Will More Money Actually Make You Happier in Retirement?

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Welcome to Shooting It Straight with

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Stan. I'm your host, Stan the Annuity

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Man, America's annuity agent, licensed

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in all 50 states. Today's topic is a

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good one and it's going to make you

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think.

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Will more money change your life? I want

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you to think about that for a second.

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Would more money change your life? Would

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you buy a different car? Would you buy

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different clothes? Would you eat out

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more? Would it change your overall

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lifestyle?

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And the reason this came up as a topic

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is I get a lot of people that'll that'll

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call me and they saw a video that I'd

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done recently called um if you've won

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the game, why are you still playing?

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Which is in essence saying, okay, um why

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are you still chasing the markets? Why

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are you still going after the growth?

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Why are you still doing that? Is it

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because someone told you? is because you

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saw on television or read some that you

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have to have money in the markets.

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Why is that? Why why do you keep doing

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that? Which dovetales into this topic,

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will more money change your life? I was

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speaking to a gentleman and his lovely

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wife the other day and they had a lot of

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money. Let's just say they had a million

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dollars just just for conversation

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standpoint. And I said to them,

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if you had a million5,

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would it change your life? or let's just

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say they had 2 million. Would three

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million change your life? Would you

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change how you go about life? Would you

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move into a a house that's different

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than the one you're in? Would it change

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your life?

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And every single time I've asked

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somebody that question, every single

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time, the answer is, well, no, not

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really. because we like our lifestyle

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and we like, you know, where we live and

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our houses paid off and, you know, we we

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just don't have a lot of bills and we

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live to, you know, within our means.

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And, you know, most rich people, if you

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if you've read if you read if you've

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read the book Millionaire Next Door, it

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talks about most very, very wealthy

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people did not grow up with a silver

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spoon in their mouth. I can relate to

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that. Grew up in rural North Carolina,

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didn't have any money. me. The reason

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I'm in the financial business is that I

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want to find out why everybody had money

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and we didn't. And by the way, if you're

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looking for a financial adviser, choose

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one that grew up poor because they look

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at money differently. I had a I had a

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person today ask well they they well

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they wanted to buy something. They said,

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"Well, this isn't a lot of money." And

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they said the amount and I said, "Yeah,

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it is. Where I come from in rural North

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Carolina, that's a lot of money. I don't

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care how much you've accumulated or what

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you're worth." Now, those scars you

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you'll still you still have them where

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you had one pair of shoes to go to to go

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to a school and you had a couple shirts

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and maybe two pairs of pants. You

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remember those things. Money, I don't

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care what the amount is is important.

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It's important to us as my organization,

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the annuity man. It's important to every

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single employee of mine. It's important

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to you. If it's important to you, it's

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important to us. Period.

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But the question is,

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would more money change your life?

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And if the answer is no, then why are

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you putting your money at risk?

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I keep pounding this table. But I'm

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telling you something. I'm hitting a

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nerve out there because people are

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saying to me, Stan, that one really hit

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me when I when I heard you say you won

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the game. Why are you still playing? It

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made me think. And I want you to think

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again. If you had more money, would it

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change your life?

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No, we're at current interest rate

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levels. Check the time of this taping

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because I mean this is evergreen content

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and there'll be people watching this a

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long time ago and say, "Well, those

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rates aren't the same." Well, look at

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the date. At the time of this taping,

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interest rates with treasuries and CDs,

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which I don't sell, but love, and then

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fixed rate annuities, multi-year

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guarantee annuities are at a level that

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you never have to touch the principal.

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You can just take the interest out. In

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the south they call peeling off the

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interest. You can just peel off the

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interest, never touch the principal,

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never pay any fees,

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have all your money there. Sound good?

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Yeah, it does sound good because I

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always ask people add up your your

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income floor. You know, what's coming in

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whether you have a pension if you're so

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fortunate to work for the government, a

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good labor union, etc. the state. What's

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your social security payments? Okay,

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that's increasing with inflation. That's

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the best inflation annuity on the

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planet. And let's just say you have CDs

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and you have 3% money markets and you

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have multi-year guarantee annuities

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paying a really good rate and you're

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just taking the interest. You're not

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touching the principle at all. You're

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just taking the interest out.

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So, for instance, if you had 5% interest

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on a 5year guarantee

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on $500,000, you're getting $25,000 a

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year for five consecutive years, and at

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the end of the five years, you get your

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$500,000 back. Hello, sounds good.

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Adding up all of that, can you live off

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the interest in combination with social

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security and everything else?

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And if you can, then why aren't you

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doing it? And I know you're a financial

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adviser and master of the universe and

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wealth wealth architect and people on TV

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and CNBC and Fox Business and all the

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people that are trying to get you invest

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money. And listen, they've got good

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arguments historically. They really do.

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They really do historically.

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But you know what? Historically, you've

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hung in there. Historically, you've gone

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with market ups and downs. Historically,

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you've ridden the wave. Historically,

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you've lost money, made money, and yes,

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over time, it seems to work out, and

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that's fantastic.

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But again,

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why are you chasing the yield when you

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really don't need more money?

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Which leads me into another point. Let's

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all be honest out here. We live in a

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bubble. People watching this video,

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you're in a bubble. You don't think so?

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You are. I read a stat the other day,

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and I think it's accurate. Over 60% of

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adults have less than $400 to their

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name.

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What I mean those are people that my

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heart goes out to because inflation I

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mean it affects them. They're not you.

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They're not you. They don't have lots of

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money that you're trying to find a place

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to put it or you're trying to chase the

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markets.

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I need you to have a conversation with

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your significant other and family and

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and come to terms with how much money do

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you really need? Is it 3 million? Is it

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2 million? Is it 500,000? Is it 200,000?

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Is it a million? Is it 750,000?

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Whatever it is,

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is that enough? Who are you competing

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against? Who are you trying to show off

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to?

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I'm assuming you don't tell everybody

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how much money you have. I hope not. And

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you're secretive about that. And by the

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way, the blowhards at the co at the

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party that said, "Well, I got this and

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that." They don't have that. The ones

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that are flashy don't have it. They're

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leveraged to their eyeballs.

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I read a story today that tripped me out

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that the majority of Bitcoin owners make

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less than $10,000 a year. What? That

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can't be right.

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I think what they're trying to say,

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which I think is true, is most people

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that are in cryptocurrency are not

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sophisticated investors. They're trying

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to get rich quick. And the people that

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are listening to this video aren't get

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rich quick people. They're listening to

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annuity videos for goodness sakes with a

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guy with no last name, Stan the Annuity

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Man, because you know, I'm going to tell

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you the truth. But the more the older I

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get and the more I'm in this business,

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I've been in there for three decades and

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I talk to people every day and I have

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clients in all 50 states. I'm number one

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age in the country and I have my ear to

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the ground.

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I keep asking people, all right, so this

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is your income floor. Okay, great. We

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can get to there. Everything's

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guaranteed. Why are you chasing? Why is

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everything volatile? Why are you staying

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up at night? Why? Why do you need more

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money? If you do, that's fine. Then go

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get it. But some people say, "Well,

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yeah, if I had more money, um, I'd buy

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maybe a better car. We'd travel a little

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bit more." And I and then we go through

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the numbers again. And I go, "Well, you

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can do that now. You still can do that.

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You don't have to chase ups and downs

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and volatility and put your principle at

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risk."

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My My question to the 11,000 baby

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boomers hitting age 65 every single day

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is this.

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Do you have enough money?

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And if you do, why are you chasing to

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get more?

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Is it an addiction? Is it just what

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you've been taught? Is it what you think

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is right? Is it because your advisor

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told you so? Is it because your family

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or friends say this is what you need to

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do?

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What do you need to do? What does your

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family need to do? What do you and your

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spouse need to do?

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You need to go live your life. There's

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no U-Hauls behind herses. Life is

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fleeting.

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People love when I say you you're

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there's three phases of retirement. It's

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not my idea. Some the person on my

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podcast go, slow go, and no go. If

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you're in go- go, go get it. Why are you

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chasing markets? Why are you chasing

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volatility? Why are you putting all your

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hopes and dreams or not or a portion of

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your hopes and dreams in potential

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returns? Keyword potential.

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The only potential in your life should

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be the potential for you to live your

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life on your own terms because you've

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earned it. The potential is the

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potential of where you're going to

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travel and where you're going to eat

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out. The potential is how many times

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you're going to go see your kids and

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grandkids. The potential is doing things

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for you.

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You know, you've done without. You've

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you've given the kids everything. You

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scrimped and you saved. The potential is

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the potential of your lifestyle when you

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stop chasing returns and start living

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your life. So once again,

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if you had more money,

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would you be happier? Would it change

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your life? Would you do things

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differently?

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Most of us that grew up lower class,

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lower middle class, and/or middle class,

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the answer is no.

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I'll tell you a story with me. My

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favorite foods in the whole planet. I'd

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been to the best restaurants for

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fortunately my whole life and I'm you

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I'm a fish out of water there going,

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"Hey Garson, what you got? What what's

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on the menu?" I mean, I'm I'm a goober

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when I go go out to eat. It's just like

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what? My wife's like, "Oh my gosh, the

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best. I love Waffle House. I love what I

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call poor food. Grew up in Charlotte,

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North Carolina, in that area, you know,

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rural North Carolina. my all my my

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grandparents and um in that lineage, you

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know, they worked in textile mills. God

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bless them. Hardworking people, you

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know, I like I like cheap food. I like

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dirt food. I like side of the road food.

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I like cafe food. I don't do well in the

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bougie. So, the question to Stan the

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annuity man is, "Hey, Stan, if you had

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more money, would your life change?

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Would you change?" No. I'm going to

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drive a nondescript car because I don't

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care about cars. I'm going to wear my

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sweatuits and wear my hat and wear my

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tennis shoes. That's what I'm going to

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do. I'm going to travel where my wife

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tells me to travel. We'll eat out nice

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when she wants to go eat out nice, but

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when I get my choice, we're eating at

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Waffle House and we're having barbecue

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and we're having some down home good

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cooking.

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It's not going to change my life. I'm

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not going to put my money at risk. Why

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should I? And here's the thing. If you

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think about it, I say this all the time.

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investing in the markets like like like

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trying to catch a wave beside a like a

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big boat or cruise ship. You're going to

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catch a wave some of the time, but a lot

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of times you're going to get sucked

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under the boat. Why do you want to get

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sucked under the boat?

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So, if you've won the game, why are you

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still playing? And to dovetail into

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that, the next question is, if you had

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more money,

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would it change your life?

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Would it change your lifestyle?

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And if the answer is no,

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then you need to look at yourself in the

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mirror and say, "Hey, why am I why am I

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putting my money at risk when I don't

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have to anymore?" You don't have to

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anymore. You can live off the interest

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and you can lock in contractual

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guarantees to get it done. in

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combination with social security, which

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is the best inflation annuity on the

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planet.

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You can go live the life. You can go

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live your life, and I encourage you to

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do so. My name is Stan the Annuity Man,

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and that was shooting it straight. See

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you next time.