Wealth Formula Podcast

I've really been thinking about this thing lately that they call the law of attraction. I'm sure you've heard of it. Remember a few years back when that book, "The Secret" came out and they made a movie of it as well? Actually, that book was sort of a rip-off of "the secret" that Napolean Hill talks about in Think and Grow Rich which was written about eighty years earlier. The concept is simple—your thoughts become reality. Ok, so it sounds like a little self-helpish I know. But think about it—what is part of your reality today that DID NOT start out as a thought? Your job? Your kids? Your house? You thought about all these things at some point before they became your reality. In that sense, OF COURSE your thoughts became your reality. It's funny because my wife says that even when we first met—when I made $50K per year in San Francisco, I always acted like I had money. If I was out to dinner with her or another friend, I always made sure to take care of the bill. I was always a good tipper and I always KNEW that I would make a lot of money some day. Of course I was a surgical resident at the time so some might argue that making good money some day wasn't much of a leap of faith. But it was different and it is different for me than it is with a lot of people. I have a built-in abundance mind set. The idea that money and resources are limited doesn't instinctually resonate with me. I hate when people talk about living within or below their means. To me that defines a low threshold of means in the first place. I am, by no means, a spendthrift. But, despite joking about it on this show, I am not cheap—especially when it comes to expanding my means. You see, last year alone I spent about $100k on financial education and masterminds. Some might call that excessive. But I don't think so. This year alone, I will be able attribute about $1 million dollars in income directly to the information or people that resulted in that $100K total investment. Would you invest $100K this year for a 1000 percent gain next year? Well, that's what I did. Meanwhile, I have had some tell me that $197/month for my course and network is too expensive. What am I going to say to that? My $197/month course, network, and mastermind are better than MOST of the $25k/year masterminds I have joined. If you thing that's too much money to take it to the next level—then you won't. And I say that not because I'm saying you have to buy my course or be part of my mastermind calls to be successful. I'm saying that because you are not viewing the world through the lens of abundance. You see expense where I see investment. Words matter. Mindset matters. I am living proof that getting yourself in an abundance mindset is paramount if you are ever going to be wealthy. So when you listen to Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman, just remember, they are talking to poor people and those people will stay poor. Do you think Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman really live in a world of limited resources? They are entertainers and they make a lot of money pretending to think like the poor and middle class. But, guess what, with their own money they invest like the wealthy. When I speak on this podcast, I am speaking to a wealthy person. That is my avatar. If you listen to me and my words resonate with you, you likely live in a world of abundance already. Check yourself. Check your words. Check your thought patterns. Check your behavior. Do you live in a world full of fear and scarce resources? Are you worried that you will run out of money before you die? Are you afraid that if you invest your money then you will lose it? Or, do you believe that you are going to grow into someone healthier, happier, and more wealthy than you are today? A 15 year old high school dropout once said, "If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." That, of course, was Henry Ford. And those words are the words of a wealthy man. But remember…the thoughts and the words come before the result. It always has to be in that order. You can change your thoughts and words consciously and I urge you to do so if you want a better life. Speaking of a better life, my guest today on Wealth Formula Podcast has some different views then me but he also believes he has found the "freedom formula". Make sure to find out what it is. Shownotes: [00:07] Intro [14:05] Buck introduces David Denniston [20:52] The freedom formula [23:11] Pile of cash vs river of income [33:49] The economy [36:38] The tax bill [40:38] Land [51:08] More of David Denniston on: doctorfreedompodcast.com [52:38] Outro Flipping or cashflowing with land: https://www.wealthformula.com/resources/

As you know, I left medicine entirely about a year ago. I still have a couple of medical-related businesses but that's about it. Without question, I have moved on. All of my physical and emotional energy are devoted to things outside of medicine. Why? Well, I used to think it was a touch of attention deficit disorder. Sort of that—"been there done that" attitude. The thing is, when I think back to when I started not enjoying medicine, it actually started in residency—as far back as my first year of surgical internship. It's sad because I was a HIGHLY motivated medical student. I was driven to succeed and my professors loved me (because I was a serious kiss-ass). But then I started a neurosurgery residency and—well…I lost my mojo. I experienced: physical and emotional exhaustion cynicism and detachment feelings of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment I heisted these three descriptions of a person with the clinical diagnosis of burnout from a psychology journal. The physical and emotional exhaustion I figured was from the fact that I was working 100 hour weeks (before the 80 hour work week limit now enforced). Cynicism and detachment—this is horrible. I was surrounded by death in the neurosurgical ICU. When a patient died, it was not sad. It was an inconvenience. I found the paperwork irritating and it was difficult to be truly compassionate to families. That's the truth. I hate to say it, but that's the person who I had become. And, as for the feeling of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment? Well, you just need a couple of unsupportive senior residents to make you feel like crap. Surgical training in most cases is quite hierarchical and I found many residents to be of the kiss up kick down variety. Remarkably, I finished seven years of training despite my, almost immediate, distaste for the system. But it was also that dissatisfaction that, in part, made it so easy for me to go another direction. Did I have to go another direction? Was that the only way for me to feel better? I always thought so. But if you look at "burn out" as a kind of disorder like depression or even a back problem (a literal pain in the ass), then maybe there is a way to not give it all up and start over. I did start over. But, it was a little easier for me to do that than most. First of all, I didn't have much in the way of responsibilities when I first started my entrepreneurial life. My first daughter was a baby and my wife and I didn't even own a house. For others, the golden handcuffs of a high paid job and responsibilities, like paying the mortgage and for private school and colleges, makes burn-out a particularly challenging problem. In that case, it's good to know you have options—that you can possibly treat the affliction without having to either give it all up or to simply continue to be miserable. Burn out is a real problem for people who are highly successful and well paid. Most people have little sympathy for the doctor or engineer making $350K per year feeling burned out. That makes it even more difficult to deal with because you might feel like it's not ok to admit you're not happy. But, the reality is that at every level people deal with the same crap. We are all human and we have the same types of problems. Maybe you're just burned out? Maybe someone you know is burned out. The good news is that there is help out there and there's not a reason to be miserable anymore. Diane Ansari-Winn was an anesthesiologist who went through burn-out herself and now has become an expert on helping other physicians identify and cope with burnout. She's my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. Of course, burnout affects everyone, not just doctors so this is relevant to just about anyone professional listening to this show. This topic may not be as sexy as making tons of money but it may help you or it may help you identify someone you care about that needs help with a very treatable condition…burnout. Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [17:08] Buck introduces Dr. Dianne Ansari-Winn [17:52] Dianne's story [24:54] What is burn out? [32:09] Happiness: Physiology vs Psychology [41:26] How to approach a burn out issue [47:56] Get in touch with Dianne http://www.dianneansari-winn.com/ www.physicianvitalityinstitute.com A doctor's Life Podcast [49:16] Outro

Everywhere I turn, it seems like someone is talking about how the market could crash any day. As I write this, I see that the Dow has taken a beating today because of the Trump "tough on China" rhetoric. Tariffs, rising interest rates, ballooned asset prices—is this baby going to blow or what? I don't know the answer to that. Last week, we had the Chief Economist of Fannie Mae on the show. He didn't know either. Jim Richards and Peter Schiff are confident we are doomed—but when don't they think we are in trouble? The reality is that, at any given time, we have no idea when there will be a correction. The only thing we do know is that what goes up must come down— that's about all. As for when, I can tell you that whether it's the housing market or the stock market, the other will follow. That's the way it works. You see, almost all of the asset markets are correlated. That means, they all follow each other. So, when one starts to tank, the others do as well. That's just the nature of the game. Now, does that mean you should stop investing? I don't think so. I think investing in quality assets will eventually lead to you coming out ahead. On the other hand, if it were possible to stay out of the line of fire—to invest in something truly uncorrelated with any market, would it make sense to do so? I think so. That's why I am an advocate of an asset class that few even know exists outside of Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and some hedge funds. This asset class is backed why one of the few guarantees in life—death. In this week's episode of Wealth Formula Podcast, you'll learn exactly how you can take part in the ultimate financial hedge. Make sure to tune in! Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [10:15] Buck introduces Tim Wright [11:35] What is life settlement? [16:39] "Is it legal?" Yes! [19:43] How has life settlement evolved? [26:17] The process of buying life settlement [32:03] Mitigating risks [37:07] Projection of life settlement [42:12] Outro

If you listen to Wealth Formula Podcast, there is a good chance you listen to other shows with similar themes and opinions. In my niche, the one on-going theme is that the zombie-apocalypse is just around the corner. The zombie apocalypse is of course another financial meltdown reminiscent of 2008 or worse. And to be fair, it could be on its way. The problem is that people started saying that almost as soon as the last recovery began. A decade later, a lot of people have made a lot of money by not sitting on the sidelines. I have been guilty of this a little by myself to be honest. I have been concerned about the economy for the last couple of years and I still am. But, we also have to understand that we cannot predict the future. The next recession may very well happen next month but it may not be that big of a deal at all. On the other hand, it could be that avalanche that the likes of Jim Richards have been predicting for years. So what do you do? Well, first, you've got to listen to people outside of your own circles a little bit. This real asset investing community that listens to podcasts is a relatively small ecosystem and sometimes it's like living in an echo chamber. Everyone seems to be saying the same thing. In fact, when I met Robert Kiyosaki in April of 2017 on the Real Estate Guys Summit at Sea, I asked him what he thought of what all the speakers were saying. He told me that it worried him a little bit. When I asked him why he said it was because everyone seemed to agree too much. He said, "It makes me wonder what I'm missing". This a real phenomenon that we all should check ourselves on—including me. Tribes tend to congregate around a core set of belief systems which may become so pervasive that opinion or belief can be misconstrued as reality. In other words, make sure that you get your information from multiple sources. Listen to people with whom you disagree and try to articulate why you disagree with them. People who have taken a Chicken Little approach to investing over the past 5 years look pretty foolish right now. That's fine if you really did your research. But if you did so because you follow only one doomsday economist then you've got to start branching out. One economist who I have been following is someone you might wish to add to your repertoire. He is actually considered a mainstream voice in the financial world and one that I consider to be one of the more balanced. His name is Doug Duncan and he is the chief economist at Fannie Mae. In this week's Wealth Formula Podcast, Mr. Duncan will tell us how he sees the rest of 2018 and beyond. Make sure to tune in!

Robert Kiyosaki told me that Rich Dad Poor Dad was written to be a promotional piece for his Cash Flow board game. He really did not write it with the intent of making money on the book itself. Well, that little promotional piece ended up being the number one best selling financial book of all time—not bad! Countless people that I know have been touched by Rich Dad Poor Dad and credit it with transforming their lives including me. Yet Robert describes the work as an "accounting book". And if you go back and read it, it is! Assets, liabilities, and cash flow. That's what the book is all about. The genius of Robert Kiyosaki is that he is able to explain accounting to the masses in a way that makes sense and is entertaining.You see, accounting isn't that sexy but it is important. In fact, I believe that everyone should be required to take an accounting class in high school. Why? Because accounting is the basis of business and it also should be the basis of personal finance. Everyone should see their own personal finances as a business. You have money going in, you have money going out and what you have left is profit. Your personal financial statement should be viewed no differently than financial statements viewed by a business owner. You want to add assets and reduce liabilities and you want to make sure you have adequate cash flow. Makes sense right? If you do that, you might actually start behaving differently. Let me give you an example. I have a friend here in Santa Barbara who is a famous house designer and real estate investor. I went to his new house a few weeks ago and it was full of very expensive furniture. He also collects vintage cars like old Ferraris. Now you might think that all of this stuff is a waste of money. But…he actually buys these things because he wants to put them on his personal financial statements as assets. Think about it. If you buy a brand new Maserati today it will cost you over a hundred thousand dollars and start depreciating the minute you drive it off the lot. My friend, on the other hand, bought his vintage Ferrari for 75K several years ago and now it's worth 400K. He could have gotten brand new furniture but he chose antiques that look great AND appreciate in value. Talk about a guy who understands accounting. Even his toys are real appreciating assets! He sort of got me thinking about buying that 1960s Porsche 356 that I've always loved. Anyway, it's just another way to view the world and one that is really quite valuable. Accounting is fundamental to financial literacy. My guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week understands this well. His name is David Norris and he's a doctor with an MBA who has made it his mission to teach others financial literacy. Make sure to listen to the show!

Why is it easier for the rich to get richer? Why is it that the "first million" is the hardest? Well, there's lots of reasons for that and I go through them in some detail in Your Roadmap to Real Wealth. But one very important reason that the rich get richer is because they have more money to invest. I know what you're thinking right now, "Wow, Buck, you are a genius!" Ok it sounds really simple. I get it. But my point is this. If you make more money, you will be able to allocate a higher percentage of your income towards investments rather than paying your bills. Right? If you make $50K per year or less in San Francisco, as I did a surgical resident, there's no money left to invest. On the other hand, if you make a few million dollars per year, covering your expenses shouldn't be that hard. Most of that cash can be used to create more wealth. You can use that money to buy things like real estate, businesses, precious metals, even life settlements. And, because you can spare to lose a few bucks, you can also allocate some money towards investments that might be highly speculative. Speculation is not a four letter word if you do it in a calculated way. I don't consider my speculative investments gambling at all. I consider them asymmetric risk investments. In other words, the upside is several orders of magnitude higher than the downside—even if the downside means losing your entire investment. For me, this is "Maserati money". I can either buy a Maserati and guarantee that I will never see that cash again, or I can take a shot down the field that has a chance to create transformational wealth. What is transformational money? Well, add a zero to your current net worth. Unless you are starting out as a billionaire, that number will transform your life. Rich people do that all the time. I've talked about this before but the Winklevoss twins (the ones who sued Mark Zuckerberg) did this by buying a big chunk of bitcoin before most people did a few years ago that took them from the ranks of mere eight to nine figure mortals to the billionaire boys club! What if you could go from six to seven figures or seven to eight? Would that change your life? Adding a zero would change mine for sure It might even be enough for me to give up my Toyota for a Maserati or a classic Ferrari. My problem is that I am cheap. A lot of people who make a lot less than me drive expensive cars. I'd just rather make more money. So, what is my asymmetric trade these days? If you listen to me regularly, you know that I am a cryptocurrency enthusiast. I am now allocating a full 10 percent of my investable assets into distributed ledger technology. Why? Because I truly believe that this may be the biggest opportunity to create transformational wealth that I will ever see in my lifetime. I have been obsessed with what's going on in this world for over a year now and have already made some extreme profits. You may also know that I have my own cryptocurrency fund which I believe is positioned very well to benefit from the trillions of dollars about to hit this market. Now, if you are brand new to cryptocurrency, it might be a good idea for you to listen to my introductory podcasts on this topic with Palm Beach Confidential editor, Teeka Tiwari. I interviewed him in episodes 86 and 104 of Wealth Formula Podcast. Today, I am going to introduce you to a project that I represents the future of distributed ledger technology. I have been following Swirlds Hashgraph since I first learned about cryptocurrency. A friend of mine, who is an insider in this world, tipped me off to the project. Since then, I have studied it and followed its progress closely. Hashgraph is the next generation of distributed ledger technology. It solves all the problems of blockchain projects such as bitcoin and ethereum. For that reason, many have referred to hashgraph as "the bitcoin killer." The reason is that the technology is so good that it serves as an existential threat to blockchain ledgers such as bitcoin and ethereum. Now here's the good news. It's not too late to invest in this project! In fact the hashgraph public ledger and token, hedera, will not be circulating until later this year. You are WAY ahead of the game. And while this should not be construed as investment advice, I would highly suggest you pay careful attention to my guest on Wealth Formula podcast this week as I interview Mance Harmon, cofounder and CEO of Swirld's Hashgraph.

Some times when I go back and listen to my podcasts from when I first started this show, I think to myself, "This guy is clueless." Of course I wasn't clueless. I still knew more than most about investing but man have I evolved. The key to that evolution has been my ability to not be dogmatic about anything. That's tough—especially in the investing world. The paper people think that real estate investors got it all wrong and real estate investors think paper is for idiots. I used to believe that permanent life insurance was one of the worst investments you can make. Why?…because some other doctors told me that. And while the policies they were looking at were likely not good investments, I had no idea that products and strategies like Wealth Formula Banking™ or Velocity Plus™ existed until I got to know some people who had a lot more money than those doctors. Never take financial advice from people who make less money than you do! People have a nasty habit of picking "camps" and defending them even if it is not in their best interest to do so. Just look at modern politics. I am a libertarian who believes in small government and lower taxes for small business. Therefore, I tend to vote conservative (although I have my limits when it comes to character). On the other hand, why are people in the working class voting for conservative candidates against their own economic interests? It's not smart to be close minded and argue against things you don't understand. At least try to understand them first! That's why I asked this week's guest on Wealth Formula Podcast, Andy Tanner to be on the show. Andy is one of Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad Advisors and happens to be an expert on investing in paper assets. It sounds almost paradoxical to use the name "Kiyosaki" and paper assets on the same page without some sort of expletive doesn't it? Well, if you listen to this podcast, it will make sense why Andy is a Rich Dad advisor. He may be an equity market guy, but he's all about cash flow. You're going to love this show and, if you already have money in the stock market, this show is mandatory listening. Check it out!

I am proud to say that I have overcome a major handicap to become a successful entrepreneur. It took me 33 years to figure out how to get past this obstacle… but I did it. I'm proud of that fact because very few people with this fate in life become successful business people and even fewer become successful investors. What was this handicap you ask? Well, you see…I was born an A student. I got good grades in high school and college and graduated at the top of my medical school class. I even got into one of the best neurosurgical training programs in the world. Did you know that more people become professional athletes every year than neurosurgeons? Yes indeed. I reveled in my academic success. I pumped out scholarly papers and book chapters like there was no tomorrow. In fact, I remember telling my dad that I was published in a journal called Neurosurgery two months in a row. You know what he said? "Congratulations. How much do they pay your for that anyway?" Silly dad, I thought. He just doesn't get it. He's too busy being a slum lord to understand my world. What I'm doing is important. It's meaningful. It's not just about the money. I thrived on academic achievement and being recognized as smart and important. It was my currency. And for those who are good at school and who constantly get positive feedback, it's addictive. The accolades create a feedback loop. With every accomplishment, award, or title there is a dopamine hit that makes it harder and harder to ever get outside of your own world. That's why I call being an A student a handicap to becoming an entrepreneur. A students don't get to experience failure. In fact, they become so accustomed to success in school that they are often unable to function without someone telling them what to do. And the idea of going into free fall as an entrepreneur terrifies them. Think of the smartest people in high school—did any of them become entrepreneurs? Probably not. Most entrepreneurs come from the school hard knocks. Life doesn't hand them an easy out and most of them weren't particularly good students. They had to wing it and develop the ability to improvise and deal with failure. That quality also happens to be the hallmark of the successful entrepreneur. That describes my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast today. Kevin Bupp went from a middle class family and little aptitude for school to starting multiple successful businesses including a highly successful venture into the mobile home park world. Listen to his story on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast!

It's actually not that hard to make money. Yes... I said that. And, I mean it. You see, everywhere I turn, I see opportunity. Why am I seeing things that others aren't? Well, I think it's because I'm not looking the same place that most people are. You see, there is a herd mentality amongst investors. We see what others are doing and we want to do the same. The problem is that when a lot of people are doing the same thing, it brings about competition and there is nothing that can kill a profit margin like competition. I learned this from the business world. My first business was a cosmetic surgery practice in Chicago. There is a cosmetic surgeon on every block in Chicago. It's glamorous and every surgeon wants to be famous and on TV. Luckily, I didn't care to be famous. I just wanted to make money. So, I focused on building my brand rather than my fame and that made it so I could scale past the other "famous doctors" pretty quickly. That said, if I had to do it again, I would not pick cosmetic surgery as a business. A friend of mine was telling me about his father-in-law who created an empire in the janitorial services industry. My friend asked him how he did it and his father-in-law said it was easy because "No one else was interested in the business of cleaning of shit". The businesses I started since that initial cosmetic business have been much easier to profit in because they are not glamorous. I have realized that the less glamorous the business, the easier to profit. The same could be said about investing. It's very hard to invest in apartment buildings right now because everyone wants to be an apartment investor. That's why it took me over a year to get behind a deal to present to investor club. On the other hand, no one seems to be rushing towards raw land. Yet, my guest on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast appears to be crushing it in this unusual part of the investing world. But I'm not surprised. If you figure out how to catch fish where non one else goes fishing, you're bound to come out a winner. That's pretty much what Mark Podolsky did with raw land and we will hear exactly how on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast. Buck Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [10:10] Buck introduces Mark Podolsky [10:52] Mark's background [13:57] Raw landing investing - how does it work? [20:32] Purposes of buying raw land [22:35] Websites to buy land Landsofamerica.com Landandfarm.com landmodo.com Landflip.com landhub.com [29:32] Learn how to start this business https://www.thelandgeek.com/ Email [email protected] with the subject line "Wealth Formula" and receive Passive Income Launch Kit (Originally priced at $97) for free [34:18] Mark Podolsky's podcast: The Art of Passive Income [35:44] Outro

We are living in a world that is technologically transforming at light speed and distributed ledger technology is on the cusp of that metamorphosis. Most people think of distributed ledger technology in terms of bitcoin—but bitcoin only scratches the surface of what will be the most important technological advancement since the internet. That is the reason that when my cryptocurrency portfolio dropped in value by over 50 percent, I just bought more. And now, I believe we are on the precipice of the next big move upward in this market. Behind the scenes, the big money knows this. Despite Jamie Dimon's commentary and the big banks' resistance to the movement, smart money is moving in for the kill. Institutional investors like Black Rock, Wellington Capital and billionaires like George Soros have taken note. And when they finally make their move, it will happen quickly and explosively and extraordinary amounts of wealth will be created. I truly believe this. The question is, what are you going to do? If you want to sit on the sidelines because of the speculative nature of the investment, I don't blame you. On the other hand, if there was ever a time to consider skipping the new BMW and buying some cryptocurrency instead, it might be now. If you want an introduction to distributed ledger technology, a good place to start would be episode 86 of Wealth Formula Podcast when I first interviewed Teeka Tiwari of the Palm Beach Confidential Newsletter. Lots has changed since then but I had the good fortune to speak to him again recently to catch up on what's going on in the crypto world. What you will find is that If you have a fear of missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime, it may be warranted. Listen to the interview now! Buck Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [06:18] Buck introduces Teeka Tiwari [08:00] What happened to the crypto market?! [10:34] Why is the market so volatile? [14:43] What's in store for us in the next few years? [18:21] Bitcoin dominance? [23:43] Distributed ledger technology is here to stay [27:45] How does regulation affects the crypto market? [33:20] Where does Bitcoin end up at the end of 2018? In 5 years? [41:00] Get in touch with Teeka Joinbigt.com [42:44] Outro

I know I'm always ranting and raving about the evils of Wealth Advisors but the reality is that I have learned a great deal from some of them. You see, there is a difference between Wealth Advisors who work for you and those that live OFF of you. There is also a big difference between Wealth Advisors who actually work with WEALTHY people compared to those who work with your typical professional who is just trying to do the right thing and work with a "professional". In fact, those advisors who work with the ultra wealthy are often the ones who know some of the best kept "secrets" of the ultra wealthy. We can learn a lot from them. My friend Jim Dew is one of those guys and offers some nice little "behind the veil" tips and tricks on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast. Make sure to tune in!

When I was a kid, $20 dollars seemed like A LOT of money. When I was a surgical resident making less than $50,000 per year in San Francisco, making $300,000 like my professors sounded like A LOT of money. Since embarking on my entrepreneurial and professional investing journey, I have had $300,000 MONTHS on multiple occasions. But making $10 million dollars in one year still sounds like A LOT of money. I have had the good fortune of being able to break through these kinds of mental barriers multiple times in my life to get to the next level. Hopefully, someday soon I will look back on the days when making over $10 million dollars in a single year and having a nine figure net worth seemed like a lot of money. Does that seem realistic? It does to me. Why? Because all of the barriers that we have in our lives are self-inflicted. We create our own boundaries. They don't really exist. Recognizing that is critically important if you want to continue to develop not only financially, but as a person. The other day I was trying to think of what my biggest fear in life is. It's not death and it's not dying broke. My biggest fear in life is hitting a plateau and not growing any more. It's an easy trap to fall into isn't it? Let's say you are like me and one day you decided you wanted to be a surgeon. You were on a mission. You went to college. You worked hard and good grades and test scores. Then you studied your butt off for years and finally became that person you aspired to be. But 5 years into your "dream", you started wondering to yourself, "is this it?" It seemed so much more exciting and glamorous as a dream than it does reality. Now it seems like—a job! Suddenly, that thrill of being a fancy surgeon has warn off and you didn't really think of anything past that point in your life. Even worse, now you have created a world for yourself that is highly dependent on your "high salary" and you feel like you don't have any options anymore. You are shackled to the golden handcuffs. Others can't understand why you, with your fancy titles, your fancy house, and your BMW, don't seem particularly happy. But.. I understand your discontent. You see, I believe that there is really only two states of being—growth or death. If you are not growing as a person…if you are not constantly learning and developing as a human being, you are pretty much already dead in the figurative sense. To me, to be such a metaphorical zombie, is the worst that could happen. How do you prevent that from happening to you? Well, my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast today, Michael Bernoff is an expert on exactly these types of things. So, if you don't want to be a zombie, make sure to tune in to the show! Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [08:59] Buck introduces Michael Bernoff [10:42] Michael's story [13:18] There has to be more in life [24:28] Convince yourself to get out of your comfort zone/ the golden handcuff [28:42] A different kind of wealth [32:16] How to be happy with where you are at [36:30] Lean more about Michael Michaelbernoff.com michaelbernoff.com/wealthformulapodcast [38:40] Outro Wealthformularoadmap.com

One of the reasons I don't like investing in the New York Stock Exchange is that buy the time a stock become publicly traded, most of the upside is already gone. Let's take Square, Inc. for example. This is the mobile payments firm with that software that allows pretty much anyone to take credit card payments. Nice idea…sure and I don't doubt that this company has a bright future. But when you look at the stock, it's price to earnings ratio is over 1000. So what does that mean? Well, say you have a small business that makes about 500K profits per year. You decide you want to sell your business. At P/E ration of 1000, that would mean the value of your business based on your profit would be $500,000,000. Yes—a half billion dollars! Are you really going to buy a company valued like that? Well, that's the kind of stuff people buy in the stock market routinely. Private companies don't typically have those crazy valuations. For private companies, valuations are typically made by appraisals not by irrational exuberance. That's why the ultra wealthy who often are able to invest in these companies before their initial public offering often make a killing. The problem is that most of us don't have a couple extra million to play around with to speculate a little bit even on late stage private companies that are about to go public. But what if you could invest $25K into Lyft (uber's major competitor) before it goes public. Would you do it? It might make sense. The problem is that, until recently, it was impossible for accredited investors who are not worth several million dollars to participate in this world. That is until recently. I just discovered a way for high paid professionals to play in the world that used to be reserved for the billionaire boys club. It's through a business called equityzen and this week's Wealth Formula Podcast feature's its CEO and founder, Atish Davda. Check it out! Buck P.S. If you really want to start investing like the wealthy, check out Your Roadmap to Real Wealth (wealthformularoadmap.com). Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [09:07] Buck Introduces Atish Davda [09:37] Why did Equityzen begin? [11:22] How does a typical company goes from being private to public? [15:13] How does Equityzen work? [22:21] Buying and selling on Equityzen [31:45] What kind of return can you expect? [36:18] Potential changes to the accredited investor laws [39:23] The impact of cryptocurrency [42:19] Equityzen.com [44:11] Outro

I don't even watch the news anymore. The advent of the 24 hour news cycle combined with our reality television culture has changed what used to be "news" into entertainment. The fundamental problem with this juxtaposition of news and entertainment is that something that was supposed to be unbiased—just facts becomes something that has to have an angle. Plain old facts just aren't that interesting anymore. They have to be layered in commentary—commentary that sells. The reality television culture that we live in dictates that anything on TV must be controversial. If it's not controversial, it's not interesting. Think about it. Why do people watch reality TV anyway? Because of the drama—we love to watch a car wreck when we can be safe from harms way. Reality television allows for dramatic stories of love, hate and betrayal. That's what makes it addictive. Facts are not addictive. The irony of the times we live in is that reality TV culture has created a world in which there is, in fact, no reality. You see this from the highest office in the land—Trump says everything is fake news! Now, to be clear, I'm sure Donald Trump does not get the benefit of the doubt from the press but does that mean we throw out the baby with the bath water? In other words, if the news is fake, what's left to believe. Listen—this is not meant to be written as a political piece by any means. I'm a guy with strong libertarian views but I'm certainly not one to cast aspersions on politicians. I just think we need to start to return to a fact based society. If we cannot at least establish facts, then how can we ever make meaningful decisions about our future? This kind of discourse is probably no more important than on the subject of climate change. A few weeks ago, I had on Alex Epstein—author of the The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels. A lot of you were not happy about that and some of you were quite happy that I had Alex on the show. I just wanted to hear his perspective. What was funny about that show is that Alex did not actually say that climate change is not real. His thesis was actually whether or not fossil fuels are good for humanity. He also didn't say that alternative fuels were bad. But… it got people fired up on both sides—sort of like a reality show I guess. Anyway, I'm a facts guy and that's all I'm after. And my guest this week on Wealth Formula Podcast is a pretty hard core alternative energy guy although one who manages to keep his rationality. You'll learn all about the facts behind solar energy and alternative fuels and also how they might make sense to add to your portfolio. So…if you are looking for some reality, make sure to tune in to this week's show with Stephen Honikman! Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [11:37] Buck introduces Stephen Honikman [14:55] Stephen's counter argument to Alex Epstein [18:54] The economic argument for alternatives over fossil fuel [24:29] Alternative vs fossil fuel – Dollar for dollar [35:22] Why solar? [38:38] Solar energy and tax [51:09] Investing in solar energy [01:00:47] Get in touch with Stephen: https://wisercapital.com For Solar energy inquiries, email Stephen at: [email protected] For other inquiries, email Stephen at: [email protected]

Before I had a clue on how to invest, I thought I could just figure it out on my own. How hard could it be? After all, it's not brain surgery right? And to a certain extent that is true. The math is quite easy. And yes, there is a simple equation. Wealth=leverage(Mass x Velocity). But the problem is, you have to believe the numbers that you plug into that equation in order for you to invest with confidence. And…to be clear, apart from concepts like Wealth Formula Banking, there really is no guaranteed return on investment in just about any opportunity. You can do all the math and due diligence you want, but at the end of the day, you have to take some leap of faith when you write that check. The first time I bought an apartment building, I did all the math right but there were many things I did wrong that caused me to lose about $300K—that was an expensive education. And boy…did I learn. In fact, I'm happy to say that I never lost money on another apartment investment since then. A big reason for that is my discovery along the way that investing is a team sport. You've heard that before I'm sure. But it's really important. In fact, I call this tribal investing. You see, with the concept of tribe, there is this idea that we can all benefit from the collective strengths of our community. Yes…learning is best done through mistakes. But…they don't need to be your mistakes. Borrow the battle scars of others in your tribe! Tribe also suggests an orderly community—one in which there are checks and balances. It is way that people create order out of an otherwise chaotic world. The same can be said for your financial tribe. Your want to have people that have your back and you want people with whom you invest to take your money personally. You want them to feel personally responsible for your money and also worry about their reputation in the community if they don't perform—that's where checks and balances come in to play. Listen, the best investors in the world lose money. There is no such thing as a deal that can't go south and even the most skilled and experienced deal sponsors will on, occasion, lose money for their investors. But if someone is in your tribe, the hope is that they believe what they are telling you to be truth and do not take the responsibility as your fiduciary lightly. That's why it is important to constantly expand your tribe. You need to be able to trust people before you can trust their deals. Some of you occasionally send me opportunities and want my opinion and more often than not I send a one liner back to you that says, "I don't know them". That's not to be curt or unhelpful. I just don't look at anything unless I have some kind of connection with the sponsor group. On the other hand, knowing an operating group well and believing in them can sometimes convince me to get past some of my own dogmas. As you may know, our accredited investor club bought into an offshore resort development last year. I don't normally invest in resort property and I normally don't invest in developments. But the strength of this team and associated brands along with their character made me look deeper into an opportunity I would have otherwise never considered. That property is Mahogany Bay Village and Beach Club and the lead developer, Beth Clifford, is my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. If you have ever considered investing in developments or resort property, make sure you listen to this show as Beth will explain, from the investor's perspective, how one should approach these kinds of projects. Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [11:51] Beth Clifford's background [14:38] Golden Handcuff [18:39] Beth's take on investing in development [26:17] Mahogany Bay Village Belize [37:34] The projection of Mahogany Bay [42:49] Learn more about Beth Clifford and her work Mahoganybayvillage.com [45:42] Outro

When I first learned about the concept of cash flow investing, it was like a religious experience. In my case, I went around everywhere proselyting the virtues of cash flow investing to my friends. I was so excited about the concept that I couldn't stop talking about it. In the process, I bored the heck out of a lot of people! But I couldn't help myself. The idea is so simple and elegant, right? Buy things that throw off monthly cash flow. When you have enough cash flow, you can "retire"! Indeed, all of this is true. But… over the years, I figured out that it's a little bit more complicated. It always cracks me up when I see someone have the cash flow revelation moment and the lights go on. They talk about their passive income goals and how they are going to retire in 5 years by buying real estate—even if they are currently broke! And the reality is that when you listen to a lot real estate podcasts out there, it might lead you to believe it is just that easy. Here's the problem though. In order to create passive income, you have to have money in the first place! It's math right? Remember, the Wealth Formula? Wealth= Leverage (Mass x Velocity). Let's just focus on mass for a second. Mass means how much money you have to invest. If you have no mass, it doesn't matter how much leverage and velocity you use. You still won't be able to create wealth. This issue isn't something that affects the broke either. I talk to plenty of high paid professionals who like the idea of replacing their W2 incomes with "passive" income. If you make $250,000 per year, that's not an easy feat! If you average 10 percent cash on cash, you have to get $2,500,000 into the machine to create that stream of income. Doable yes but most of us are not that patient. What if you want to move quicker? What are your options? Well—for one, understand that you have many options. If you want to move quicker, you might have to broaden your investing horizons beyond the real estate box. We might have to look into buying or starting businesses that produce a lot more income. These businesses can either serve as mass to accumulate more real estate or, like in my case, can serve to be stand-alone "passive" streams of income. Of course all of this can sound intimidating if you are a hard working professional already slugging it out for 50 hours per week. Who has time for all of this? But understand that in order to create more income, you really only have two options. Either you have to buy it (like real estate), or earn it with your time. If you can't afford to buy more, then you have to earn it and that will take more of your time. But taking more of your time doesn't mean that it has to be another full time job you add to your current busy schedule for the next twenty years. You can also invest a certain amount of time up front just like you put down a lump sum of money to buy a rental house. Then, you can leverage technology. Sound intriguing? Well, it should! My guest on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast is going to show us exactly how to do that. So…if you want to speed things up and get on the golf course, you won't want to miss this week's conversation with Udemy expert Jonathan Levi! Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [08:59] Buck introduces Jonathan Levi [10:20] Jonathan's journey [15:57] What is Udemy and how does it work? [17:40] Jonathan's experience with Udemy [22:49] Is Udemy the an option for YOU as a stream of income? [28:39] What are the more appealing courses from the buyer's perspective? [33:30] How do I get started? (The Branding You™ Academy) [39:43] How to reach Jonathan Levi - jle.vi [42:45] Outro

If you're heading into a dark cave for the first time, bring someone who's been there before. That's sound advice--not only for exploring caves, but also for investing your money. In fact, when it comes to investing money, it would be even better if you brought a geologist with you who had previously studied that cave extensively and had a map of it along with a great big flashlight! You see...the mistake most people make is that they believe investing is unpredictable. They are brainwashed into believing that by Wall Street. "Invest for the long term in a portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds". What does that mean anyway? It means, "Give me your money so I can pull off a bunch of fees. And when you see your account go down by 30 percent in the next correction, it's not my fault. It's an act of nature." Are we really that helpless when it comes to controlling our financial future? God help us if we are! I can tell you from my own experience that we are, indeed, not helpless. If you feel that way, you have not tried hard enough. You have not spent any time on financial education or trying to build your network--your tribe. After all, your network equals your net worth. Indeed, one of the most profound discoveries I made during my quest to understand the way that the ultra-wealthy invest is this--it's not an accident that the rich get richer. The wealthy don't rely on luck--they engineer their wealth. Wealth is created, it does not spontaneously appear. You can't expect to get wealthy by simply hoping to get hit by it. Now listen, I'm not saying that the rich never lose money. They speculate sometimes and sometimes they lose. But the bets they make are asymmetric. Wins result in HUGE wins and losses are easily absorbed. In order to make sure they have more wins then losses, they make sure they have insider information. I'm not talking about illegal stuff. I'm talking about being deeply connected with people who intimately know an industry or an asset class that have tremendous track records. Simply put…when they bet on something, they are right way more often then they are wrong. When you find people like this, you tag a long! Anyway, Broadway musicals are completely foreign to me. Yet, they can be incredibly lucrative if you invest in the right one. Frankly, I didn't even know you could invest in Broadway musicals until I met this week's guest on Wealth Formula Podcast: Erica Schwarz. When it comes to musicals, she is a true expert and she is going to illuminate this industry for us and how we can profit from it. She will be our guide into this dark cave of Broadway! Make sure to check out the show. Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [09:41] Buck introduces Erica Schwartz [10:25] Erica's theatrical background [12:39] What does Erica's job entail [14:16] The history of Emerson Colonial Theatre [16:42] How does the theatre business function [27:43] How to approach the theatre business [44:15] Find out more about Erica and the theatre business [email protected] [46:32] Outro

"Sexual transmutation is the most powerful tool in existence when it come to creation, invention, accomplishment, creativity, advancement, and achievement." - Napolean Hill, Think and Grow Rich This is a quote from one of my favorite books. It's in the chapter than no one talks about on sexual transmutation. If you have read the book, you know why. It's kind of a weird chapter in the middle of the most mimicked book in Self-Help history. In a nutshell, Napolean Hill says that harnessing sexual energy is the most powerful and efficient means of accomplishing our platonic goals. It took me a little while to understand what he was saying, but here is how I interpret this. If you have ever been a teenage boy, you know there is a period of time, for most, where little else seems to matter than teenage girls. I certainly remember that. I'm not talking about anything necessarily seedy. I'm just saying that there is a certain obsession that accompanies that special time in life. It's hard to think about anything else other than the girls you wish would be your girlfriend or, at least, give you the time of the day. Of course most people eventually find a way to balance these thoughts with other important details in life. However, it's hard to argue that there is anything more powerful than that kind of obsession. Now hold on to that feeling of obsession that I'm talking about and now... take the sex reference out of the equation. Have you ever been so obsessed with something in your life that you can't stop thinking about it? I have. When I was a kid growing up in Minnesota, ice hockey was on my mind ALL THE TIME and had it not been for a career ending back injury, I would have played college hockey and who knows how far I could have gone. The funny thing is that by Minnesota standards, I started playing organized hockey a little late. I was 9 years old. When I first started skating I couldn't even stop. But four years later, I went from the worst guy in the park to one of the best guys on one of the state's best teams. I was obsessed. I ate, breathed, and slept hockey. That made up for a lot of my other shortcomings. Over the years, I have felt similar obsessions at times in my life. For example, when I decided I wanted to be a doctor, I was obsessed with how I was going to get into medical school. And finally, as an entrepreneur, I have been obsessed with the creation of various businesses throughout my career. The one thing that drives obsession of all kind is the desire for some kind of accomplishment. When it comes to teenage boys, we know what that is. For the entrepreneur, it is something very different. The most successful entrepreneurs I know are not, in fact, driven by money. They are driven by the idea of creating something out of nothing and seeing it come to life. Money…is just a way to keep score. I use the example of entrepreneurship here but it really applies to just about anything. Napoleon Hill's sexual transmutation is nothing more than a reference to the power of being obsessed with something. Olympic athletes, world class chess players, musicians, you name it. The highest achievers in the world harness that obsessive energy to do extraordinary things. My guest on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast is a kindred soul. He is as much of a raging entrepreneur as I am and he's one of the most interesting people I have ever met. DO NOT MISS this week's show as I discuss the spirit that drives entrepreneurs with Jorge Newberry. Best Regards, Buck Joffrey Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction - Obsession [09:53] Buck introduces Jorge Newberry [11:14] Jorge's story [13:19] It's NOT about making money [14:48] The entrepreneur gene [19:16] American Homeowner Preservation [27:09] Jorge's next step [30:22] Note Buyer Bootcamp [37:33] How much do I need to get into this business? [41:08] Take the opportunity to receive 12% return on AHP before May 24th [42:22] Get your $200 coupon from wealthformula.com and attend the Note Buyer Bootcamp [45:13] Outro

Are you a great multitasker? Are you sure about that? After all, it's impossible to think about two different things simultaneously (I am a former brain surgeon, I know). So, what does it mean to be a multitasker anyway? Well, I think most people loosely define this term as being able to get a bunch of stuff done at the same time. But for those of us who do get a lot of stuff done at once are we multitasking or do we just have good time management skills? I have to tell you that I have always fancied myself a great multitasker as well. I have warn that badge with pride. In retrospect, however, I'm not really at my best when I multitask. I'm at my best when I "serial task". In recent years, I have started to realize that multitasking might actually be SLOWING me down. How many times have you been working on something, shifted your thoughts to work on something else, and then come back to the original project—all within a few minutes? Do you not think that you are losing some efficiency when you transition your brain from one task to the other? Of course you are. It's inefficient. You are losing precious time and energy. In fact, I have come to HATE the idea of multitasking. I still find myself doing it sometimes and it drives me crazy! Not only does it make you less efficient, but it also lends itself to what Zen Buddhists call "monkey mind"—the tendency of thoughts in your head to fling around like drunken monkeys jumping up and down and chattering nonstop. Do you really think this is a good psychological state to be in? I don't. Recently, I read a book from a guy by the name of Jay Papasan—he has cowritten several books with Gary Keller of Keller Williams fame. The book is called, The One Thing, and really crystalized for me what I had suspected all along. Multitasking is not good. In fact, it's actually a consequence of simply not understanding what is important for you to get done in the first place. Multitasking is a bandaid for poor time management skills. And, if you want to underachieve in life, keep multitasking. Don't get me wrong, there is certainly ways of getting multiple things done in short period of time, but there is a way to do it that will take your productivity to the next level. The One Thing is the best book I read last year because it defines what creates that increased level of productivity. Make sure to tune in to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast where I interview author Jay Papasan. This conversation was extremely thought provoking. Don't miss it! Shownotes: [00:07] Introduction [07:49] Buck introduces Jay Papasan [09:00] The motivation to write The One Thing [12:12] Common mistakes to setting goals and prioritizing work [16:25] The Myth of Multitasking [23:44] Meditation [25:09] The art of saying NO [32:00] A straight line to achieving your ultimate mission in life [37:30] Learn more about Jay - theonething.com [40:19] Outro

Funny thing happened over the last few weeks—I learned how much people love the idea of getting rich fast! I'm sort of half way joking about this but we had two funds—both Reg D 506c offerings so I'm legally clear to talk about them. Anyway, one was a highly speculative crypto fund. I emphasized several times that you could lose all your money but that you could also potentially make a lot. After all, I 10X'd in 4 months! Despite the risk associated with the crypto fund, I had soft commitments of over $2 million dollars within four hours of the presentation! The second fund was a value add real estate deal—double digit returns, real property, great tax advantages and recession proof. In many ways, what I consider to be the ideal core portfolio investment. 12 hours later, we had soft commitments of about $1 million dollars. Now don't get me wrong. That's still pretty good but it tells us a little bit about our own human nature doesn't it? I also want to emphasize that it takes a lot of self-control for me, personally, to not preferably reach for the shiny object over the slow and steady one. Obviously I'm doing a crypto fund so I'm not against this kind of speculating. I just want to remind you, and myself, that we also need to focus on our core investing principles: real assets, cash flow, etc. Make sure you don't ever speculate with money you can't lose. Of course any investment comes with the risk of losing money but some are obviously less risky then others. For example, I have recently become quite interested in the self-storage industry. Frankly, I had no idea how it performed in recessions and it's consistent track record over the last 3 decades. It also has some market indicators that suggest that this area of real estate is only going to get hotter and might be the best way to both maximally capitalize on an up market and survive in a down market. Much of what I learned about this area was from my guest on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast:Lew Pollack, managing director of Reliant Real Estate Management. It may not sound sexy, but one thing I have learned over the past several years is that some of the most profitable businesses are the ones that kind of sound boring. Self-storage is a great example of that. Make sure you listen to the show! Shownotes: [00:00] Introduction [11:41] Buck introduces Lew Pollack [12:45] Lew's adventure in self-storage [15:37] How does self-storage stand out from other asset classes [19:07] Why is self-storage recession resistant [21:45] Demographic driver in self-storage [25:50] Tax benefits [26:57] Cost segregation Analysis [19:19] Reliant Real Estate Management, LLC [33:24] Lew's investment strategy [40:55] Outro: Email [email protected] for more information on this self-storage opportunity!

Ray Dalio, legendary Hedge Fund Manager and over-all smart guy has been talking about the coming "financial winter" for the last few years. He's looking at the same things we talk about on this show all the time--near zero interest rates for a decade, ballooning asset prices, quadrillion dollar derivative markets, etc. Neither Ray Dalio nor I are doom and gloom guys--we were just talking about the facts. But then...something happened. America got TRUMPED. The stock market took off again and asset prices got even fatter. To top it off, the new tax bill created the biggest tax cut for corporations and wealthy individuals since 1986. The result--we ain't going to be seeing winter anytime soon. We've got global warming! That is unless there is a black swan event like nuclear war for example. I saw Ray Dalio on TV the other day and he echo'd that sentiment. He said over the next two year if your money is on the sidelines, "you are going to feel pretty foolish." the floodgates just opened to massive economic growth and optimism. So what am I doing? Well, I'm investing and trying to find solid opportunities for my investor club. I'm never sitting on the sidelines anyway. Something is always for sale. And if you want no correlation with the markets at all, there is always life settlements. But market exposure isn't so bad right now. Put double digit gains in a product like Velocity Plus that allows you leverage your gains but take no downside and BOOM! You're going to make some money. Anyway, we live in interesting times (isn't that a Chinese curse?) So, for better or worse, make it work for you. Kenneth Ameduri has been doing just that as a professional investor an entrepreneur. On this week's Wealth Formula Podcast, we will discuss everything from gold to cryptocurrency so make sure to tune in. Shownotes: [00:40] Introduction [08:11] Kenneth's story [13:30] 2018 in Kenneth's eyes [15:55] Politics and the economy [22:35] The precious metal market [24:45] The interplay between cryptocurrency and precious metal [31:57] Artificial intelligence technology [36:14] Investing in the booming of AI [38:21] Kenneth's Crush The Street (https://crushthestreet.com)

The Chinese word for crisis and opportunity is one and the same. I know this from personal experience. My entrepreneurial career was launched because of a crisis. It was 2009 and I had my first job out of training at a company called Lifestyle Lift. You may recall late night infomercials showing miraculous rejuvenation of aging faces. As it turns out, Lifestyle Lift was basically a facelift mill. Young surgeons like me would sign up and do 3- 4 facelifts per day. Lucky for patients, I was actually a very good surgeon and my results were as good as anyone in the organization—which covered most states and hundreds of doctors. It was my first experience being a non-resident physician and the money was more than anything I could have made on my own at that point. I made over a half million dollars in my first year out of training. At first I loved it—this was a novel concept to me. I liked operating and the more I operated, the more money I made! Understand that as a surgical resident I made $50,000 in my final year of training and it didn't matter how much I worked. After a while, though, I realized that there was a guy above me—the guy who owned the entire organization that was making A LOT more money than me and his fingers didn't hurt from operating at the end of the day. Having recently read the Cash Flow Quadrant, I started to plot my own business. In reality, I had nothing going. How many people do you know talk the talk but never pull the trigger? Anyway, that could have been me. However, my big mouth got the best of me. I talked to the wrong people who relayed to management that I was plotting a rival business to Lifestyle Lift—which seemed like a pipe dream at the time. Anyway, management was not happy with me. They already were concerned about the rocky relationship I had with the office manager who they had hired from a near bye hair salon. I was not keen on the idea of this moron being my "boss". She made me clock in and out for heavens sake! Anyway, despite being one the highest volume surgeons that Lifestyle Lift had with a virtually zero complication rate and patient satisfaction that was unparalleled in the organization—they fired me. I was shocked! I had never been fired before. I had never really failed before and this felt like failure. Anyway, I spent the next few days frantically figuring out what I would do. I had a newborn and no job. I had some money saved up but not enough to last that long. I had a choice. I could get another job and make $300,000 per year working for another organization. The problem with that was that I had this sickening feeling that the problem with Lifestyle Lift was not necessarily their fault. Sure I could vilify them—they were kind of an evil organization. There is no doubt about that. But most corporate organizations are kind of evil from the employs perspective aren't they? The bigger issue I had to contend with was realizing, for the first time in my life, the entrepreneur's curse. I am unemployable. I'm quite sure that had I taken another job that a similar scenario would have emerged. Somehow I would find myself in the middle of conflict with "the man" and I would probably get fired again. So I really only had one option—I had to start my own business. Now that was a journey itself that I won't describe here. Suffice it to say that at one point, I was down to my last $2000 in the bank but ultimately turned this crisis into my first multi-million dollar business. Sometimes it takes a swift kick in the butt and free-fall to get you to act on something you were meant to do. Crisis equals opportunity. Without a crisis like getting fired, it's hard to walk away from the warm comfort of the golden handcuffs. My guest on Wealth Formula Podcast had a crisis of her own a few years back—a life and death matter that made her realize that she had to make a change. The result: a multi-million dollar real estate organization and real wealth. Listen to this show because it could inspire you to make important changes in your own life. Shownotes: [00:40] Introduction [03:00] Crisis = Opportunity [14:42] Buck introduces Kathy [15:37] How did Kathy get started in real estate [23:25] Kathy's take on our current real estate market [27:50] Markets with a bad reputation [32:12] Dealing with issues on your property [35:43] The Airbnb industry [38:09] Real Wealth Network: www.realwealthnetwork.com

Why the heck did I start a podcast anyway? A lot of people ask me that. Well, it went something like this. I used to listen to podcasts all the time—most of them real estate related. But after a while, I realized a few things. First of all, even if I liked a particular podcast, a good chunk of the shows really didn't relate to me at all. For example, the shows about making a few thousand dollars flipping houses or wholesaling really were not part of my world. I was, after all, "a highly educated physician" and successful entrepreneur who had some money already. I didn't need to "escape from a cubicle". I just wanted to make more money and invest outside of Wall Street. There was NO ONE SHOW that spoke to me. On the other hand, I got so interested in investing topics that I couldn't keep my own mouth shut. My wife would take me to a party and I'd be pretty much bored out of my mind unless the conversation turned to either NFL football or the economy. Once in a while, I would find a kindred spirit and nerd out talking about investing or how to save on taxes. Over time, I realized that I had learned so much reading books and listening to podcasts that some people actually even ENJOYED listening to me and wanted to know more! Then it occurred to me—maybe I should start my own podcast. So I did. The problem was that for the first several shows, no one listened to me and life got busy so I stopped for a year or two. Anyway, about 18 months ago I decided that I was going to go all in on it so that, at the very least, I could record my own thoughts. Then a funny thing happened. People started listening. I started getting guests—some of them were even people who weren't friends doing me a favor. Before you know it, I got invited on other people's podcasts! Today, I've had up to 30K downloads in a single month. I even interviewed Robert Kiyosaki! It's really been sort of a crazy ride! Now here's the thing—when I started, I didn't really even think about making money from the podcast. It was just sort of a hobby. But then monetization became pretty easy. Businesses wanted to sponsor my show and, since I love investing, I started investor club and began my own funds. It has all been incredibly organic and, from the standpoint of the podcast itself, still doesn't really feel like work. Sounds sort of nice doesn't it? Talk about your passions and make some money doing it? That's basically what I'm doing and I'm 100 percent convinced that this is something that you should consider doing as well! Maybe you are a doctor but, unlike me, actually ENJOY talking about medicine. There are TONS of people who would love to hear you talk. You don't have to ramble on at parties to people who don't want to listen to you. You can literally talk about ANYTHING that interests you because there are others in the world, even if they don't live near you, that share your passions. Podcasts allow you to find those people, find your tribe. And here's the thing. It's technically very easy to do and you might even make some money doing it. I'm hoping to inspire you to podcast so I got my friend Paul Colligan on the show to talk about this relatively new medium. Paul has taught thousands of people to podcast and is a master at not only the technical part but also on marketing and monetization. If you think you have something worth sharing with the rest of the world, make sure to tune into this week's show! [00:40] Introduction [02:16] Why I do what I do [13:10} Buck introduces Paul Colligan [14:18] How did Paul get into podcast [20:26] The growth of podcast (www.edisonresearch.com/infinite-dial-2017) [27:12] Paul's definition of podcasting [32:03] What makes a podcast interesting and successful? [46:37] What does it take for YOU to have your own podcast? The four "M"s in podcast [51:42] Focus on your passion [53:08] The podcast advertisement and syndication movement [58:00] News of the podcast world since Paul's prediction of 2018 (www.thepodcastreport.com/134) [01:00:58] Paul's new book: How to Podcast [01:02:50] Learn more about Paul [01:04:54] Outro

I don't have an IRA or a 401K. In fact, most people I know who are higher net worth do not. You see, what I'm realizing more and more as I continue to gradually climb up this wealth ladder is that there seems to be a separate set of rules at each stop. Don't get me wrong. I don't think there is anything wrong with the traditional retirement account paradigm. It's just that there are so many other options out there that 99% of people out there know nothing about. That's one of the reasons I love doing my podcast. I feel like a special agent from the professional world spying on the ultra wealthy and bringing back their secrets to share with you—I like playing financial James Bond! Some of these products and strategies I'm learning about are absolutely mind boggling and are actually things that you could be doing yourself. One of the guys who has been teaching me about some very interesting strategies is Christian Allen. Christian has worked with ultra high net worth individuals for years and he's now helping us professionals gains some of these perks. You are not going to want to miss this week's wealth formula podcast because he is going to reveal some of unbelievable strategies on this show. Make sure you don't miss this interview—it really could change your financial life.

Robert Kiyosaki's CPA, Tom Wheelwright performed a miracle. He made me think taxes were interesting! Why? Well, most people think of taxes as, at best, a necessary evil and at worst down-right punative. But after reading Tom Wheelwright's book "Tax Free Wealth", he made me look at taxes a totally different way. As Tom likes to say, "If you want to pay less tax, you have to change your facts." The tax code has two purposes really—one is to pay for stuff—government, schools, bridges, etc. Everyone knows that one. But here's where it gets interesting. The second purpose of the tax code is for it to encourage you to invest in certain ways. For example, our dependence on foreign fossils was not good for our national security. So, the government made it incredibly tax friendly for people to allocate investments into oil and gas drilling. Now, we don't have an oil problem anymore. I had a conversation with a guy a New Year's party recently and he was really excited about the idea of a carbon tax. While I certainly am advocate for the environment, I also recognize that no one likes taxes. He'd apparently spent a lot of time on this so I asked him why not spend more time trying to figure out how to incentivize people to make green energy investments. I gave him the oil and gas example and asked him why not to push for more incentive based solutions rather than taxing. He didn't seem to like the conversation much so he sort of slipped away. That, in turn, got me in trouble with my wife who felt my challenge may have come across as confrontational. The thing is that what I've come to realize in life is that people run towards pleasure and run away from pain. Taxes are like pain and tax incentives are like pleasure. Like anything else you want to sell in life—it's all marketing. Anyway, the Trump tax over-haul is the biggest since 1986 and to understand how this will affect you, I have the perfect guy to talk about it this week on Wealth Formula Podcast—the guy that Robert Kiyosaki told me was the smartest tax guy in the world…Tom Wheelwright. Listen to this podcast because it might make you more money than anything you actually invest in over the next year.

You know, one of the interesting things about getting older is that you have the ability to look back and tell a story about yourself—to create a narrative about the moments and the people that, for better or for worse, changed the course of your life. I remember the day I decided to become a doctor. I remember the day I met my wife. I remember walking into my beach house in Santa Barbara for the first time. At the time, these moments don't seem that significant but you realize how quickly, on a day to day basis, little things happen that end up making an enormous impact on the direction of your future. For me, one of those moments came on the way back from my honeymoon in Puerto Vallarta. My wife and I got married the day after I graduated from residency in 2008 and left for a week in Mexico. On the way back, I was looking for something to read on the plane. So I found a dingy bookstore that had a handful of books in it—mostly romance novels. The only book that sounded remotely interesting was a purple book called the Cash Flow Quadrant. I didn't know anything about money at the time but I knew I was finally going to start making some after years as a broke surgical resident so I figured I'd try to learn something. At that moment, I had no idea that making that decision to buy that book in a third world airport would forever change the course of my life. I'm not exaggerating folks. My identity at that time was as an academic surgeon. I had made my mark by writing papers and book chapters. The only financial education I had in my life was a macroeconomics class that I took in the last quarter of my senior year of college just to meet a requirement—and I took it pass-fail so I could do the bare minimum. I had no interest in money and no interest in investing. Like many doctors, I thought of money as dirty and something that people with manners did not talk about. And, I fundamentally did not understand what it meant to be an entrepreneur--much less consider whether or not I would like to be one myself. I am not exaggerating when I say that reading that The Cash Flow Quadrant had no less affect on me than being struck by lightening. After all, who am I now? In order of how I view my identity: 1) I am an entrepreneur. 2) I am an investor. 3) I am a financial educator. 4) I am a husband and father to three little girls. 5) I am a Minnesota Vikings Fan. 6) I am a board certified surgeon who doesn't practice anymore. This is my stream of thought when I honestly ask myself who I am today. I was 34 years old when I finished my surgical training—the culmination of my formal education. Thousands upon thousands of hours of study and long hours in the hospital went in to create this identity of a surgeon…and now, it's number six on my list! And to be clear, the only thing I regret about this list is that I didn't get to this point quicker. We all grow up with talents—many of which we will never know. What if Wayne Gretzky grew up in Africa? It is truly a gift to be able to find your true calling. Sometimes it just takes a little bit of luck. For me, this moment of luck came when I stumbled upon the work of Robert Kiyosaki. Having him on Wealth Formula Podcast this week, for me, represents a momentous milestone in my journey. Please indulge me, and yourself, by listening to the show!

In 1593 a Dutch botanist named Carolus Clusius planted several tulip bulbs in his botanical garden and over time he proved their ability to grow in the harsh conditions of the Low Countries. Tulips were new to Europe and they looked nothing like plants the Dutch had seen. Furthermore, a virus specific to the Tulips (the mosaic virus) made them even more extraordinary. These particular tulips took years, often over a decade, to cultivate and would bloom with colors that appeared flame-like. It was a site to see. The novelty and scarcity of these tulips turned them into status symbols for a growing Dutch middle class that was seeing increased prosperity after their new found independence from the Spanish. Of course this created increased demand and, as a result, the price of tulips. Soon, the price of tulips became clearly excessive. At the peak of tulip mania, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10-15x the salary of the average craftsman—more than the price of the typical Dutch home. People were "flipping" tulips because of the appreciating market and there was even a futures market for tulips that drove prices even higher! Then one day in February of 1637, a tulip auction failed to attract buyers. It isn't clear why although some speculate that the bubonic plague kept most people home. At any rate, the merchants with tulips were thrown into a panic that resulted in a massive sell-off. In short order, the flowers became worthless. Now, every time you hear about a wild, speculative market that seems irrational, people bring up tulip-mania. So, is cryptocurrency the new tulip? A lot of people seem to think so including really smart people like Jim Rickards. Teeka Tiwari doesn't think so. He is a former hedge fund guy who has become one of the most vocal proponents of cryptocurrency in the mainstream. He is my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. Whatever you conclude, this is a conversation that you simply cannot afford to miss. I believe that distributed ledger technology and cryptocurrency will fundamentally change the world. This is the rise of the internet in the mid-90s. How, if at all, are you going to get involved? Buck

I am a refugee of the Thomas fires that crept dangerously close to my home in Montecito, CA. That's why my audio sucks on the introduction of this week's podcast. Fortunately the actual interview was done before my evacuation. As I mentioned in the introduction of last week's show, I woke up to ash on my deck and my smoke detector went off without any apparent fire. The air was clearly getting worse. So, my wife and I made the decision to drive about a hundred miles north to San Luis Obispo. That worked for a couple days until we saw smoke creeping over the mountains. It was a little eerie—like it was following us. So, we got back in the car and drove up to Santa Cruz where my wife grew up. We've been away from home living in a hotel for about a week now. Now…we didn't really anticipate being gone for this long so we didn't bring much. We were pretty stressed out and the kids could feel it. They were scared and emotional. In the midst of feeling sorry for myself, I started thinking to myself—imagine what it would be like if you had someone shooting missiles at you at the same time and you couldn't feed your kids. That's what's going on in Syria. Now how does that kind of reality affect a five year old boy's perspective? What if he sees horrible things and feels hopeless every day? How does that manifest itself in adulthood? Of course, since this is ultimately a show about money, I'm thinking about this in financial terms. If you grow up not knowing if there will be food to eat or if you have a roof over your head, how does that influence your view of the financial world as an adult? I don't think there is one answer to that question. I will tell you this, however. My dad grew up in India dirt poor—now that's poor. He started tutoring other kids in the neighborhood as a child and helped put food on the table for his family. As an adult, he came to the US in the late 60s on an engineering scholarship and he never looked back. The opportunities that he saw in this country—well, he was like a kid in candy store! I truly believe that his experience as a kid working to survive without safety nets served him well as a scrappy real estate entrepreneur who truly lived the American dream. What about the rest of us? How can we tap into our inner immigrant? It's hard. You have to imagine a world without the structure we are so accustomed to having. You have to imagine a world where simple things like clean water and a roof over your head are not guarantees. If you do this, the world seems a lot more scary. But..maybe a little bit of that perspective is healthy? After all, most of the security we feel is artificial. Take for example the concept of job security. There really is no such thing as job security. If you work for someone else, you are at the mercy of your company's financial performance. Just because you don't get to see company financials doesn't mean they don't exist. And…if you are the boss and you own the business. You know even better that there is no such thing as job security because you have likely been confronted with the prospect of letting people go and because you see your own financials go up and down! You see, behind our façade of a "secure" world is an underbelly of reality that we should be cognizant of and for which, at the very least, we should be prepared. The major difference between immigrants fleeing hardship and most of us living comfortably in this country is that many immigrants have seen the world without its makeup on and it ain't pretty. I am grateful that I have not experienced that world, but I know that it exists. Gena Lofton did not grow up in a war torn country but she did grow up homeless in this one—that world isn't pretty either. On this week's Wealth Formula Podcast, learn how Gena used her experience to leverage into the world of the accredited investor!

I cannot tell a lie… Despite the fact that I am a libertarian and seem to run in circles with some pretty depressing people: I do not see the future filled with doom and gloom. I do not believe that the United States is screwed and that you should start preparing for Armageddon. I do not believe that you need to buy a wheelbarrow to carry your cash to the supermarket in hopes of buy the last loaf of bread on the shelves. I do not own any army fatigues nor do I have a hide out place in the mountains. No…overall, I'm pretty optimistic about the world and our future. What history tells me is that we, as humans, are pretty good at adapting and are pretty good at solving the problems of our day. In 1798, Thomas Malthus famously predicted that human population growth would outpace the world's food supply and push us back into darker times. It didn't happen. Instead, we just invented some better farming equipment. Technology always moves quicker than we think it will. Look around you. Much of what you see around you technologically will be obsolete in 20 years. It reminds me of walking down the street in London with my oldest daughter when she was 4 years old. She saw a phone booth and asked, "Daddy, what's that?" Now, I am not saying that we are not going to experience some tough times. I'm sure we will. I think we are at a time in history when there will be some dramatic shifts in the world economy that will result in some fairly dramatic shifts to the world as we know it. But…I think we will land on our feet and I have no doubt that the United States of America will continue to be the envy of the world until the day I die. I don't need another passport. If the US is going down, there will be no place to hide. I know people feel otherwise, but I'm not one of them. It's probably because I am the son of immigrants who barely had enough to eat who came this country in the late 60s and became a real estate millionaire. So, I don't prescribe to apocalyptic beliefs about this world or our country. But…like a fellow Minnesotan said back in 1964, "The times they are a-changin" and to not recognize that and be ready to adapt is not very smart either. The biggest concern that I have for my children is climate change. Now I'm not going to get political here and I don't pretend to know the solution. Alex Epstein gave us the moral case for fossil fuels a few weeks ago and I don't know if he's right or wrong. But... the weather is getting funky. Can we agree on that? That was a lot of hurricanes this year, right? If you don't believe something's going on, how many thousand year storms do you need to have in one year to convince you otherwise? I'm hoping we figure this one out and maybe we will. I saw something on TV the other day about how sending a bunch of sulfur dioxide into the air could reverse global warming. That sounds great except…would that mean that everything would smell like rotten eggs? In the meantime, we've got a new reality on our hands. The weather is really unpredictable and it made me realize that survival strategies aren't just for people wearing camouflage anymore. After all, look at Puerto Rico. No electricity for how long? Houston? What if you spent a little time now on coming up with a strategy for food reserves? What about medication? Maybe you are a diabetic or an asthmatic. What would happen to you if you weren't able to get your medication for a month or two? What we've seen happen in some of these areas with big weather related catastrophes makes this all very real doesn't it? It does for me. That's why I asked Chris Martenson to come back on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. Chris is a smart guy. There is no question about that. He backs up everything he says with a tremendous amount of financial and scientific data. Given the flux of the global economy and geopolitics along with what happened to the weather this year, I couldn't think of a better person to speak to as we approach the New Year. So if you want to be prepared for all the changes that are happening in the world today, do not miss this episode of Wealth Formula Podcast!

Thousands of years ago, in the Roman Times of Christ, you would go to your local store and trade your ounce of gold coins for a nice toga and a pair of sandals—something worthy of wearing to the coliseum. Today, an ounce of gold will buy you a pretty nice suit and a pair of shoes—something worthy of wearing to the theater. Gold is money and it has been for centuries. That's a pretty good track record and that's why "gold bugs" hang on to it like they do. After all, these days we have little more than "fiat currency". Fiat currency is money that a government has declared legal tender. These days, it's paper with some ink on it. Inherently, it has no value. It is not backed by anything except for trust in the government that issues it. When you think of it, it's kind of scary right? What gives our money value is nothing more than a collective agreement that it means something. What if people started not "believing" in the currency anymore? We've seen it happen in history multiple times. Usually it is the result of hyperinflation such as seen in Weimar Germany—you remember the images of people bringing in barrels of money to buy a loaf of bread. It's hard to have much faith in currency when it literally AND figuratively isn't worth much. Why does hyperinflation occur? Well, it usually has to do with governments trying to pay off their exorbitant debts. In the case of Weimar Germany, it had to do with ongoing debts of the first World War. Today, we have 20 Trillion dollars of national debt in our country. How are we going to get out of it? Tax cuts? Listen, I love tax cuts but the idea that tax cuts are going to get us out of a $20 Trillion dollar hole is not going to happen. In the meantime, like any debt, interest has to get paid. If you aren't generating enough tax revenue to pay the interest, what are your other options? Well, you could default on the payments. That is probably not a good idea for our sovereign credit rating. Well, if you aren't going to default on the interest payments and you aren't creating enough tax revenue to pay the bills, what's left? There is only one option—make your debt worth less. How do you do that? Inflation right? Inflation erodes debt. If you dilute the buying power of your currency—just print more money—then it's a lot less painful to pay it back! Why do you think the federal reserve has a target inflation of 2 percent historically? Again, over time, if the value of the currency is less than at the time the money is borrowed, that's a pretty darn good deal for the borrower. Why do you think I love using debt in real estate so much? It's like printing your own money! And with 20 Trillion dollars of debt to pay off and a relatively stagnant US economy, do you think the powers that be might want to see inflation tick up just a little bit? Now in an economy like ours, hyperinflation like that seen in Weimar Germany, Latin American or African countries is not likely, but it certainly can pick up quite a bit. As recent as 1980 inflation peaked at 14.76 percent. Can you imagine losing almost 15 percent of your buying power year over year without a significant increase in income? Ouch! But stuff like that happens in the world of fiat currency. The US dollar, has no intrinsic value and you can print as much as you want. Say what you will about cryptocurrency, but there is a finite number of bitcoin (21 Million) and the only way it increases in value is through demand. No wonder the gold bugs are as passionate as they are. Gold is finite and has been real money for thousands of years. Owning it makes them sleep better at night. Should you own gold? That's for you to decide but if this topic is foreign to you and you have not considered it before, it's probably a good idea to listen to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast as I interview Dana Samuelson from the American Gold Exchange. ​​​​​​​Don't miss out!

Why do you believe what you believe? Are you a republican or a democrat? Are you pro-choice or pro-life? How about guns? Should guns be outlawed in the United States? Do you ever look at the "other side" and wonder if they are absolutely nuts? "How could they believe what they believe and stand for what they stand?" Do you remember when there were only facts?—Not alternative facts? Do you remember a world without a 24 hour news cycle that argued past each other all day and all night using professional pandits? Intelligent discussions--debates like those from my childhood between intellectual giants such as William F. Buckley Jr. and Gore Vidal just don't make for good TV anymore. The problem is that we have a lot of serious stuff going on these days—crazy weather, mass shootings, a short fat North Korean dictator armed with nuclear weapons and a president who tweets our foreign policy. If you are a person who likes a good old fashion debate based on real ideas, you're pretty much out of luck these days. In fact, if you think deeply about your own opinions, how often are they the product of the opinions around you rather than ones you have made through careful thought? Believe me, I am guilty as anyone else. I am often dogmatic about issues that I may not have truly considered the opposing view. One of the more pressing issues of our day is the use of fossil fuels. Now I live in California and, like most Californians, I care about the environment. My knee-jerk response is to say yes to anything limiting fossil fuel emissions. But maybe there is another way to look at the issue. Maybe there is a moral case for fossil fuels. My guest this week on Wealth Formula Podcast wrote a book making just that case. Alex Epstein is the New York Times best Selling author of The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels. Now whatever your biases are going into this show, do yourself a favor and keep and open mind. Alex is a philosopher by training and he is not only going to give you his argument, but he is also going to show you how he constructs it. Make sure to tune in to this episode. It's a unique look at an important issue.

When you listen to my podcast or read my book, you might think I am rigid about my investing. After all, the principals of wealth creation that I teach are: 1) Invest in cash flowing assets. 2) Understand how your investments work. 3) Invest in real things—things you can see touch and feel. 4) Invest in things that people need—like places to live, food, and water. 5) Use the mathematical principals of wealth creation—namely velocity and leverage. Does that mean that every time I invest in something, I do a checklist to make sure each one of these criteria is met? No—clearly not. As you may know, I am a huge fan of the life settlement asset class: https://www.wealthformula.com/life-settlement-investment/ There is no monthly cash flow there and I don't know if an insurance policy counts as something real or not. However, I do know that people who are over eighty years old and have multiple health problems die and that buying their life insurance policies at a huge discount is a pretty good bet. In that scenario, the cards are clearly stacked in my favor as an investor. When else might I consider breaking the rules? Well, I will say that over the years, as my own wealth has grown, I have realized that one of the biggest principals wealthy people use to grow their own wealth is "insider information". Now, let's be clear, I'm not talking about the illegal Martha Stewart stuff. I am talking about knowing people who are some of the top authorities in a given asset class—the people that make markets or who are truly elite operators. The wealthy know these people and find out about things ahead of time. They get their money in early in these opportunities. By the time the general public hears about the opportunity, there is little meat left on the bone. Meanwhile, the insiders enjoy massive gains and might even exit their positions while the outsiders continue to buy up scraps. Now here's the problem, as a high paid professional, might have. You make a lot of money, but just not enough. Or, maybe you make enough, but you don't live in THAT WORLD. The way you invest is no different than the way the poor and middle class do. Does that sound like you? If so, understand that you are still fodder for the market makers. You aren't an insider. Who are these market makers anyway? It's hard to get to know those people and about those opportunities if you aren't wealthy. I'm sure you suspected something like this already and I'm here to tell you that you are right! Now I'm doing my best on Wealth Formula Podcast and through this community to help you get in on some of that unfair advantage of the wealthy and hopefully you have learned things already that have opened your eyes to a whole new world. But, there are some things to which you will remain an outsider until you really start creating significant wealth and/or start living in the insider's world. That goes for me as well. There are layers to this insider thing—like peeling away at an onion. I'm further in then most but I've still got lots of layers to peel ahead of me. As you get into deeper layers of this world, the advantages become even more apparent. That's another reason why the wealthy continue to get wealthier over time. None of this sounds fair right? Well, it's not but life isn't fair. You need to focus on finding your own unfair advantages. If you prefer, you can also forget about this insider thing for now and protect yourself by simply using the fundamentals of cash flow, real asset investing, velocity and leverage to build wealth the old fashioned way. Just know, that this "insider's world" does exist and that if you tap into it, it can help you tremendously on your wealth building journey. My guest on Wealth Formula Podcast today understands this whole concept of the "insider's world" well. In fact, he has built an entire community of outsiders to try to make sense of the bizarre world and economy in which we live. Like me, he tries to help individuals who are "outsiders" get in on some of the insiders' action. His name is Nick Hodge, founder of the Outsider's Club and he is my guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. You won't want to miss this episode!

Being a podcaster is kind of unusual. Last month I had over 30K downloads (not bad) yet I only speak to a fraction of you through investor club. Even fewer of you know each other despite the fact that you have a lot in common. The good news is that I will be launching a course in the first quarter of next year that you are going to love and it will also include an opportunity to join the Wealth Formula Network--my new online community. That's where I am planning to spend a lot more of my time and to be accessible to my listeners via Facebook live and other digital hangouts. In the meantime, I want to make sure I continue to involve myself in this community as much as possible. One way for me to do that is by answering your questions. In recent months I have done that mostly through direct emails or via the Weekly Wealth Widget. This week I'm going to do it with an episode of "Ask Buck". Make sure you keep sending those questions and comments in--that's what it's all about on my end. Hope you enjoy the show!

Last summer I learned how to swim for the first time. I was an athletic kid but somehow missed that window in my life when it was ok to not know how. After all, when you are two or three years old, not knowing how to swim is par for the course--but not when you are a teenager! By that time, it became too embarrassing to go to a swim class--especially when you have a huge ego like mine anchoring you down in the water. The funny thing is that, despite not being able to swim, I really was not afraid of the water. You might even say that I had an irrational LACK of fear when it came to water. I went snorkeling all the time and loved being in the ocean. Talk about a sitting duck for an undercurrent! Now, I am 44 years old and I am at that stage in my life where I am trying to make up for some of the things that I didn't do when I was younger. So, last summer, I decided that enough was enough. I needed to get this swimming monkey off my back. After expressing my frustrations to my friend Zed Williamson, he fortuitously sent me a video of Tim Ferris talking about the Total Immersion technique created by Terry Laughlin, a legendary swim teacher. Tim, too, had struggled with swimming and despite having tried harder than me with multiple coaches and even Olympians, had failed miserably. That is, until he found Terry. Terry taught Tim Ferris to swim and Tim Ferris seemed like he was a tougher case than me. So, it became clear to me that I needed Terry to teach me how to swim. I headed out to upstate New York for 2 days of intensive training with him. Remarkably, In just 3 half day sessions over two days, Terry taught me how to swim. The way he did it was masterful. It was like Mr. Miyagi training the Karate Kid. Terry was a master who dissected out the intricacies of swimming to its basic components and that made it possible for him to teach his art to even the most hopeless of cases--Tim Ferris and me for example. I was so excited about my new skills that I asked Terry if he knew a coach in Santa Barbara that could continue to help develop my skills. As it turned out, he was planning to spend the winter in Santa Barbara anyway which was great for me. He was planning to come out in November. I couldn't wait to work with him and also have him teach my daughters the Total Immersion Technique. So, last month (October 2017), I emailed Terry to check in when he was coming to town. There had been a change of plans. Unfortunately, Terry had been fighting aggressive prostate cancer for some time and it had spread to his bone marrow. My last email correspondence with him was October 9th. He still seemed very optimistic. Sadly, I learned this week from Tim Ferris' updates that Terry passed away just 11 days after that email he sent me. Tim had recorded an interview with him just two weeks before his passing and it is the most current episode on his podcast. I encourage you to check it out. This was an amazing guy and I feel lucky to have gotten to know him. Terry was a true teacher and a master. Swimming was his art but his methodology and philosophy could be applied to just about any field--even money and investing. In some ways, I'm trying to emulate Terry. I'm trying to take something that is seemingly complex as growing financial wealth and trying to "master" it. I'm ahead of many people but I still have a great deal to learn. I'm also doing my best to teach you what I know because that is my mission. Listen, I know there are A LOT of highly educated people out there who haven't a clue about money and investing but, like me with swimming, feel embarrassed to admit it. Ego is a terrible thing--can make you drown and it can make you broke. So, if you are one of those people who feels like they ought to know more than they should at this point in their life about money--I've got great news. You don't need to get in the pool with a bunch of youngsters and admit your weaknesses. Just listen to my podcast! In fact, this week's episode of Wealth Formula Podcast is about something that VERY FEW people in the general public even know is possible--investing in real assets like real estate with your retirement account. Don't miss this episode. Start putting your money to work for you!

How our brains have evolved over time is a funny thing. The same things that make us wildly successful in life have the potential to make us miserable. This is the cruel paradox of the high achieving, high paid professional. We are strivers and we have very high expectations of ourselves. That's not a bad thing at all. I would be lying to you if I told you that I am any different. The problem is that expectations CAN make you miserable. In fact, some say the key to happiness in life is low expectations! I guess I can see that. BUT, I am not going to convince you, the high achieving professional, or me to set our expectations lower. Nor should we--we type A personalities were designed to conquer, to be tribal leaders, to push the limits for the betterment of humanity. Without people like us...we'd still be in the stone ages:) But...on the other hand, we must tame the beast within---we must identify that our expectations are dynamic. They constantly change as we continue on our journey through life. Just because you've taken down a 2000 pound buffalo doesn't mean that the hunt is over. NO! You're going to move on to the next hunt. That's the way you role. Those are your expectations. And that's ok as long as you don't confuse expectations with destination. What's your destination? Your destination is where you can find fulfillment--holistic wealth as I refer to it. We type A's sometimes have a lot of trouble it and some of us could use a helping hand to get there. Fortunately, there are some out there built to help guide us--to be our sherpa's towards the pinnacle of wealth--self actualization and happiness. One such sherpa, is my guest on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast. Her name is Dr. Colleen Crowley (www.drcolleencrowley.com) and she specializes in helping high achieving, high paid professionals find true happiness. So, If happiness is important to you, don't miss this week's episode of Wealth Episode Podcast.

Why do I advocate investing in real things like real estate and precious metals instead of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds? Because I understand them and they are, for the most part, predictable. I understand that, when I buy an apartment building, people have to pay me rent. That property might go up and down in value but as long as I've got a pretty good margin of safety, the rent and income that I receive on a monthly or yearly basis is pretty predictable. Apartment buildings are also a pretty good hedge against inflation. Rents go up in an inflationary environment and so does the value of my property. Similarly, gold is an excellent hedge against inflation. In the Roman times of Christ, an ounce of gold bought you a toga and a nice pair of sandals. Today, an ounce of gold will buy you a nice suit and a pair of shoes. Does that mean that I NEVER invest outside of the cash flowing real asset paradigm? I wouldn't say never. Again, the reason I like real assets is that I understand them and they are, to a great degree, predictable from my perspective. But that's my perspective and someone else may have another perspective that allows them to have a competitive advantage in a different type of investment paradigm. I don't begrudge anyone who uses the advantages they have to their own advantage. In fact, when I take a step back at my broader investment philosophy it is this, "invest in things where the cards are stacked in your favor". By the way, that's why I love life settlements! (https://www.wealthformula.com/life-settlement-investment/) Now I've never felt that the cards were stacked in my favor when it came to the equity markets. In fact, I really don't believe they are stacked in any retail investor's favor. We are all gamblers at the casino and the casino always wins. UNLESS--you have an "unfair advantage". I remember watching a documentary a few years back about the MIT blackjack team--basically a bunch of math whizzes who went to Vegas undercover and cleaned house by counting cards and using other computer generated algorithms to win. I'm not a gambler. But if I could count cards like the MIT Blackjack team I'd be at the casino because, again, the cards would be stacked in my favor. So how does this pertain to you? You'll find out in this week's Wealth Formula Podcast where I interview Howard Getson, the founder of an artificial intelligence based hedge fund called Capitalogix. This might be just enough to finally convince you to pull out of the markets!

The wealthy think differently than most of us-- Here's the challenge--In order to be wealthy, you must think like the wealthy! "But Buck, if I don't know how they think how can I do that?" Well, I'll tell you. You see my job on Wealth Formula is to infiltrate the world of the wealthy. Think of me as a spy like 007 stealing secrets from the wealthy and passing them on to you. That's what I love to do. Now here's something that I have noticed. The wealthy set their wealth thermostats higher than the middle class or even high paid professionals. What's a wealth thermostat? Well, tell me what kind of yearly income makes someone rich. Is it $250,000 per year? Is it $5 million per year? $100 million per year? If I ask 10 of you, you will give me 10 different answers of what you THINK is rich. Now, your answer to this question is a strong indicator of your wealth thermostat. I call this a thermostat because our minds have a funny way of making our thoughts into reality. If you think of a certain amount of money and think it's too much then it is. YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT YOU THINK IS NORMAL FOR YOU. The funny thing is that the thermostat also helps you from going below a certain level of wealth. Look Donald Trump—that's an extreme case. He was in serious dire straights in the early 90s. He was several billion dollars in debt (and not all good debt either.) But, talk about a guy with an off the charts wealth thermostat—this guy is now 3.5 billion in the black. My point--If you want to be wealthy, you have to think like the wealthy. Financial wealth comes mostly from mindset. This week's guest on Wealth Formula Podcast is another great example of the wealth thermostat at work. His name is Rod Khleif. Rod went from rags to riches then went back to rags for a while. In this week's interview he'll talk about that journey and what helped him, once again, return to the joy of riches as a successful real estate investor. Don't miss this episode!

I cannot tell a lie--in my first business I made a small fortune sucking fat from places where people didn't want it and putting it back where they wanted more! I told Robert Kiyosaki about that last April and that's how he remembered who I was the rest of the cruise. My wife hates it when I talk about this past life but it's true. Personally, I liked what I was doing for the first couple years. Listen, cosmetic surgery gets a bad wrap sometimes. To me--I was helping people get over their hang-ups. It let them NOT obsess about their looks and MOST of the time it really improved the quality of their lives by giving them confidence. But after a while, it started feeling like a job that I had to do. That's when I phased out and moved on to the next thing. These days my time is devoted to you and, from some of the kind feedback you have given me, I believe that I am really making an impact on some of your lives. The cool thing about that is that all I am doing is sharing stuff with you that I love talking about and learning. This is the best gig I've ever had! Maybe not the most profitable but its certainly been the most fun. You know...I don't know anyone who loves what they do that doesn't feel like they are, somehow, making some kind of difference. Now what about your investments? Do you care if they make an impact? I do. I feel good knowing that I am able to grow my wealth and, at the same time, make a difference in the world. That's why I love funds like American Homeowner Preservation (AHPFunding.com)-Jorge Newberry's fund that buys failing mortgages at pennies on the dollar and keeps people in their homes by renting it back to them while, at the same time, making investors a great return. My guest today has another feel good business. This time, it's a crowdfunding platform called impacthousing.com that buys apartment buildings that are underperforming in rough neighborhoods and turns them into places that anyone would live. They even provide programs to feed kids and help them stay healthy. This is my kind of business folks. Make sure to tune in to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast to learn how your money can make an impact and make a profit at the same time!

"Can you explain what internet is?" That's the question Katie Couric asked her colleagues on the Today Show in 1994 as an equally confused Bryant Gumbel looked on. Now don't you wish you knew what the internet was back then? Don't you wish you had enough foresight to see this seismic shift in not only technology but in our world? If you knew what you know now, what would you have done? Of course the easy answer is "buy google or buy amazon!" But that's not what I mean. If you knew what you know now, my guess is that you would learn everything you could about this new technology and how you could get a piece of the action. That is where we are with blockchain technology. "Block-what?" you ask in your best Bryant Gumbel voice. Exactly. Few people understand blockchain but I AM CONVINCED that blockchain technology will become as ubiquitous as the "app". Most people are familiar with blockchain mostly by a currency built on that platform called bitcoin. However, currency is just the tip of the iceberg with blockchain. Blockchain technology will fundamentally change the way we do business, make transactions, and interface with the world. And with regard to currency, it can't be stopped. Why? Because cryptocurrency lies at the confluence of a very unique place that brings libertarians clamoring for privacy, computer geeks, and anti-Wall Street/anti-central bank people all in one place. That is powerful. Now listen, I know some of you out there are saying, "Buck, I can't see it, touch it, or feel it so why should I care? After all, I should be focussing on tangible assets, right." You're right, but I'm not talking about investing in it. I'm asking you to recognize it for what is--the future. Furthermore, cryptocurrencies are no less real than the American Dollar. In fact, bitcoins are limited in number, transacted directly from one person to another, and have a decentralized ledger that makes it virtually impossible to hack. On the other hand, the US dollar can (and is) printed at will, often requires a third party to facilitate transactions and can easily be hacked or counterfeited. In fact, I will go as far as to say that cryptocurrency shares more features with gold than it does the US dollar. Now I can't explain this all to you. First of all, I am no bitcoin or blockchain expert. However, I do know enough at this point to be absolutely convinced that blockchain technology and some kind of cryptocurrency will be commonplace in our daily lives a decade from now—probably even sooner. With that in mind, this week's Wealth Formula Podcast will try to help you get up to speed on this stuff. In fact, I guarantee that by the end of the podcast you will know more than 99 percent of people out there about this brave new world of blockchain. Of course I'm not qualified to teach on this topic. That's why I got one of the world's pioneers in blockchain technology, Reeve Collins, to do it for me. Don't miss this episode!

Robert Kiyosaki opened my eyes to the notion of passive multiple income streams 9 years ago and it changed my life. Of course, my dad had been talking about "cash flow investing" since I was born but for some reason I was too dense to figure out what he meant. In the context of Kiyosaki, multiple streams of income has generally been interpreted as investing in real estate. After Rich Dad Poor Dad was published in 1997, a generation of real estate groupies was born! You couldn't help but get excited. You get a few houses or apartment buildings cash flowing, and before you know it, you are financially free, right? For those of you out there actively trying to make this happen, it is a little bit harder than it sounds, isn't it? For one, finding properties that cash flow and won't end up costing you money in the end is actually a lot of work and takes some level of expertise. That's why we have the Wealth Formula Accredited Investor Club-- to help facilitate opportunities and to help you deploy your capital. Beyond finding deals, however, there is also the challenge of not having enough capital to deploy to get you to your financial goals in a time frame that you might find acceptable. A good cash on cash rate of return on real estate is 10-12 percent. Let's break that down. You save $100K and deploy it in an opportunity that yields 12 percent cash on cash. In exchange for your $100K, you get $1K per month. If you are a $100K level investor, that extra $1K per month is probably not going to be enough to free you of your golden handcuffs. You're going to need a lot more capital over time. OR--you could find something that makes you A LOT MORE return on investment than owning real estate. You could invest in a business. Truth be told, I own four cash flowing businesses that account for the majority of my income. I certainly do own plenty of real estate and other assets, but the businesses I own are the assets that throw off the most income by far. To be clear, I consider my businesses cash flowing assets just like my real estate--multiple streams of income does not mean it all has to come from rental homes, or owning notes. Of course, owning businesses is far more volatile and risky than owning apartment building as a general rule. The key to making this strategy work, in my humble opinion, is to have a portfolio of assets with different risk/reward profiles that includes high cash flowing businesses. The problem for most people is that they do not have enough time or the expertise to start a business. There is also an initial capital cost to start or purchase a business that, if you fall flat on your face as an entrepreneur, could result in a painful financial outcome. So, as your Wealth Formula sherpa, I've been on the lookout for ways that you too might be able to participate in business ownership with relatively low financial risk and I think I may have found one. I know a handful of people who have done really well on Amazon over the years so I wanted to present this option to you--one that I might be looking into myself at some point with my eight year old daughter. To discuss the Amazon option, I invited Dylan Frost on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast. Dylan is behind thewholesaleformula.com and will tell you how to create streams of income on amazon that you can automate. Make sure to check it out! Buck

I have said on a number of occasions that Wealth Formula Podcast is NOT a Real Estate Show. So why do we talk so much about real estate? Well, for people who want to grow their wealth, there simply is no other asset class with a better track record and more upside than real estate. The Wealth Formula Principles for Wealth Creation are: 1) Invest in tangible things, not paper. 2) Invest in cash flowing assets preferentially. 3) Invest in things you can understand. Complexity is a tool used by Wall Street to siphon away your profits. 4) Utilize the concepts of velocity (ie. Re-invest quickly) and leverage to increase and amplify your returns. 5) Invest in financial education. If you are reading this, you are already working on principle #5. You can easily put in to play principles #1-4 by investing in real estate. On the other hand, if you are investing in gold, it is hard to cash flow and it is hard to use leverage. That doesn't mean you shouldn't invest in anything that does not follow these five principles. As long as you know the rules, by all means, break them. I break them all the time. I own gold. I own life settlements. There's a reason for them all. But the majority of my investments outside of my businesses are in real estate. And, if you want my opinion, that's what anyone wanting to build wealth over time should have as their PRIMARY investment focus. Of course, it is very important to learn about real estate if you are going to use it as a primary investment vehicle and we certainly talk about it on this show. That said, who better to learn more from about real estate, than the Real Estate Guys themselves! Of course the Real Estate Guys are also known as Robert Helms and Russell Gray—a couple of good friends of mine. Robert was on the show a while back ago talking about a luxury resort in Ambergris Caye, Belize that many of you, through investor club, know about and may even be invested in already. Russ is the other half of that dynamic duo and is our guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week. Make sure you tune in to learn why Russ thinks you should be investing in real estate now!

I have arrived to Southern California and I am now writing to you from my new office which, for the first time in Wealth Formula Podcast History, is NOT a part of my home. This time away from the show has given me some time to reflect. I do have a lot to say to you myself and sometimes the interview format does not allow me to do that. So, I have made a decision that I will do more podcasts in a format where you can hear from me a bit more. During these episodes, I hope to share with you some of my thoughts not only on financial matters but on mindset. One of the biggest barriers to financial and holistic wealth is mindset. Our mindset in turn, is influenced heavily by what we believe. In this episode of Wealth Formula podcast, I talk to you about how our educational system and conventional wisdom may have created artificial "truths" in our lives and how that might actually be destructive to the way we deal with money. Let me know what you think of the show!

When I was in high school, I used to BLAST Led Zeppelin on my drive to school. My favorite album was Led Zeppelin IV. My music tastes haven't changed much since then. In fact, my music repertoire pretty much ends 1992--the year I graduated high school. Even '92 is a bit late for most of my favorite music though. My wife, on the other hand, generally likes the newer stuff. But last month, I converted her. I had her watch a documentary on Led Zeppelin and she was hooked. Our theme song for the month became "Going to California" because of our impending move to Santa Barbara. By the time you get this message, I will already have moved. This is the last Wealth Formula Podcast episode recorded in Chicago. For those of you who have been listening to my show from the beginning, you can hear the seeds planted for this move in episode 14--almost exactly one year from today! This week's episode of Wealth Formula Podcast is reflective. If you listen to this episode and episode 14, you will see the power of goal setting in action. I feel very strongly in the idea that you must practice what you preach. If I tell you to take action and ask you why you are not living the life you want, I have to ask myself the same thing. That's exactly what I did and now I am seeing the results of that vision. How about you? What's your ideal life? How are you going to make it happen? Remember, you have to know where you're going before you make a plan to get there. Start by listening to this discussion with Zed Williamson.

Several weeks ago, I sent out a "Weekly Wealth Widget" about BASIC estate planning--the stuff you absolutely have to have to protect your family in case you die. I was amazed at the high percentage of people who did not already have this information. That's downright scary. Listen--no one likes to think about dying much less planning out what happens when you die. Hopefully, you live to be 120 but what if you don't? Do you have young children? What would happen to them without you or without your spouse? Before wealth comes safety and security. Safety and security should be planned with not only the here and now in mind, but also with careful consideration of the worst case scenario. This week's guest on Wealth Formula Podcast is one of our country's foremost experts in both estate planning and asset protection: Kevin Day. So, unless you are 100 percent sure you and your family are covered, DO NOT MISS this show!

I have been on a real anti-conventional wisdom kick lately if you haven't noticed. You see, I think that conventional wisdom in personal finance is a big Wall Street scam! Invest in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds for the long run? Why is that conventional wisdom? Well, who benefits if you continuously dump money into the equity markets? The market MAKERS of course! Make no mistake, conventional wisdom can be manipulated by special interests folks. Just look at the sugar industry. In the 1960s, Harvard Scientists were paid off by special interests of the sugar industry to suppress any link between sugar and heart disease. The result--the food pyramid! The food pyramid showed starchy foods like bread, pasta, and cereal as the BASE of the pyramid--the food you should consume the most. Decades later, this guidance has led to an increase in diabetes, obesity, and coronary artery disease. Like the food pyramid, dependence on the equity markets for the long term will likely have consequences to your financial health--but it will be great for the on going pillage of your money by the market makers. The market makers--ie. Wall Street and their minions, the wealth advisors, make money by taking your money. If you don't put your money in the market, they can't do that. That's why real assets like apartment building investments get labelled "alternative". Alternative doesn't sound very safe, does it? It sounds exotic and well...risky. Who wants to invest in risky stuff when your money manager can get you into a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds? Doesn't that sound safer? I could go on all day about this stuff by I will spare you the rant. Instead, I will direct you to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast interview with G. Edward Griffin, author of The Creature from Jekyll Island. If you have never heard of G. Edward Griffin, you need to listen this podcast. Hint: The United States Federal Reserve Bank is neither a government institution nor a bank!

If you haven't figured it out yet, I believe strongly that investing is a team sport. Like team sports, it can be fun and rewarding--especially when you win. I talk to investors in Wealth Formula's Accredited Investor Club all the time and often hear the frustration of those interested in investing outside of the equity markets--they have no idea where to turn. They know they want something different, but they don't know how to start. Does that sound like you? Well, I have spoken about this in the past, but the key is to find your team--or perhaps better to call it a tribe. You need to be around people who you know, like, and trust and you need to be around people who have different skill sets than you do. The power of that kind of tribe is priceless. Most of you are on an island. You are successful and live amongst other successful professionals. However, you do not buy into the conventional wisdom of personal finance that your colleagues believe in so you listen to shows like mine for alternative thinking. That's a great place to start but there is no replacement to get out there and actually meet other people of like mind. The power of tribal investing is perhaps no more evident than in the area of angel investing. Angel investing has created enormous wealth in this country. However, if you don't know what you're doing, you will get raked over the coals. The good news is that tribal investing is alive and well in the area of angel investing and, even if you have no experience at all, might be something in which you too can participate and profit from while having a lot of fun in the process. Make sure to listen to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast as I interview super angel investor David S. Rose to learn how, you too, can be an angel investor!

As many you know, I will be leaving Chicago in August to move to Santa Barbara, CA. For the last 5 years, my family and I have gone to the same beach house every August. It always ends up being the best couple of weeks of the year. So last year in August, I did a podcast from that beach called, "What is your dream and WHY aren't you living it???" It was episode 14. I was in an aspirational mood. We were having a great time again. My little girls were playing on the beach and we were eating great Mexican food every night and falling asleep to the sound of the Pacific Ocean. At one point on that trip, I told my wife it was time--time to stop making this a vacation that we looked forward to every year and to make it our life. She asked me, "Can we really do that?" and I said, "Of course we can. We can do anything we want to do." Of course, what she meant was--could we do it financially? After all, all of my businesses were in Chicago for the most part and I still went into the office at least 2-3 times per week. It was a very logical question. But--in typical Buck form, I just made the decision and decided to worry about the details later. Now, that may sound a little crazy to many of you--maybe even down-right irresponsible right? How can you just make a decision to move before having a clear plan on how to get there? Well, I would actually argue that the way I went about things was the right way to do it. If you decide to go somewhere on vacation, what do you do first? Do you first figure out where you want to end up or do you start the process by looking for airline tickets? Obviously you've got to know where you want to go before you figure out how you are going to get there. Similarly, I just decided that we were going to move and I had a year to figure out how to make it happen. The podcast I did was mid-August last year and we will be moving almost exactly one year to the date. You see, most of the limitations we see in our lives aren't real. We make them up for ourselves and then we believe them. It's a terrible problem that most people have to some degree. The problem is that, if not recognized, these artificial limitations can keep us from meeting our potential or simply being happy. There is no one who knows this better than, this week's guest on Wealth Formula Podcast, Dean Graziosi. He is truly a rags to riches story and he is one of the most inspiring people I have ever met. DO NOT miss this episode! Buck

I have a lot of people in Investor Club who lend to flippers. These notes pay pretty well--I hear over 12-15 percent on a regular basis. These investors ask why they would ever invest in anything with less return. It's a fair question but there is a very good answer. When you lend to people who flip homes, you are investing in a business NOT in an asset. Investing in businesses is inherently riskier than investing in an asset such as real estate. As a guy who starts businesses, I know that instinctively. I have had businesses that threw off 7 figures of profits one year then were in the red the following year. The multiple variables involved with businesses such as markets, competition, and management make it a much more volatile endeavor than investing in an apartment building where people have to live--hopefully you can see the difference. It is also from my experience as a guy who starts businesses that I have noted that there is often hidden variables within a business that dictate their success that people from the outside cannot necessarily identify. With some of my businesses, this relates to my own instincts as a marketer and directing our marketing initiatives. If I sell a business that relies heavily on my special skill set, the person buying it has to be able to make up for that special skill set or they may not see the same results. Suffice it to say that that knowledge has kept me from purchasing businesses as investments. My conclusion is that I am better off starting businesses from scratch. The exception to this thought process is buying a larger business. For example, a business with a $50 million revenue with management in place sold by a passive owner might be appealing. The problem is that a business like this might have a yearly profit of $10 million and therefore might cost me $50 million to purchase. I don't have that kind of money--yet. It might be something we do as a syndication in investor club at some point however. If you're a savvy investor, you probably noticed that I used a multiple of 5X times profits to determine the cost of this theoretical business. For businesses, that would not be out of the ordinary. Is that high or low compared to real estate? Well, D class apartment buildings (no money no credit crowd) might be trading at around 10X profits AKA a cap rate of 10--so that building with a net operating income of $10 million might be worth $100 million or more compared to the $50 million you paid for a solid business. In other words, if you know what you are doing, buying businesses can potentially be very profitable. It is something that I have not done but almost certainly will do in the future. My guest on Wealth Formula Podcast this week, Victor Menasce, has a lot of experience in this area. I invited him on the show to tell us a little bit more about buying businesses. Make sure to tune in--you never know when you might learn about your true calling as an investor!

In 1789 Benjamin Franklin wrote, "Our new constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." Well, if you have paid attention to any of my emails and posts in the last couple weeks urging you to download a report and watch a webinar from my friend, Tom Wheelwright, then you know that statement from Ben Franklin may only be partially true. Tom Wheelwright, who also happens to be Robert Kiyosaki's CPA has shown how it is quite possible to legally NOT pay taxes. If you did not take advantage of this information, then that's your loss. But I can tell you from personal experience that what Tom Wheelwright is TRUE! On the other hand, as of 2017, DEATH IS STILL GUARANTEED. I can tell you this with some confidence, because I am a physician :) And if you think that life expectancy always increases, you are wrong. For the first time since the 1990s, Americans are dying at a faster rate, and they are dying younger. Americans are also sicker compared to people in other "rich" countries and in some states, progress on chronic diseases like diabetes has actually reversed. I have my theories on why this is happening but suffice it to say that it is. Now, when we think about investing, we often like to know what the "guarantee" is. What is the investment secured by? We don't want our investments to be unsecured. That's why it's nice to invest in something that is correlated with something real, like real estate, on which we can hang our hats. Now, what if you could invest in something that was backed by something guaranteed more so than any real estate or other tangible asset--something that was guaranteed in all economies, good and bad and regardless of the equity or real estate markets? Well, it is possible to do that. You just have to invest in something that is guaranteed by death. That may sound morbid to some of you, but the richest people in the world have been using a technique for decades unknown to the rest of the 99.99 percent of us that might be the ultimate investment hedge--it's an asset class called life settlements. Sound interesting? Then, listen to this week's Wealth Formula Podcast, and become one of the very few people on the planet to know about this unique asset class!

The other day, I was speaking with a member of investor club and he said that it was very hard for him to look around and see funds (like AHP) that were offering double digit returns and take them seriously. He was comparing them to the low single digits of dividends in the equity markets. If double digits were available to people outside of the markets, why in the world would people buy bonds, he wondered. I actually hear this more often then you might think. Why? Because we have been brainwashed by Wall Street! They want you to think that getting returns higher than 4-5 percent is associated with only HIGH RISK INVESTMENTS. I know fund managers that could and would pay out double digits to their investors but don't because they do not want their funds to be perceived as "too risky"! Folks--you are getting ripped off and you need to wake up. How do I know that you can make high returns with low risk? I OWN ZERO STOCKS, BONDS, AND MUTUAL FUNDS and I'm doing pretty well! But don't listen to me. Listen to Richard Wilson on this week's Wealth Formula Podcast. Richard is the founder of Family Office Club and works with $100 million plus net worth families. When you listen to what he has to say, compare it to my message and come to your own conclusion.