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Category: Capital

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Advice Capital Leadership Management Women In Business

CHAINED CPI AS AN ALTERNATIVE FORMULA TO THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, AND THE COST THAT COMES WITH IT

The government wants to reduce expenses by using a different CPI version of the (Consumer Price Index). Their new attempt, known as chained CPI (Consumer Price Index) (aka C-CPI-U), this alternative formula reflects how consumers change their purchasing habits when prices rise or fall for a broad range of services, including food, housing, clothing, and medical expenses. 

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that government spending on Social Security, Medicare, and other benefits would decline by about $300 billion over ten years if this less-generous index were in place.

The idea of switching to a chained CPI has garnered bipartisan support to rein in entitlement spending. But at what cost? There will be plenty.

Many elements of the federal tax code — including tax brackets, personal exemptions, standard deductions, limits on contributions to 401(k) plans and similar accounts, and critical parameters of the earned income and child tax credits — are also adjusted annually for the CPI. According to the CBO, switching to the chained CPI would raise an additional $150 billions of tax revenue through 2026.

The chained CPI grows on average by about 0.3 percentage points per year more slowly than the official CPI (which is weak at best gauge to the actual cost of living). The Social Security actuaries, in their projections, assume the gap between the two CPIs will continue to average 0.3 percentage points per year in the future. 

The Chained CPI will chain you to a lifetime of higher taxes. According to Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation, if individual income taxes had been indexed to the chained CPI starting July 2013, by 2022, 69 percent of the gains in revenue would come from taxpayers with incomes below $100,000, while those in the highest income brackets would barely be affected. In other words, raise the taxes on the middle class while leaving the rich alone.

Higher taxes are coming; start planning now!

For more Healthy Money Tips Listen to our PodCast “Money 911”

Sign up for a Financial Fitness Strategy Session:  Meet with Kris Miller – Financial Fitness Strategy Sessions

You can reach me at Kris@HealthyMoneyHappyLIfe.com, (951) 926-4158

Categories
Body Language Branding Capital Networking Sales

EMPOWER YOUR WORKFORCE: PROMOTE INFORMED FINANCIAL DECISIONS, SAVING HABITS, AND WORKPLACE EDUCATION

Many people may lack the basic math skills and financial know-how to make decisions. One of my favorite books, which I reread from time to time, is the 1988 book Innumeracy by John Paulos; he coined the book’s title from people being slow in math as compared to illiterate. Math and money are very different, and learning the differences is crucial to building wealth securely.

Even though many adults across generations were functioning with medium levels of financial literacy, too many workers today possess low levels of Personal Financial Proficiency (PFP) and have difficulty applying financial decision-making skills to real-life situations.   

Here are a few general questions about everyday financial situations that stumped so many:

  • Determining wages and take-home pay, 
  • Questions about investment types, risk, and return, 
  • Understanding specific risk economic outcomes risk
  • Understanding that 401(k) are not pensions

This is where Americans exhibit the lowest scores, with less than one-third answering correctly.

Lack of financial understanding affects all ages and socioeconomic levels. The result is those who fall into the limited PFP category, even though financially literate, may not manage their financial resources effectively and may feel intimidated by retirement, budgeting, tax planning, and Social Security topics.

One way to help everyone become more confident about their personal finances is by building a solid foundation with Financial Proficiency. 

Financial literacy dark secret

People with higher levels of financial literacy “fluency bias.” are more likely to build weak foundations to support their financial houses. Sadly, in this case, a little knowledge is dangerous and prevents many from developing a strategy that works and won’t leave you in a pickle as you get to retirement age.

For more Healthy Money Tips Listen to our PodCast “Money 911”

Sign up for a Financial Fitness Strategy Session:  Meet with Kris Miller – Financial Fitness Strategy Sessions

You can reach me at Kris@HealthyMoneyHappyLIfe.com, (951) 926-4158

 

Categories
Personal Development Real Estate

Busting the “bad kid” myth once and for all

What’s wrong with these statements?

Spare the rod and spoil the elderly.

Millenials should be seen and not heard.

New Zealanders have got to learn.

If you’re cringing right now, it’s because you know that these statements are unfairly biased and even prejudiced. So why are we okay with using these same phrases to describe our children?

In my TEDx talk, “The Rebellion is Here—We Created it, We Can Solve It,” I deconstruct the generational misconception that children, because of their youth and impressionability, should not be trusted. Subscribing to the belief that kids’ opinions should not be taken seriously leads to disconnection and a lack of trust between parent and child.

When we punish a kid for talking back, what we’re really saying is that their inner voice or feelings are irrelevant. And punishing surface behavior without addressing unmet needs often leads to what Gordon referred to as the Three R’s: Retaliation, Rebellion, and Resentment.

Do you want to build an environment where your child feels like they can tell you the truth 100% of the time? Do you want to teach them that they should never stand down in the face of prejudice, injustice—or even being told by an adult to do something they’re uncomfortable with?

3 Strategies to Let Go of Past Mistakes and Move Forward

Watch my TEDx talk for tips on how to communicate effectively and compassionately with your children, especially when they seem to be acting up. Let them know that they’re not “bad kids” for speaking up.

Love and Blessings,

Katherine

P.S. Ready to move on from outdated ideas about how children “should” behave? Join our private Facebook group to find a community of parents just like you!

Categories
Entrepreneurship Growth Wealth

Why Incorporate Or Form An LLC?

Over the last 25 years people have asked me what the benefits are of setting up a Corporation or an LLC. I always say, there are a lot of reasons to form one but let me go over the five primary reasons.

  1. Liability Protection: This means that you and your personal assets are separated from any liability that can affect your Company. Yes, insurance is always a first line of defense, however if someone claims negligence or punitive damages, insurance will always find a way to not get involved or remove themselves from the equation, so they do not have to pay. This means that the liability falls through to the business. If you do not have a properly structured Corporation or LLC, this means that you the Proprietor would assume the liability. Should this be a lawsuit situation, that means your personal assets and business assets would all be considered one and could be seized in the event a Judgment is achieved by said Creditor.
  2. Tax Savings: I hear this all the time, “My CPA said not to incorporate or form an LLC until I am making over $50k.” If you are looking to build a successful business, you need to incorporate or form an LLC now. Operating your business or investments as a Sole Proprietor gives you very limited deductions, roughly about 15-30 different deductions on your Schedule C. Whereas, if you use a Corporation or LLC, the IRS Corporate Tax Code is comprised of 81,000 pages, which equates to 233-305 different deductions you can take advantage of that will not only allow you more use of your money upfront, but also reduce your tax payment to whom I like to call our silent partner, “Uncle Sam.” As a Sole Proprietor you are also subject to Self-Employment Taxes if you are in an active business which is equivalent to 15.3% of your hard-earned money. So just know that you will not only pay Federal Income Tax, but State Income Tax and the Self-Employment Tax. This all could add up to 40%-45% of your revenue. When the government talks about taxing the rich, they are talking about W2 wage earners and Sole Proprietors. As the old saying goes, “The more money you make personally, the more money they, (the IRS & State) take.” As a Corporation or LLC, you can play the “game” by the rules that the IRS wants no one to know about.
  3. Protection against Creditors: What does this mean? Let us say you were operating as a Sole Proprietor and had a liability issue that resulted in a judgment or you went through a marital dissolution and your “Creditors” kept coming after every asset you acquire. If you establish a Corporation or LLC, you can limit the amount of how much the Creditors could take. They can only garnish what you draw personally but cannot attack the Corporation or LLC since it was not involved in the previous liability issue. This would be like someone going after your employer if you personally had a liability issue.
  4. Can build its own Credit Score: Corporations and LLCs have the ability to build their own separate credit from you. This will allow you to double if not triple your borrowing ability depending on whether you have one Company or three. This allows you to keep your personal FICO score up & Debt To Income Ratio down since you are not the only credit profile being used. Building credit immediately in your business is essential to not only maintain cashflow but to also build up the credit history of the Company to show that it can manage and sustain debt without you the Principle personally guaranteeing everything.
  5. Estate Planning: If you are looking to build your business to either sell or pass it on to the next generation, you need to form a Corporation or LLC. Corporations and LLCs have perpetual existence which means they do not die; they simply get a new President or Member. When you have a properly structured Corporation or LLC, you will receive a Record Book which contains Ownership Certificates. Once these are issued to your Family Trust, the Company becomes part of your estate plan which allows your estate including the Company to by-pass probate, should something happen to the owners. This is how you create true Generational Wealth.

 

If these five primary reasons do not explain to you why you should setup a Corporation or LLC right now, I encourage you to contact my office at 775-384-8124 or send an email to contact@controllersltd.com to schedule a time to speak with my Senior Strategists. We look forward to speaking with you and assisting you in building a more profitable & protected future!

Much Success,

Scott L. Arden, CEO
Controllers, Ltd.

Categories
Capital Case Studies Economics Investing

WATCH: Blackrock CEO’s Huge Crypto News for 2023!

BlackRock is the largest asset management company in the world with $10 Trillion in assets under management.

Recently BlackRock’s CEO, Larry Fink, explains (in detail) how there’s a complete reset in the global economy.

He discusses the effects of high inflation due to the European war, along with the inflation of the US dollar, but also predicts inflation (particularly US inflation) will decline rapidly.

In a recent interview, Fink rolls out Blackrock’s long term investment strategy that includes a surprisingly heavy bull position on crypto despite the current collapse of the decentralized token market due to the downfall of FTX.

Check out the full interview below…

WATCH:

Categories
Advice Real Estate

The Job You Have (or Had) Is NOT the Only One You Can Do: Use Kaleidoscope Thinking to Create Your New Future

This is the time of year when we slow down enough to contemplate how our year went and what’s ahead for us. It’s also a time of year for layoffs, as companies do the same. That means that a lot of people will be looking for new job opportunities in 2023, either by their own choosing or because their role has ended.

If you are in the latter category, do allow yourself some time to grieve. Whether you loved that lost job or merely tolerated it, being without it is a major change in status, routine, income predictability, and access to colleagues.

When you’re ready to launch your search, here are some things to keep in mind:

  • You still have your skills and your experiences
  • Your skills and experiences will allow you to do jobs similar to the one you had (or are contemplating leaving)
  • Your skills and experiences can be applied in new ways to a totally different role
  • You are worthy

When I work with someone who is seeking a new position, I share my analogy of the kaleidoscope. Kaleidoscopes create their captivating images using the same pieces (think skills and experiences), combined in different ways each time you change the position of the wheel. This is an especially helpful analogy for people who have determined that they don’t want to keep doing the same kind of work until their retirement and for people whose industry is retrenching.

 

My own kaleidoscope story

For 20 years I worked with a Fortune 500 company as a marketing communications consultant across two of their divisions, writing the kinds of written collateral  that would launch new medical devices around the world. Through my own choosing and to avoid any conflict of interest, they were my sole client. My primary skills were active listening to my clients explain about the new device, discerning what each of their audiences (physicians, patients and third-party payers) would want to know, and writing messaging that would resonate with each. Of course, I had deep content knowledge and a strong understanding of branding as well.

Then, in 2011, my phone no longer rang. My in-basket was empty. I learned that in response to an economic downturn the company had outsourced whole functions under retainer arrangements, including marketing communications.

I was out of business.

Because I knew practically no one outside the company and no one knew of my skills, I turned to LinkedIn to grow a network and to attract new clients or a new position. I knew that my writing skills would allow me to write about my skills effectively but I felt I needed to know more about how the platform worked. So I began to study LinkedIn intensely, attending webinars, reading articles, and following thought leaders. Along the way I reached out to my former clients who had also lost their jobs and helped them with their profiles. They were so impressed with my new content knowledge that they sent me their friends who needed help with their online branding, too.

 

Now I am honored to shine branding brilliance on people instead of products. I listen actively to my clients – where they’ve been and where they’re going. I discern how to most effectively communicate to their intended audience. And then I write authentic and powerful marketing story for them, using my new deep content knowledge of how the LinkedIn platform works.

Look again at the paragraphs above and note that the words in boldface are common between the two paragraphs.  You see, the key skills from my prior job are now being used in my new career. The new image created by shifting the shapes in my own kaleidoscope turned out to be even more satisfying to me than the last.

My own journey is one of the reasons I am very effective and successful at working with others whose job has ended or who no longer find their job to be satisfying. In fact, this year The American Reporter named me one of the six “top personal branding experts to watch.”

 

 

Use Kaleidoscope Thinking for Yourself

To use kaleidoscope thinking, concentrate on identifying your skills. Start by examining and modifying your Skills inventory on your LinkedIn profile. We all have skills that we don’t enjoy using as well as skills we are passionate about using. When you identify a skill that you don’t enjoy using, just delete it from your list. Then look over your list again. The chances are that although what is left on your list are skills you enjoy using, they don’t fully capture all the value you can bring to a workplace. It’s time to add additional skills you enjoy using that are not currently represented on your Skills inventory. LinkedIn allows you to list 50 skills, and using all 50 slots is the best practice. You might find it helpful to do this exercise with a trusted advisor familiar with LinkedIn’s skills inventory.

When you’ve completed subtracting and adding items on your Skills inventory, identify your three most important skills and pin them in the top three positions of your inventory.

 

Expand Your Horizon

Now that you’re warmed up, think of places that need those skills. If doing a similar position for a competitor is not going to meet your needs, it is time to think expansively. Make yourself a list. Do any of these possibilities make you smile? If so, you’re ready to re-engineer your LinkedIn profile and other job search collateral to target those right-for-you opportunities.

Job transitions are difficult. Please remember that the world of work still needs your skills and you are worthy. And, if you could use some help along the way, I’m here.

 

About Carol Kaemmerer

Named one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

  • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
  • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
  • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2ndEdition
  • My self-paced, online course
  • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

 

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award. It was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network, and it is an International Book Awards winner. For your author-inscribed and signed book or for quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

 

 

Categories
Leadership Real Estate

Does Your LinkedIn Profile Inspire People to Do Business with You?

“All things being equal,

people will do business with,

and refer business to,

those people they know, like and trust.”

Bob Burg, author, Endless Referrals

 

You’ve heard this quotation many times, right? But do you take it seriously?

If a stranger reads your LinkedIn profile, will they begin to know, like, and trust you based on what is there? If not, why aren’t you taking advantage of this marvelous personal marketing tool for yourself? If your response is “because I’m not in sales,” think again. Even someone with no external customer interaction has customers within the company. Probably you, like most people, are seeking some sort of opportunity (e.g., an opportunity for advancement inside your company, opportunities for positions outside the company, a board appointment).

This month’s article shares ways you can sow the seeds of know, like, and trust in your LinkedIn profile so that people will be more likely to do business with, and refer business to YOU.

Your About Section

The 2,600-character (~5 paragraphs) About section showcases YOU. It is the perfect place for you to provide information that can build KNOW, LIKE, and TRUST. Approach this section with authenticity and a willingness to be transparent in telling your story. Give people a chance to know the real you – because everyone is more interesting (and likable) when they’re not hiding behind their job or their company’s services.

For this section to work well for you, plan what you want to say. For example, select three things you want to be known for and build your narrative around those. Or tell us about your purpose, passion, business principles, and how you lead.

Are there some questions that always come up from people after they’ve looked at your profile or resume? For example, if you have several years unaccounted for in your work history, rather than have people come to their own conclusions about the time period (e.g., you had a nervous breakdown, or you had an addiction problem, or whatever they can confabulate to account for that period), take control of your own narrative. Briefly explain the reason for the gap in your own way.

Before you write, work out your outline and what you intend each paragraph to accomplish for you. Use your outline to write your first draft. Read your narrative aloud and correct the verbiage where you stumble. Delete words and sentences that are expendable. Read aloud again; edit again. Getting this section to shine is important; it is worth the time it takes to accomplish that.

Profile sections that advance KNOW

In addition to the About section, you can help people feel that they KNOW you by making sure your profile is complete. By complete, I mean:

  • List your present and previous positions in your Experience section and describe your accomplishments in each position.
  • List your post-secondary education and degrees earned. (It is not necessary to include years of attendance or date of degree.) It is a nice touch to share some activities you participated in.
  • Add any optional sections that can help give people a rounded picture of who you are, including: Volunteer positions, Patents, Publications, Certifications, Awards and Honors, etc.

Profile sections that advance LIKE

Your About section will do the heavy lifting here, but visuals can also contribute to LIKE. Examples include:

  • A photo or graphic image behind your headshot – this is called the LinkedIn banner image.
  • A headshot that is a professional-quality image in which your eyes and mouth are smiling.
  • The optional Featured section that appears before your Activity section is a place where you can share photos, posts, and videos that tell your story visually.
  • You can also add photos and videos to your various positions.
  • Your Activity section that appears before your About section is populated by LinkedIn with your recent posts. This shows everyone how active you are on the LinkedIn platform and the kinds of things you add to the homepage feed. This section can either be an asset or a negative, depending on your level of engagement.

Profile sections that advance TRUST

Again, if you’ve written your About section well, it will go a long way toward establishing TRUST, but here are other sections that also provide “social proof:”

  • Recommendations have a huge positive impact – and a lack of recommendations can have the opposite impact.
  • Endorsements in your Skills section.
  • Education, Certifications, Patents, Publications, Honors and Awards.

A well-branded LinkedIn profile can frame your business conversations with KNOW, LIKE, and TRUST, helping your business transactions go more smoothly.

 

About Carol Kaemmerer: Named one of six top branding experts in 2022 by The American Reporter, I’ve helped countless C-level clients over the past ten years to use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place.

 

Contact me through my website https://carolkaemmerer.com for:

            • Executive one-on-one assistance with your online brand
            • Professional speaking engagements on personal brand and LinkedIn
            • An autographed copy of my book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2ndEdition
            • My self-paced, online course
            • To receive my articles in your email mailbox monthly

 

My award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2nd Edition received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, was named one of the “Top 100+ Best Business Books” by The C-Suite Network, and is an International Book Awards winner. For your author-inscribed and signed book or for quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

Categories
Mergers & Acquisition Personal Development

How Doritos Were Invented From a Disneyland Trash Can

Would you be surprised to know that the invention of Doritos was influenced by a trashcan at Disneyland?
In the early days of Disneyland, a restaurant named Casa de Fritos invented Doritos by repurposing stale tortillas they bought from a local vendor. The chips proved to be so popular they were eventually rolled out nationally by Frito-Lay in 1966.
Today the brands sells $1.48 billion of the chips every year.
Here’s how it all started…

How Doritos We’re Invented in a Trash Can

Casa de Fritos” was, unsurprisingly, all about the Fritos (corn chips). Customers got free chips, and they were incorporated into all of the dishes at the Disneyland restaurant.
All ingredients served at Casa de Fritos, such as the tortillas, chips, meat, beans, and fresh produce, were supplied by a company called Alex Foods, located just a few blocks from Disneyland.
One day, one of the salesmen from Alex Foods, making a delivery to Casa de Fritos, noticed stale tortillas in the garbage and gave the cook a little tip:
“fry them and sell them as chips instead of just throwing them away.”
So the cooks gave it a try and while they were at it, through in some seasoning. The result was an enormous success. Their customers couldn’t get enough of them.
Here’s how the company found an innovative way to sell them…

Who the Hell Was the Frito Kid?

Being a theme park restaurant, Casa de Frito, had a theme of their own. The company started selling chips from a “Frito Kid” vending machine. During the 1950s and 1960s, Disneyland guests could insert a nickel into the coin box and the Fritos official mascot, The Frito Kid, would come to life, lick his lips, and call for Klondike the Miner to send a bag of Fritos down the chute.
The stereophonic audio track changed with each purchase, so each customer would hear a different interaction between the Kid and Klondike.


Photo: Spacemountainmike, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Casa de Fritos was located next to the Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland attraction (which was replaced in 1979 by the runaway mine train rollercoaster Big Thunder Mountain Railroad).
They were a massively successful…
A year later, the new VP of Frito-Lay, Archibald Clark West, dropped by the restaurant without warning and saw hundreds of customers stuffing their faces with the seasoned chips.
So he had an idea to turn the chips into a brand.
West quickly made a deal with Alex Foods to produce them as a separately branded snack. He later branded them as Doritos” (the name is Spanish for “little pieces of gold”).
When Doritos started to get big, production of the chips was moved to a bigger factory in Tulsa. West test-marketed the chips in southern California. They sold out faster than Alex Foods could produce them.
The whole world fell in love with Doritos. West even loved Doritos to his grave (literally). At his funeral, his daughter threw Doritos into the grave after him (as per his request).
Today Doritos is the top ranked tortilla/tostada chip brand in the world.100 million bags of various types of Doritos are consumed daily.

WATCH:

PS>>>Here’s a throwback to the bizarre time when Doritos launch a foot long chip…

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Branding Capital Entrepreneurship Growth Marketing Personal Development Strategy

Investigating the Highly Profitable Business of Public Speaking

According to Ziprecruiter, as of Aug 5, 2022, the average annual pay for a “Motivational Speaker” in the United States is $68,271 a year. That works out to be approximately $32.82 an hour. Or the equivalent of $1,313/week or $5,689/month.

Want to be a public speaker? Here’s what to expect…

 

How Much Money Can You Really Make Speaking?

While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $148,000 and as low as $21,500, the majority of Motivational Speaker salaries currently range between $33,500 (25th percentile) to $118,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $145,500 annually across the United States.

The average pay range for a Motivational Speaker varies greatly (by as much as $84,500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.

Newbie speakers will talk for free or for travel cost reimbursements. Meanwhile, celebrities and well known industry experts charge up to an profitable six figures per engagement.

But some speakers are making far from the average. Here’s why…

 

The Net Worth of These Motivational Speakers is Insane!

Here’s a look at how much the top motivational speakers are worth…

1. Brian Tracy – $15 million

 

2. Suze Orman – $75 million

 

3. Robert Kiyosaki – $100 million

4. Dave Ramsey – $200 million

 

5. Daymond John – $350 million

 

6. Tony Robbins – $600 million

 

7. Magic Johnson – $620 million

 

Some of the dollar amounts they charge per speech will surprise you. For example

Simon Sinek now charges $100k per speech. Gary Vee does too…

Sam Par breaks down the world of public speaking and the surprisingly lucrative amount of loot that can be made via the business model in HubSpot’s episode of The Hustle. Check it out.

 

WATCH:

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Categories
Economics Entrepreneurship Growth Investing Negotiating Skills Wealth

The Top 10 Times Mark Cuban Called Out the Sleaziest Frauds on Shark Tank

Hearing the phrase “you’re such a con-artist!” coming from the lips of a potential investor during a live pitch is defiantly not a good look (especially when it happens on live TV broadcasting to millions of viewers).

It happened 10 times when Mark Cuban publicly called out scams when he smelled fish oil on ABC’s Shark Tank.

 

 

Sharktank is the place where people’s dreams can become a reality or a total nightmare…

The television program features some of the world’s most successful investors which include: Mark Cuban, Keavin O’leary, Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, and Lori Greiner.

Since the show debuted in 2009, there have been some pretty memorable pitches. Here’s a video that shows some of the most savage shark tank moments on that were called out at total scams.

Mark Cuban goes head to head with these entrepreneurs, even questioning their ethics. Here’s the 10 times Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban calls out the sleaziest frauds on Shark Tank.

 

So awkward…

 

WATCH:

 

 

 

 

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com