Who Can Afford Retirement These Days?

Who can afford retirement these days?  What is retirement actually? Is it the opportunity to quit working before your heart does? Is it complete happiness and spending all of your kids inheritance money before you die? The money is not better but the hours are.  Retirement is wonderful. It’s your chance to finally do nothing and not get caught at it.  There is a life after retirement and it is better! However, with todays senate and constant changes, many of Americans may not get to enjoy the benefits of retirement but in these days who wouldn’t want to enjoy the benefits of being gainfully unemployed.

Any day now the Senate will decide whether to raise the full retirement age to 69.  Pros argue that raising the retirement age is necessary to save Social Security. Opposed argue that raising the retirement age will disproportionately hurt low-income and minority workers.  Take women, for example.  Given the Senate’s failure to pass the Equal Paycheck Act, it’s unlikely that the stubborn wage gap will decline, leaving women earning only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men.  Assuming that the typical person works about 40 years until reaching the current retirement age of 65, women will need to 52 years to earn what the typical man earns in 40 years. In short, women will need to work until age 77, far above the proposed retirement age of 69, just to earn the same amount as a man who reaches age 65.

Next, there are people of color. Men and women of color who earn less, making it more difficult for them to save for retirement and lowering their average retirement benefits. But even more problematic, people of color have far less wealth to fund their retirement. According to Retired Charted, single white men under age 65 have a median wealth of $43,800, single black men have $7,900 and Hispanic men $9,730. Single black and Hispanic women fare much worse, with a median wealth of $100 and $120, respectively. Given these statistics, many people of color lack retirement security.

In a nutshell,  for women, people of color, the unemployed, those facing foreclosure, and those whose retirement saving has been limited by economic woes, extending the retirement age to 69 is a dumb point.  They’ve already raised my retirement rate to age 67.  Most middle to low-income women can’t retire. During the course of their working careers, most women will live from pay check to pay check, and don’t have the extra money to save for their retirement.  Most will be lucky if they can afford to retire in their 70s.

Stacey Dash Back On Top With Dysfunctional Friends

After giving up her spot for Season 2 of The VHI Smash Citcom “Single Ladies” as Val, Stacey lands a “Leading Lady” role in Dysfunctional Friends. Apparently everything about Single Ladies wasn’t what it seemed but when one door closes another opens. 

The movie’s cast includes several names of young Black Hollywood actors and actresses you’ll immediately be familiar with, like Meagan Good, Tatyana Ali, Essence Atkins, Reagan Gomez, Stacy Keibler, Keith Robinson, Jason Weaver, Wesley Jonathan, Vanessa Simmons, and a few others. NFL pro Terrell Owens also co-stars by the way – in what will be his big screen debut. GO T.O!  No NFL Team wanted to pick him up this year so I say “Make It Do What It Do”.

It’s funny how money and lost can bring family and friends together and at the same time tear them apart. Which is basically the films synopsis. A Comedy/ Drama which is basically a reminiscent of The Big Chill for all the movie fans out there. Nine friends are reunited after their larger then life friend unexpectedly dies. The friends who haven’t seen each other in years are all forced to stay at their deceased friends estate for the weekend and must reconnect with each other working through all of their issues in order to each collect their inheritance. I am looking forward to seeing the film and Stacey’s comeback as well as T.O”s debut.  Congrats!

Taking Advantage Of Auto Insurance: Horror Stories

By now you should probably know about the many benefits of having auto insurance. By doing so you are protecting your health and financial well-being. What we don’t often hear about are the many horrible situations people have to experience for various reasons; sometimes their fault, and sometimes the fault of the insurance companies. However, we are required by law to carry car insurance at all time while driving.  All we can do is ensure that we don’t get ourselves into the same situation, and that we learn from other people’s mistakes. All it takes is one click here for quotes and more
http://www.automobileinsurance.me/go/click.php?tid=765724

So without further ado, I present to you auto insurance horror stories:

Kathy, 29, from Brooklyn, New York had been sideswiped on her way back from work one evening. Uufortunately, up until this day she is still not completely sure what happened. All she can remember is getting hit and the next thing she was up against a light post on the side of the road. It turns out, the guy that hit her didn’t have any auto insurance. She had wrenched her neck pretty bad and was in a lot of pain, so she went over to the hospital to get it checked out. She called her insurance company the next morning to report her claim and was hoping to get reimbursed for the medical bill. Apparently, since the other guy didn’t have insurance and her plan didn’t have under-insured motorist bodily injury coverage, she was out of luck and ended up having to pay an $800 medical bill out of pocket.

What We Can Learn From Kathy’s Story:
*Always make sure you have appropriate forms of coverage, in this case, under-insured motorist bodily injury coverage (UNDUM).

Don’t cut out particular forms of coverage just to save a few bucks. If we knew when accidents were coming we wouldn’t need insurance at all, unfortunately this is far from reality.

The next horror story:

Jeffery, 33 from Yonkers, New York  had just switched his auto insurance to a new company with better coverage, since he had just got a promotion and wanted to make sure he had all forms of coverage. Everything went smoothl and he was already feeling safer with his finances. 6 months passed and he got 2 bills in the mail; one from his new insurance company and one for his old company. It seems so obvious now but at the time he had no idea you actually had to cancel your previous policy. Long story short, he ended up paying an additional $500 to his old insurer in addition to the cost of his new policy.

What We Can Learn From Jeffery’s Story

* You always have to cancel your old policy, once you’ve switched companies. Otherwise you may be paying for coverage you won’t even be using.

*** Important Note ***

Don’t be left without proper information! If your looking to purchase a vehicle, already have coverage, or just want to view better rates. All it takes is one click here: http://www.automobileinsurance.me/go/click.php?tid=765724

DRIVE SAFELY!

Monday Motivation: A New Year, A New Calendar

 There is something renewing and energizing about opening a brand new calendar and opening up our minds with the knowledge that we can start anew. I have lived long enough to know that each day we have the opportunity to recreate our lives and ourselves. We have the ability to say, That was yesterday and this is today. What is done is done we cannot undo, but we can change what we do today and tomorrow.

Just recently I was driving down the street and I looked in my rearview mirror. The city trains, the people and the cars in my mirror were those that I had passed or were behind me. I had a brief encounter with a powerful thought.  How many times have I turned to view where I had been and not where I am going? I would find myself returning to my past and lazing in it as I enjoyed the memories of the pleasant times. I would also find myself re-visiting my mistakes in the land of “should and should not have”, which was wasting precious “now” time.

Here are some thoughts for the New Year and new calendar…

1. Each day is a fresh, blank page in our calendar of life.
2. Upon those pages, I write my destiny and I create my happiness and satisfaction.
3. I must take care not to enter the same old mistakes, or to engage in old and negative thought patterns.
4. I will use each day that I am given, with the knowledge that I am not guaranteed but I am gifted a certain number of days.
5. I will be cautious what I write, with my thoughts, upon my blank pages, knowing that my thoughts are powerful creators and they may bring me what I don’t want.
6. I will use my old calendars only as a guide to what worked and what did not work, and not as a prediction of what to expect for this year.
7. I will look at each blank page as a new and fresh day-an opportunity to start over, knowing that it is never too late, I am never too old, and I have all that I need to create a happy and fulfilling day, week, year, and life.

Affirmation For The Week: ” I begin my life anew, once again.”

Have a renewal week!

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Ty’s Monday Messages.  All rights reserved.

Wife Struggles To Make Decisions

Guest Post: Carlos Rodgers

I love my wife, but sometimes I wonder about her decision making skills.  She was always one of the smartest people in school, but when it comes to making simple life decisions, she struggles.  I try to help her, but I think she is starting to realize she needs to figure it out on her own.  Last week I asked her to research and pick an alarm system.  I even told her to go to HOMESECURITY101.com for help.  She is still working on making the decision.  Honestly, it is not that difficult.  I was able to find one in five minutes and it has taken her over a week.  I know she is trying very hard and it is probably the need to succeed that is bringing her down.  She wants so bad not to make a mistake and to always choose the best, but sometimes there is no way of knowing.  No one grades your life decisions and sometimes there is no way of knowing which the best is.  She will hopefully learn, but right now I just have to continue to be patient with her.

Get Into The Water With Confidence

Water is a very common but powerful dream symbol. Its meaning varies with the
details and the mood of the dream. Water is a deeply spiritual symbol
representing the “water of life” or the “flow of life.” Large bodies of water
usually represent our unconscious minds or/and soul experiences
Diving,  Diving in Water, Clear Water, Muddy Water: To dream of diving in clear water, denotes a favorable termination of some embarrassment. If the water is muddy, you will suffer anxiety at the turn your affairs seem to be taking.

Did you know over 75% of the planet is covered in water; from lakes to rivers, oceans to beaches, and even swimming pools. Everyone dreams of a life in the water one time or another.  Water lovers  from all around the world gather in a water trending community with the perfect branding, and apparel. Body Glove!  The Body Glove lifestyle is what water lovers desire to achieve and they desire to be there for your every water experience. Check out some of their latest apparel for girls, women’s swim wear, and information on watersports and heritage . Try checking out a wetsuit! 

The Body Glove online click shopping experience is unique!  Also, by selecting a retailer, you will be sharing some of the revenue of your online sale with your local dealer.  Body Glove  has so many products to choose from and a full water apparel line that can have you covered in the water throughout the year.  If you are into watersports or have thought about it. Check out their celebration of women in water and long time celebration of women surfers. That’s why Body Glove offers a variety of wetsuits, surf bikinis, and other high-performance products designed specifically for women.   Plan on taking a trip with water sports on the fun agenda? or even better leaving the country to explore white sandy beaches?  Don’t worry about your apparell, Body Glove has got you covered. view more wetsuits and get into the water with confidence this vacation and summer.

Love Being A Lady PowerUp Tuesday Tele-Conferences

Love Being A Lady host teleconferences or webinars on topics covered in the EmPowerUp curriculum. Each teleconference includes a presentation, followed by a question and answer session. These seminars occur on the 2nd and 4th  business Tuesday of every month and are recorded for your convenience.

 

 

Personal Responsibility
Intentions vs Resolutions

-Invest in your success

-Estate Planning For Women

-Being A Business Owner

-Investing In Your Children

-Understanding Taxes & Credit

 

Dial In Number: 661-673-8600

Participant Code: 116402

 

In The New York/NYC Tristate Area? Join Love Being A Lady In Business  for monthly meetup to include: Business Networking Brunch,  Social Networking Ladies Night, and our newly featured Love Being A Lady Book Club.  Become A Member for access to our calendar and invites to all events.  Register and set your profile at: http://www.meetup.com/lovebeingaladyinbusiness/ 

 

Monday Motivation: Let Go! It’s A New Year

What do you do when you make a mistake> Are you like many people who beat themselves up when they commit an error or make an unwise decision? Does your inner critic chastise you, pointing out wrongs that you may have committed? It’s a New Year, Let Go!

The key to good mental health and well-being is to be able to learn from our mistakes and then let go.  As humans, we will make mistakes for as long as we remain conscious and alive.  Even airplanes are off course a significant amount of time and must be corrected by the pilot.  The key to our well-being is to refrain from focusing on what we did or did not do but focus on what we should learn from the mistake and what can be done to correct it.  When you make a mistake, take responsibility for being human and seek corrective action.  Focus on what is to be learned from the situation.  If it is a mater of carelessness, decide to change future practices and be more attentive to what you are doing.  When the critical inner mind starts that old tape of “how dumb that was, what an idiot you are” or other such counter-productive self talk in your mind (or out loud, if you can do so) yell “STOP IT” to turn off that tape.  If you see yourself in that negative light, mimic your television viewing habits and change the channel to a more positive one.

If you have or could have harmed someone with your mistake, own up to it, make amends by apologizing, learn the lesson, commit to not repeating it, and then let go.  If you feel the need to continue to play that old tape, ask yourself what need is getting met by engaging in this negative self talk and then ask yourself why you have a need to “beat yourself up”.  Replace that need with the desire to be kind to yourself. Grasp an understanding that the emotional energy spent on being unkind to yourself could be better spent finding a solution to any problem that was created by our mistake.

According to National Geographic Studies, often monkeys are captured by the “yam in a jar technique.” People who wish to capture them do so with the knowledge that once the monkey sticks its hand in the jar to retrieve the yam, it will not let go.  The neck of the jar is so narrow that the monkey’s empty hand can enter it but its full hand cannot exit the jar.  The monkey is effectively trapped and must suffer the consequences when it stubbornly refuses to let go.

As humans, we have intellect to recognize that we continue to trap ourselves when we refuse to let go of negativity.  We have control over the choices we make.  Choose to let go!

Affirmation for the week:  “I will learn from my  mistakes and then let go”

Have a living, learning, and letting go week & Happy New Year!

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Ty’s Monday Messages. All Rights Reserved.

SCRUBS

Like many professionals in the health field, wearing scrubs usually identifies their position within the medical industry. Different colors represent different jobs.  For example, Blue represents a CNA (certified nursing assistant) White represents LPN (Licensed practical nurse) and RN (registered nurse) also wears white (depending on the facility). In some health care facilities, the receptionist have to wear scrubs, so it is beneficial to be comfortable and purchase at a great value.  While doing some research at a college for healthcare students enrolled in a 14 month Medical Assisting program, I came across BlueSky Scrubs Co.  for their Uniforms http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/

The students love the products they purchased.  Shipping was incredibly fast. BlueSky saved our organization time and money with great value and incentives.  The MA department received free hats with every purchase and the fabric was great. We now have a contract and will never buy scrubs anywhere else. This company is exceptional, but more importantly their customer service is excellent!  Scrubs are just the beginning. If you are in the medical field, you should view their featured products and apparel http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/categories/Scrubs/Scrubs-for-Women/

In conclusion, the department has had absolutely no trouble with returns/exchanges. We ordered ~35 items and only needed to exchange 2, which speaks to their  quality and marketing of representative efforts. They are one of the NICEST companies to work with in any capacity whether it be business or personal.  Do you enjoy being in the Medical field? Looking to start a medical career? One thing I can tell you is that medical scrubs will be your everyday uniform so you might as well get them and be comfortable. Just like shopping for work clothes, you want the best prices and great fabrics.

The ABC’s Of STD Prevention

According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, sexually transmitted infections and diseases are among the most common infections in the U.S. today. STDs affect more than 19 million American men and women each year.  Today we are dealing with a rapid spread of HIV/AIDS.  Millions of women have been indirectly affected by the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Women’s childbearing role means that they have to contend with issues such as mother-to-child transmission of HIV.  The responsibility of caring for AIDS patients and orphans is also an issue that has a greater effect on women.

“This epidemic unfortunately remains an epidemic of women.”Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS

Education is key, whether you are 15 or 55.  Follow the ABCs of STD prevention:

• Abstinence
• Be Faithful to a partner who is also faithful to you
• Condoms: Use them correctly

However, there are at least 5 other major STD’s outside of HIV/AIDS that are also life threatening and should be addressed.

1. Chlamydia
2. Genital Herpes
3. Gonorrhea
4. HPV and Genital Warts
5. Syphilis

 Remember the ABC’s and get tested… know your status TODAY!