Chapter 18. (Almost) Ten Tips on How Not to Become a Millionaire

In This Chapter

  • Ignore the fact that one can build surprising wealth by investing in ownership investments and earning just average returns

  • Ignore that one can get much, and maybe most, of the money from tax savings and employer matching

  • Don't tap your computer's and the Quicken program's power to develop powerful, wealth-building insights

  • Give up, because it's too late to start anyway

  • Get entangled in at least one get-rich-quick scheme

  • Fake it with false affluence

  • Give in to the first big temptation of wealth building

  • Give in to the second big temptation of wealth building

You read the chapter title right. But let me explain a couple of things. First, about ten years ago, I wrote a book about how to save a million dollars for one's retirement. That sounds a little money-grubbing, I'll agree, but my argument then (and now) is that most people need to accumulate a nice-sized nest egg for retirement because most of us can't or shouldn't really count on things like pensions and Social Security for all our retirement needs.

If Congress does nothing — absolutely nothing — to save Social Security in the United States, the best studies show that, about 30–40 years from now, the government will need to reduce benefits to around 70 percent of the amount it pays today. For example, someone who may receive $1,000 per month today may instead receive $700 in the future. Likewise, someone who receives $400 today may instead receive $280 in ...

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