The 40/40/40 plan is something many Americans remain married to, even well into the 21 century. Yet, is it marital bliss or decades worth of fallacy?
What is the 40/40/40?
It’s the idea that you should work 40 hours a week for 40 years of your life in order to retire on 40 percent of your pay. Why? Because it’s always been done that way. Then again, just 40 years ago, we were told that smoking was healthy and that eating food out of a can was the way to go. Since then, science has proven differently, so we (as a society) have adopted different ideas. If we can evolve past the ideas that things that things like smoking and artificial everything are bad for us – and have been all along --, why are we still married to the idea of a 40/40/40 plan? It’s time to break out of this antiquated notion and embrace the evolutionary changes we are blessed with today, in a land of opportunity. Here are three rock solid reasons you are stuck in an unhappy marriage with the 40/40/40 plan and three stellar solutions on how to break free.
1. The Establishment Tells Us It’s a Good Idea: Since the dawn of the IRS and the inception of Social Security, Uncle Sam has been sticking it to you, as opposed to the other way around. Creating massive ad campaigns and ideals taught from Kindergarten on that keep you married to the thought that you have to have a ‘job’ in order to be successful; keeping you chained as a happy, tax paying citizen; constantly indebted to Uncle Sam, while paying the salaries of D.C. fat cats who get more time off than you could ever dream of.
Solution: I’m not saying you should skip out on paying taxes. I mean, I don’t want you put in a federal prison or anything, but there are greater tax benefits and options being self-employed than you will ever find at your traditional 9 – 5. Consider the reason that the government wants to keep you stuck, and then challenge yourself to break the mold.
Hint: Staying in the 40/40/40 is of more benefit to Uncle Sam and company than it will ever be to you.
2. Your Family Says So: Growing up, what did you hear from mom and dad? Go to school, make good grades so you can get into a good college and get a good job. This recording has been played in your head so long that you got married to the idea. And why? Because that’s what mom and dad did. However, the average college graduate today has enough trouble finding a job, let alone a job that will pay back the piles of student debt they accumulated over their higher education career.
Solution: Consider the “true” value of that piece of paper you have hanging on your wall right now – or the one you are so desperately trying to get. Then, think of the richest people in America and their education levels. Very few are college graduates. Even fewer have master’s degrees. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and even Mark Zuckerberg were all college drop outs, but that didn’t stop them from chasing their passion – and the money rolled in after that. Sure, there are a few exceptions, but in the grand scheme of things, it appears as if hustle and self-education outweigh the benefits of education from the establishment.
3. You’re Afraid to Take a Risk: There is a certain security blanket that most people wrap themselves up in when it comes to a 40/40/40 plan. After all, who doesn’t want a steady paycheck and health benefits and time off? Why work so hard when you can live for the weekend and have to deal with horrible bosses for the majority of your career? What about retirement and that great gift you get at your farewell party, after staying married to a job for 25 years? (Who doesn’t love a free set of steak knives in exchange for a lifetime of working to build someone else’s wealth?)
Solution: By adopting the mindset of an entrepreneur, by changing your thinking, you are setting yourself up for some hustle on the front end, but also the opportunity to retire at 40, not after 40 years of indentured servitude. You can make your own hours, choose your own worth and create multiple streams of passive income from which you can glean well into your golden years. Oh, and there are also plenty of self-employed healthcare plans available too. Sacrificing for one or two years (the average time it takes most businesses to flourish) can mean not sacrificing time with your family, your friends or even for yourself.
So, what are you waiting for? Are you going to stay married to the same plan for the rest of your life, or are you going to make the rest of your life, the best of your life? The choice is yours, you can follow the trends, or you can set them.
For more, be sure to check out secrets to creating passive income using your marketing on the Valkeryie Consulting Blog.
Shauna Zamarripa is an accomplished columnist, professional blogger, locally recognized and nationally blogging/social trainer. She specializes on helping people realize how they can monetize marketing. Be sure to connect with her on Facebook,Twitter, YouTube and Google+ so you never miss an update.
(Originally published on LinkedIn Pulse)
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