Honesty is the best policy.

HAPPY 1st day of March!!

Time flies!! It's a great sunny day here in Irvine and I am here nestled in my apartment (It's still cold!!).

Anywho, time to share some insight into where I am at right now.

Starting new into the financial services business, it is definitely not a steady job in the beginning. You really have to work hard to get your name out - handing out your business cards, talking to business owners, going to networking/mixer events. I am still transitioning and it's a bit scary. Not having the traditional 9-5 job in the beginning of your career is challenging. I feel like if I don't have booked appts that day I can just do whatever. No one is down your back- you work for yourself and in the end, you can be your own worst enemy. The discipline factor is something I definitely need to work on.

The first couple of months at ING, I have learned a lot but now it's a challenge to have people listen to me and hear what I have to say. Business can be far and long to come by. In light of this I applied for a few part-time jobs just to have a side income. I have an interview tomorrow. Hopefully this residual flow of income will help me ease the financial burdens I have so that I don't have to hard sell. In the end, I want people to be happy with the services I can provide instead of people saying that I pressured them into buying something they weren't ready for.

Reiterating my title of today's post, Honesty IS the best policy. Me being honest and truthful about the situations I am going through will help me and maybe even help you realize that life is not paved and smooth. The ups and downs make it difficult but all in all, if we don't have failures, we won't know what TRUE success really is.

I leave you with a Follow-Up Article to my discussion about Permanent Life Insurance in my last post. It talks about how Permanent Insurance can relieve tax burdens and help you create a nest egg for your future.

Til next time,

Angela

Write More! With a Lil Insurance 411.

I am trying to get in the habit of sparking my intellectual juices and write more. Hey, it will make me a better writer, yeah?

I wanted to take this time to answer some Q's that people have been asking me on the topic of life insurance.

1. What is the difference between term and permanent life insurance?

Basically, term insurance is like auto insurance. You pay into a policy and you only get money if something happens (ie, accidents or fatality). There is no cash accumulation and policies are normally 10, 20, or 30 years in length. When the policy term ends, you can either renew or stop insurance. The cool thing about term insurance is the affordability with a high death benefit. If you are in good health, a policy could cost you less than $50 a month with at least $500,000 in coverage. This option is good for people covering a need/asset such as a house or a business and it could also protect your family in case something happens to the breadwinner.

Permanent insurance is permanent. (Hence the name!) The policy will never outlive you and you are guaranteed a death benefit as long as premiums are paid into the policy. In essence, a permanent policy is life insurance combined with savings. With the premiums put into the policy, these funds are able to collect interest and build cash accumulation. Those monies are credited based on fixed, indexed (ie S+P 500), or variable interest rates (whichever you choose). Permanent insurance lets people pay into a policy and eventually the policy pays for itself. (This is assuming that premiums are above minimums.)

2. I am single and young (under 35), what is my need for life insurance? (Why the heck do I need it or want to get it?)

Good Q! Using the life insurance as a 'savings' vehicle, we can utilize the policy to be your own 'bank'. How is that you say? Well, as mentioned before permanent life insurance can accumulate cash value. That money is credited each year depending on what interest option you choose. For example, if one chooses an Indexed Universal Life policy (IUL) the interest would be credited based on the performance of the S+P 500. For the past 35 yrs, the avg performance of the S+P 500 has been about 8%. This means you would get 8% interest credited to your life insurance policy. The interest compounds annually, giving you a lot more interest than traditional savings, checking, or CD accounts (0-3%).

On the note of having your own 'bank', life insurance has tax-free distributions of money. That means if you need to access your money in the account, you can take up to the account value tax-free. If your account value was $40,000 you could take out a 'loan' of $20,000 to buy a new car and you don't have to pay back into the life insurance policy. Pretty neat, huh? You would be your own 'banker' and save yourself a lot of money by not having to pay interest and making the real bank rich.

Overall, life insurance for singles can be a wise investment and you have the security that if anything happens to you, your parents or family will not have to carry any of the financial burdens that you accumulated throughout the years.

3. Is this too good to be true? What is the reliability of the Life Insurance market?

The only drawback to Life Insurance is that the premiums you put into your policy are NOT tax-deductible. That means you would put after-tax dollars into your Life Insurance account. This is different from a 401(k) because in that kind of vehicle you would be putting in pre-tax dollars and deferring interest until you take out money from the account.

Life insurance is an under utilized vehicle that people should be more informed about. Taking money out tax-free is great as taxes will most likely grow in the next 10-15yrs. Taking advantage of today's low tax environment and putting money into life insurance can be a great way to diversify your financial portfolio.

The life insurance industry has stood the test of the financial slump of 2008. As many banks crumbled, not ONE life insurance company went under. They are financially stable and your money is guaranteed as stated in contract.

I leave you with an article I found on 401(k)s. Rethinking the 401(k) can free up money to place in a tax-free environment (Roth IRAs or Life Insurance).

Feel free to ask me questions!

Angela

GET MOTIVATED!!

today i went to a GET MOTIVATED business seminar with the ING clan.

it was a really entertaining seminar with speakers such as condolezza rice, zig zigler, colin powell, and rudy giuliani.

an interesting thing i learned was that everyone has a different motivational DNA and that people are motivated and demotivated by certain factors. for example, some one who is a connector is motivated by solving problems but is demotivated by isolation and conflict. on the other end of the spectrum there are producers and those are the Type A personalities. they are ultimately driven by results and demotivated when they have to follow the directions of some one else.

overall, what i got out of the seminar is that the biggest enemy you will ever face is yourself. stop making excuses and do what you KNOW you are capable of. stop letting others dictate how you are going to live your life. you are the only one going to live your life so OWN UP TO IT!

on another note, work is slow. it's not hard to find people to talk to, it's just that the people i talk to aren't really going to become clients. yes, i do want to help people but i also have to think about bills and rent and yucky stuff like that. i am not discouraged though and i know everything will come as it should (in due time).

anyways, i bet most of you have a CC (credit card) and i found an article that talks about the new rules for CCs. take a look! and know what those tricky bastards are doing to you to get more money out of you!

til next time,

angela

january update

january was an exciting month.

-i passed my CA insurance exam! (finally! i know!) that means i am officially affiliated with ING!! YAYY.

-i cemented plans with my roommates to go to NYC during their spring break (March). super excited :)

-went through more training with ING and am learning more and more!! my brain has withered with all the nonsense reality tv that i have been addicted to. haha.

a little money for thought:

http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/10/news/companies/banks_consumers_switch/index.htm

it talks about banks. i personally have a credit union account and an account with Chase. honestly, i would like to put more funds in the CU account but there is a lack of accessibility (ATMs and branches) that ultimately made up my decision on opening an account with a big banker. if you have a local CU around your neighborhood, it would be good to check out their rates and see if it would be advantageous for you to switch over.

til next time!

angela

2010

haha, reading my old posts. WOW...have things changed!

first off i am so encouraged and blessed to have found a job with ING. it's going to be tough but i believe that hard work pays off and i am 100% committed! i am a "financial consultant" and i help people manage their finances and help people accumulate wealth on a tax-favored basis. sounds cool yeah?

seriously, if you are in need of any financial advice, i am here. FREE OF CHARGE. swear! i will take YOU out to a cup of coffee! try me and shoot me an email! - auzzie31@gmail.com :)

i'm excited for this new year and i hope you are too. i see a lot of growth potential for me financially, spiritually, physically. it just takes dedication. i hope to spend more quality time with the people i love and really show them that i love them. my 23rd year of life is going to be awesome, let's start this new decade off with a bang!

angela

"never never never give up." - churchill

2 days..

til commencement! it's finally here...
bittersweet.
me -> jobless. moneyless. sometimes i feel hopeless.

BUT. looking on the bright side.
everything is for a reason. maybe i wasn't supposed to go to s.e. asia. have you heard about the crazy thailand stories on the news? haha.
God has a crazy plan for my life. no idea what is next. everything is unexpected- good and bad- but there is a purpose.
it's all a learning process.....the hardships make the future that much more promising and satisfying.

on another note, my mom was like you were named after your grandma. now you have to live up to her legacy. thanks mom O_0
i hope i can live up to even a fraction of what my grandma was and stood for. a model of perserverance and love. of the Christian faith and of an everlasting hope. she was so self-less. i really miss her. i never got to say goodbye which kills me inside. but she is in a better place and is not suffering anymore. you are resting peacefully with our Creator :) 5.24.09

tuesday. april 14th.

to think that in less than 7 weeks i will be graduating is kind of a scary thought. should i move back home? should i stay in so-cal? i'm being pulled to both sides by different things. i'm scared to financially live on my own. the working world seems so daunting. and everyone is like "STAY IN SCHOOL AS LONG AS YOU CAN!" if only i could. i feel the need to be financially free, to be independent and rely solely on myself for what i need. the mommy and daddy bank are finally closing after 22 long years in business!!

i need a lot of growing up to do, but in the meantime, i am going to let my youthful extravagance run its course. i have been extremely blessed in my senior year readjusting back into college life. it's been a lot of fun. kickbacks at windwood, santana's late night, beer pong, king's cup, K-Town trips, the list goes on and on. i'm definitely going to miss the freedom that college life gives. to wake up late, take naps in the day, and having only a few classes to attend. you are surrounded by friends and always are making new ones.

taking a step back from the hustle and bustle of life, i am truly grateful for everyone and everything in my life. yeah, i can be a bitch but you know i still love you ;] and don't forget that, even when i make you mad with the senseless things i sometimes (well, kind of often) say.

growing up is hard to do but it has to be worth it in the end. at least that's what i am telling myself!

never let the odds keep you from doing what you know in your heart you were meant to do.
-h. jackson brown, jr.