[00:03:40] Unfortunately, that's not what happened.

[00:03:42] And she left that meeting in such a state of terror and shame that it launched her into a state of absolute paralysis where she remained for several years.

[00:03:52] This woman was in a place in her life of rebirth and renewal.

[00:03:56] Everything she was doing in life was in the spirit of creating the life she wanted to live.

[00:04:01] And the financial advisor could have easily been a part of that.

[00:04:04] But rather than help her to see and understand what she could do right now that would help her in the designing of a financially secure life,

[00:04:12] he spent their session hammering at her about lack and scarcity, focusing on the balance that was not in the account.

[00:04:20] Coupling this with the trauma she had just recently escaped, she was very simply overcome with fear.

[00:04:27] There's a funny thing about fear.

[00:04:28] It rates pretty low on the emotional scale because of the powerlessness that's often involved.

[00:04:35] Even a temporary bout of anger is more empowering.

[00:04:39] Had she been able to transform the fear into anger at that moment,

[00:04:42] she could have said to herself, screw you retirement guy,

[00:04:45] and waltzed out of that office with an all show him attitude and moved on with her life.

[00:04:50] A wise person once told me that your fear is caused by your resistance to what is.

[00:04:56] And she was right.

[00:04:57] It took me years to fully comprehend it, but I do now.

[00:05:01] Resistance is very literally fear.

[00:05:04] When we experience fear, it's because we are literally resisting our here and now by focusing our attention on the past we cannot change or on a future we can't control.

[00:05:14] As the universal law of resistance offers,

[00:05:18] we know that this fear will play out over and over again until we're forced to deal with it.

[00:05:24] But what does dealing with it look like?

[00:05:27] In some respects, dealing with our fear is the act of ultimate surrender.

[00:05:31] We must surrender to the now.

[00:05:34] Can you simply observe your life, your money, and recognize that in this moment, you are okay?

[00:05:40] Once we can achieve this state of neutrality, perhaps we can take it one step further up the emotional scale by practicing gratitude.

[00:05:48] Can you find things to genuinely appreciate about your job, your income, your ability to pay your bills, your savings, your ability to persevere?

[00:05:58] Exiting the powerlessness of fear and transitioning into an acceptance and even appreciation of that which we already have can lead us into a place of inspired action as resistance is now in the rear view mirror.

[00:06:11] While fear and resistance were the overarching themes of this story from my perspective, I feel compelled to offer this.

[00:06:19] Pay attention to financial professionals that try to use fear as a strategy when working with you.

[00:06:25] Unless you're a person that's somehow motivated by fear, this is not likely to yield you a positive result.

[00:06:32] Financial professionals should help you to understand processes so that you can make good decisions.

[00:06:37] If it turns out that you're underfunded somewhere, the focus should still be on helping you, not terrifying you.

[00:06:44] As for the woman in my story, she's currently rewriting the narrative of fear that was reinforced by this so-called advisor.

[00:06:51] She has since left the fear behind through working with financial coaches, advisors, and realtors that chose to uplift and educate.

[00:07:00] From a financial standpoint, she's doing great.

[00:07:02] In fact, she just realized that she's pretty much at her coast fine number and her retirement will be absolutely fine.

[00:07:13] You just listened to the post titled Financial Fear and Resistance by Alasius Anger of MySenseWithSense.com.

[00:07:21] And I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:07:24] Head on over to MySenseWithSense.com for a lot more from Alasius.

[00:07:29] And I have that linked in this episode's description.

[00:07:33] You may have heard me say this before on the show, but I truly believe that in order for us to improve our financial health,

[00:07:40] we need to let our curiosity be bigger than our fear.

[00:07:44] That curiosity will allow us to look at our finances where they stand today without judgment over the past,

[00:07:50] to figure out a way forward.

[00:07:53] That curiosity will also allow us to educate ourselves about investing and budgeting and recognize that this is all figureoutable.

[00:08:00] If you're listening to this show, you obviously have an interest in personal finance.

[00:08:05] So in my opinion, you're already doing fantastic.

[00:08:09] I find that a majority of the population just doesn't want to think about this stuff.

[00:08:14] So they're more likely to be paralyzed by fear and fall victim to fear mongering.

[00:08:19] Now, as much as some people mourn the loss of pension plans,

[00:08:23] there are certainly benefits to 401ks for people who prioritize their financial futures.

[00:08:28] Pensions typically require you to stay with a company for a certain amount of time,

[00:08:32] and you don't have any control over how it's invested.

[00:08:36] With a pension, your employer decides how much to contribute, which can sometimes result in underfunding.

[00:08:42] 401ks offer more autonomy.

[00:08:44] You choose how much you want to contribute up to the $19,500 per year limit for singles,

[00:08:51] and you also get to select what you're investing in.

[00:08:54] The days of staying with an employer for long periods of time are long gone,

[00:08:58] and while there may be a vesting schedule for the match portion of your 401k,

[00:09:03] you can take your contributions with you immediately.

[00:09:06] And that's a wrap for another edition of Optimal Finance Daily.

[00:09:10] Have a great rest of your day, and I'll be back tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.

[00:09:14] I know you're a host, you have a salesman.

[00:09:14] So, I'm back tomorrow...

[00:09:14] I'll be back tomorrow.

[00:09:15] Have a great rest of my life.

[00:09:15] If you have a couple of years, I'll be back tomorrow.

[00:09:15] God you've got to do here, and I'll be back tomorrow.