The Money Advantage Podcast

Do you want to accumulate reserves and investible capital where it’s safe and liquid, so you have the cash to invest in the widest range of circumstances? Come behind the scenes as we talk about our Marshall Family Bank in real-time.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmDrsECWJ8Y Today, we’re talking about our recent whole life insurance policy conversion with a 1035 exchange. We’ll discuss the original policy and what prompted the conversion. We also cover how we structured the new policy, what riders we added and why, and our updated cash value, dividend, and death benefit performance. So, if you want to see exactly how we’re growing our family bank to continue today… tune in now! Table of contentsHow We Started the Marshall Family BankThe First PolicyWhy the 1035 Exchange?What is Demutualization?How Does a 1035 Work?The Old vs. New Marshall PolicySo Why a 1035? Execute TodayBook A Strategy Call How We Started the Marshall Family Bank The Marshall Family bank had to start somewhere, so we want to start by sharing our beginnings with you. Originally, we gravitated toward whole life insurance because we were between opportunities. We were also seeking a safe place to store our cash. This was about 9 years ago. Liquidity was one of our top priorities because we were saving almost 50% of our W-2 income in precious metals, which lacked the liquidity we needed. We still have precious metals in our portfolio today. However, after saving such a significant portion of our income, it was clear that better liquidity would be beneficial. This compounded with the realization that we needed some diversity in our assets since precious metals rise and fall in value.  It was about this time when infinite banking crossed our radar. We were searching for more liquidity and safety. The idea was appealing because we recognized the long-term benefits of a cash flow system. [2:55] “This was when we really sunk in our teeth to the idea that whole life insurance can be a place to store cash, it can be specially designed as infinite banking to have the capital reserves, grow cash value, pay dividends because it’s a mutual policy, and also have a death benefit that transfers your legacy. And we’ve had an evolution, over the course of our life, of recognizing we also need to have human life value, which means having as much death benefit as we can have.” The First Policy With our first policy, we didn’t yet have the long-term vision we have now. Sometimes we didn’t pay the full premiums, and we added PUAs where we could. However, we are thankful we got started at all, rather than waiting. It still helped us to be in a better position than we would be without it. In fact, we used the policy frequently while we had it. This policy was a $10,000 annual premium, insuring Lucas. We used it for several loans over the years, including our business and real estate investing. We’ve paid these loans back, and it’s been a great storage tank for the capital we have.  In the time since we started this policy, we’ve learned a significant amount about policy design and structure. It’s because of our knowledge that we decided to do a 1035 exchange of our first policy into a new life insurance policy.  Why the 1035 Exchange? One reason that whole life insurance can be a great tool for wealth storage and building is that it’s flexible. If your income increases, you can get another life insurance policy and keep your others intact, effectively building a portfolio of policies. This is one reason we thought it would be interesting to have this conversation since we did a 1035 exchange instead of simply starting a new policy. [8:40] Bruce: “Very rarely should a person 1035 a whole life policy to another whole life policy—unless they have specific reasons for doing it.”  Some of the reasons people 1035 whole life insurance into other whole life insurance are:  To receive better service from a new life insurance company,More death benefit, Better (or different) policy design. However, when you do a 1035 exchange, you're starting a new policy altogether. That means you're starting from ground zero in terms of building cash value and liquidity. You may also end up reducing some of the benefits. This is why, for many people, 1035 is not ideal. One reason we sought a 1035 exchange for this first policy was to benefit from a different policy design. Like we said, we began our first policy with less knowledge than we have now. We might have done some things differently, otherwise. Now, the Marshall Family Bank has a defined purpose. So, we want our policy to be in alignment with that purpose going forward.  We also moved to a life insurance company we had more faith in. We’ve never been afraid that the death benefit would disappear. However, we prefer to stay with a mutual company, and we wanted to avoid the possibility of our company demutualizing. While it’s hard to say for certain whether that will happen, sometimes there are signs in how the insurance company operates and handles their own money.  What is Demutualization? A mutual life insurance company is a company that is owned by the policyholders. Mutual companies pay dividends to the policyholders because they are partial owners. When a company demutualizes, it often means it’s bought out by someone else, and it becomes a stock company. As you can probably guess, this means the company becomes owned by stockholders and pays dividends as such.  The infinite banking concept works so well with mutual life insurance companies in part because of the dividends. After all, they support uninterrupted compounding and help policies grow. Bruce experienced this with one of his policies, where a company demutualized. Although he stopped earning dividends, he decided to keep the policy rather than 1035 into a new dividend-paying policy. He kept his policy because he started it when he was young, so his leveraged death benefit was really high. For him, it was worth keeping in place for the death benefit alone. This happened in the 90s, and the policy is still strong. How Does a 1035 Work? When you’re starting a 1035 exchange, you start the process the way you would when you’re purchasing a new life insurance policy. In other words, the application process is the same. During the discovery process, you list your existing life insurance policies. During this stage, you can determine if you want to do a 1035 exchange on any of your policies. This means you would use the cash value from an existing policy to pay for paid-up additions, with no tax ramifications. (If you just liquidate the policy without an exchange, you would pay income tax on the amount above premiums paid into that policy.) When you do a 1035 exchange, you pay your premium first. Then the company initiates the exchange of funds into the new policy. There’s a set amount of death benefit you can get, based on this premium. Because the policy is paid up, you have access to a high cash value, the same way you would with the original policy. Then the company sends a letter to the previous company, giving them 90 days to transfer the policy funds.  At this point, the original company will send you a letter asking you if you’re sure. This letter lists the benefits you are giving up. If you’re working with an advisor or advisory board on this process, you have probably already discussed the pros and cons of this choice. Then, you must respond to the letter, giving your consent to transfer the funds. At this point in the process, you need only wait for the company to transfer funds. The process takes some time so that all the legal bases are covered.  The Old vs. New Marshall Policy Our initial policy in the Marshall family bank was $10,000 a year in premium. Since we hadn’t fully funded the policy, it wasn’t performing the way it was projected.  At the 9-year mark, we were in the ballpark of about $61,000 of cash value, and about $445,000 of death benefit. We didn’t reach the “break even” point because we were not maximally funding our policy. At this 9-year mark, we decided we wanted to start paying $20,000 in premium. So we applied for the new policy, paid our initial premium of $20,000, and then worked on the 1035 exchange to move the $61,000 over. We used this $61,000 of cash value to make a single premium payment that went into the policy as a paid-up additions rider. In the first year of the new policy, what we’re looking at is a new total death benefit of about $827,192. The original policy had a death benefit of $445,000, so there’s a significant increase in total death benefit. But, it’s interesting to note that in this new policy, the money transferred only contributed to $150,000 worth of the new death benefit. So there’s a loss that occurred in that transfer, even if the total death benefit increased.  Part of the reason there’s a loss is due to age. $60,000 of single premium buys less death benefit the older you get. This is just a function of life insurance and the actuarial data that goes into the cost calculations. So Why a 1035?  In part, we felt that the knowledge we’ve gained about policy design would be put to better use in a new policy. We believe that in the long-term, this new policy will do more for our family-banking system and our money’s purpose than our original policy.  We’re also comfortable making this decision because we have other life insurance in place, and are seeking to insure up to our human life value, including term insurance. In other words, we have a foundation that allows us to make an informed choice like this. If this was our only policy, this may not have been the ideal solution.  The design of our new policy has ensured that we can pay as much premium as possible for as long as possible. We also want more safety and liquidity,

How do you get life-changing transformation and master the game of business? Joe Evangelisti has built an 8-figure empire and has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and business owners to cross the 7, 8, and 9-figure mark. Interested in being the next 7-figure business? Don't miss this opportunity to learn from one of the greats. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_d_IsQBXhtM To find out how to pivot to unlock your true potential, put aces in their places, and develop a winning culture… tune in now! Table of contentsLife-Changing TransformationMindset TransformationHow to Build ConfidenceCreate a 7-Figure Business by Getting a LifeDon't Be the ArsonistHow to Get Started Building a TeamHow to Be a Team LeaderWhat Does it Mean to Pivot?The Power of Aces in Their PlacesFostering Company CultureStrong Leaders Create Strong LeadersHow to Live Life NowConnect with Joe EvangelistiAbout Joe EvangelistiBook A Strategy Call Life-Changing Transformation Joe Evangelisti is a master of transformation and doesn't let the circumstances drag him down. In fact, his early business experiences have primed him to find opportunities in what others might consider dire circumstances. [4:00] “I was lucky I got into real estate in 2007, which a lot of people were in real estate back then. It was kind of a weird year to get involved in it, but it taught me a lot. Because we thought we were going to hit the ground and flip dozens of houses and make tons of money, and it couldn’t have happened any differently, right?”  Joe got into the real estate market with his own cash and was already two or three properties deep when the market crashed. Yet, he credits this time as teaching him valuable lessons in how to pivot and course-correct his investments in order to make lemonade out of lemons.  [5:00] “I think early on in my career, the first five or six years, it was just a matter of putting all of my time and effort into hustling, grinding, and figuring out until I nearly had a burnout in my early 30s and realized hey, this isn’t the way to do it.” Mindset Transformation It was this shift in mindset that Joe credits with helping him build the multiple successful businesses he has today. It's the same mindset he's helped others adopt to build their own 7-figure businesses and beyond. First, he recognized that there doesn’t have to be an endless grind with no satisfaction. Secondly, he learned that you must also be the kind of motivated person that can find and create solutions no matter the odds. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs Joe can identify have been through some of the most terrifying financial scenarios, and come out on top because they’re able to see it through and course correct.  [7:20] “The characteristic that I see in real winners is the fact that they just don’t ever stop. Right? They don’t ever give up, they just keep pushing no matter how bad things are.”  How to Build Confidence [8:10] “One of my strong unique abilities is the ability to get people to recognize not only their authenticity but the value they bring, right? I think that the challenge that so many entrepreneurs have is they’re trying to be somebody else. They’re trying to be somebody they’re not. When you can recognize your own brand, your own authenticity, what your own value is, what you can bring to the table, what is the byproduct of that? The byproduct of that is confidence. When people give up, what they’re lacking is confidence.” Joe asserts you maintain your confidence by maintaining your identity because confidence comes from authenticity. And all people have an innate ability to recognize authenticity. It shows when you're donning a facade, or being someone you're not. Joe even goes so far as to say that vulnerability can help you be more authentic. The problem is that so many people are afraid of being open and vulnerable. If you want to create real, human connections with clients, business partners, and even team members, try opening up and being more vulnerable about who you truly are. Create a 7-Figure Business by Getting a Life So what do you do, as an entrepreneur, if your life is not about the grind? Can you truly build a 7-figure business without working yourself 24/7? Well, Joe's true secret to success is about finding balance. Entrepreneurs typically become entrepreneurs so that they can live a certain lifestyle. Joe realized after about 5 or 6 years that he was throwing away that life by dedicating every waking moment to the “hustle.” He was losing out on family time, not taking care of himself, and overall just not living the life he envisioned for himself when he started. [13:08] “I thought to myself: I’m not taking care of myself, I’m not taking care of others, who am I taking care of? What’s the point of this? And that’s when it all kind of culminated, to me, and I realized if I can be that productive in three hours, why do I take fourteen hours to do it?” Eliminating the "grind" begins with redefining productivity. You have to ask yourself, what does a productive workday really look like? We typically look to the outside world to define this, but it's actually crucial to look inwards. Be brutally honest. If you can do something in less time, more efficiently, isn’t that the more productive thing? It’s not about hours spent, it’s about things accomplished. Joe calls this “creating decades and turning them into days.” In other words, making your work life efficient, so you don’t wake up in ten years and wonder what you’ve done with your time and where the years have gone.  Don't Be the Arsonist [13:45] “The secret behind it is, these fires, these busy people that are always patting themselves on the back…they’re secret arsonists, right? They’re behind the building and they’re lighting it on fire, so the next day they can come to work and they can put it all out and say they did a great job. But busy does not necessarily mean productive, and I think it’s the biggest challenge that a lot of people face. They feel like they’re busy, but they’re not actually moving the needle, they’re not getting any closer to their goals.” In some ways, the way our society views retirement feeds into this mindset. Many people believe that they should spend their working years grinding in order to retire. However, this can lead to an imbalanced lifestyle. Too many people miss out on the important things that happen during this stage, they miss out on life, and the relationships and experiences that are possible. But what if you dared to ask, what happens if you set your life up so that you forget to retire? How to Get Started Building a Team Breaking away from the mindset that being busy means being productive is hard. It’s also hard to outsource work you don’t enjoy, usually because it’s hard to accept that you should. After all, you're capable of doing the work. But just because you can do something, doesn't mean you're the right person to do it. Resist the urge to keep doing tasks you don't love just because you can. Building a team where everyone is working in their unique ability is the beginning of your journey to scaling your business. So where do you get started? Joe says the 80/20 rule is a good place to start. What is the 20% of your work that generates 80% of your revenue? If you can identify this, then you identify what you can do more of. By extension, you identify the things you can do less of, and therefore offload to a team member who may be more skilled, or desire that kind of work more. How to Be a Team Leader To be an effective team leader, Joe says you must learn to lead yourself. So many entrepreneurs attempt to hire a team too soon, and end up feeling like they’ve been burned. Joe asserts that these types of mistakes occur when you haven’t started your team by leading yourself. What does this mean?  [21:35] “In order to be an impactful leader for a team, we have to be an impactful leader on ourselves, right? We have to control our schedules, we have to control our routines and rituals, we have to control our mindset, we have to control our attitude and how we’re showing up to meetings, and how we’re showing up to everything in life. Once we control that side, now we become somebody that people want to follow, that people want to emulate, that people want to become a part of your vision.” And this isn’t a static goalpost, it’s actually something to work on continuously. You can always become a better leader for yourself and, by extension, your people. Even Joe still works with his own coach.  [23:40] “I’m improving every day–-I have coaches, you know? Like I don’t just coach, I’m getting better every single day. I was on the phone yesterday with my coach for two hours. So I think that it’s important to realize that learners are leaders and leaders are learners. We’re constantly… evolving.” What Does it Mean to Pivot? We’ve talked about the need to “pivot” when, as an entrepreneur, things don’t go as planned. What does that mean? Well, Joe points out that a staggering number of businesses fail. And many of these failures seem to stem from being unable to pivot in bad times. There’s a common mindset that some businesses can only operate one way. If it doesn’t work out, then there probably isn’t another way to do things. This, however, is a limiting view that keeps business owners stuck. [24:45] “Bruce really touched on this earlier. What do great leaders do? They learn how to take decisive action when they get hit with a roadblock or an obstacle or a speed bump… The good news is, for most business owners is obstacles are the adversity that a lot of times will actually plant the seed of opportunity for you.” Covid is a great example of an opportunity for many business owners. Of course, there are some business models that really had little room to pivot. However,

This week we have the pleasure of joining James Neathery on his podcast, Banking with Life. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTr7vMxoyQU If you want to better understand the importance of life insurance as a foundational tool, and how it integrates into a family banking system...tune in now! Show Notes: 0:00 James Neathery introduces The Money Advantage team: Rachel Marshall, Lucas Marshall, and Bruce Wehner.  3:00 The more quality information about infinite banking and finance out there, the better. Separating the noise from the truth.  5:40 Rachel shares how The Money Advantage team met Nelson Nash, author of Becoming Your Own Banker. 8:15 Lucas touches on the importance of the IBC and life insurance industry sticking together and applying the principles of legacy to create a broader sense of community.  11:30 James says. “Every business has a ferocious need for capital and cash flows.”  12:15 What is family and heritage, and how does money impact that? How does it contribute to generational wealth? 12:55 How the Marshall family implements a family banking system, and how this system has adapted over time.  14:30 How do you ensure that your legacy and money are used in accordance with your family values? 16:30 The benefits of a family banking system over time. 19:30 The benefit of being surrounded by like-minded, entrepreneurial people.  20:20 Where to store your capital for safety and liquidity. 21:25 What is a leveraged-up death benefit, and why is it so profound? 24:15 Bruce shares why he decided to open a life insurance policy on his father.  28:25 What does it mean to have a family enterprise, and how can you be successful? 29:15 What is the “rugged individualist” in the financial industry? How do you move toward a family-focused financial system? 33:15 IBC in theory versus in practice. 35:00 Infinite banking starts at the idea level: you have to reconcile the idea with your finances first. 38:15 The reason you want to step into the role of the banker is that it gives you control. Control gives you options.  40:15 The power of how Nelson Nash taught IBC. 41:50 How people form their opinions on whole life insurance.  45:10 How do you handle people who challenge your understanding or beliefs?  48:30 “Most people’s understanding of life insurance is based on someone else’s misconception.” 49:45 The importance of a solid financial foundation. 53:00 Being available versus being on demand.  54:00 Working with ideal clients. 55:45 The Fed doesn’t understand banking.  1:03:20 Closing thoughts. Book A Strategy Call Do you want to coordinate your finances so that everything works together to improve your life today, accelerate time and money freedom, and leave the greatest legacy? We can help!  Book an Introductory Call with our team today https://themoneyadvantage.com/calendar/, and find out how Privatized Banking, alternative investments, or cash flow strategies can help you accomplish your goals better and faster. That being said, if you want to find out more about how Privatized Banking gives you the most safety, liquidity, and growth… plus boosts your investment returns, and guarantees a legacy, go to https://privatizedbankingsecrets.com/freeguide to learn more.

Where do you start in navigating a clear path to impact and income? How do you make money online? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipnicQQZvkk Brian Dixon says to start with your people. He’s the marketing mentor and business coach who helps you get the clarity to grow your business. So if you want to create a sustainable business, market with confidence, and make money authentically … tune in now! Table of contentsStarting Your Entrepreneurial JourneyStart with Value to Make Money OnlineYour Past Can Direct Your FutureBrian’s 3 Steps to Finding PurposeThe Power of a Growth MindsetConnect with BrianAbout Brian DixonBook A Strategy Call Starting Your Entrepreneurial Journey One of the great things about entrepreneurship is that you can start anywhere, with anything. The world has need of many types of people. Brian Dixon's journey began with music. Aside from writing and performing music, Brian learned how to cold-call venues… and he enjoyed it.  [4:41] “That for me was like my first entrepreneurial journey; [it] was just being the guy that went and got the gigs for the bands. And then I’m like, ‘Wow, people come to the show, so let’s sell them something.’” Brian’s music journey helped him become a better entrepreneur and taught him the skills needed to provide value to his people. For example, playing gigs helped him learn what kind of merchandise people wanted. This is how you grow a business: find something you love, and learn how to market and grow that into something that creates value for the audience that loves and wants what you offer. Start with Value to Make Money Online The key to creating a valuable online business is to do or create something that people want. It’s the secret to all businesses. Money follows value because money represents value. One of Brian’s early businesses began as a way to help the people close to him. In fact, it wasn’t even designed to be a business. He just saw a need for something in the world and made it.  [10:32] “My wife and I took spring break that year and instead of going on vacation, which was well earned working with middle school kids, we decided to stay for a week, for all of spring break, pull ourselves up into the video studio at the school, and we filmed a DVD. And it was called ‘The Internet and Your Kids: Healthy Habits for a Safe Online Home…’ I didn’t even think it was a product yet…I just want[ed] to help these families.” Brian and his wife simply made the DVDs because they saw that it would help relatives, parents of students, and the students themselves. They sent the files to a print-on-demand company, ordered a few for the classroom, and next thing they knew they had made their first $800.  Your Past Can Direct Your Future [16:06] “I just fell in love with the idea that I have a message that matters, but you have a message that matters. And I can make a bigger dent in the universe, right, I can make a bigger impact in my lifetime when I help other people figure out how to take the message out of their heart and out of their head and get it onto the web.” The answer to your purpose, Brian believes, is to look to the very things you or your loved ones have overcome, because chances are there are other people with those same struggles who need to get where you are. [18:56] “I’d say you have to mine your past for diamonds. You look back and you go, what is it that I have overcome? What is it that I have struggled with, or somebody that I love and know has struggled with, and I helped them?” Brian’s 3 Steps to Finding Purpose When Brian helps clients find their own voice and business, he uses a three step process to unearth their message. The first step is to identify the pain points that you have experience solving. Then, you find the promise, or the promised land. You might be there right now. As Brian puts it, the ‘you’ who was experiencing the pain in the past wants to be where you are now, on the other side of the problem.  The third step is to identify the path to get to the promise. In other words, you know the pain you’ve experienced, you know what’s on the other side of that pain. Now you just need to retrace those steps to guide others along that path too.  Once you know your “3 Ps,” Brian suggests sharing it for free. Talk about it on social media, and connect with people with who your message resonates. Eventually, a next step will reveal itself; people will reach out and ask you how you did it.  [22:07] “You can help people who are stuck where you used to be stuck. And you’re the best case study because you’ve lived it, like you’re still here today, and that’s awesome.” The Power of a Growth Mindset Brian shares in building his own business, he found early on that he wasn’t getting repeat clients. After some time, he decided to send out a survey to his contacts for feedback. Surprisingly, a lot of his feedback was that he wasn’t focused enough on relationships. So he used that feedback to really nurture his clients.  What really drove Brian’s growth, though, was that he had the ability to separate feedback from personal attack. In other words, the responses to his survey were not about his character flaws. The feedback simply represented how Brian was showing up for clients, and it wasn’t in the way that many of them wanted. So he adjusted. We can all be more growth-minded if we detach our ego from our business and simply look at our ability to show up and solve problems for people in the most effective way possible.  Of course, there’s a balance to strike. Some people may find that their business is too relationship-driven for some clients, and it takes longer to get down to business. Knowing who you are and how you get results is as important as showing up for clients in the ways they need you to.  [39:01] “I think if I end up at the top of the mountain and the top of my industry, but I burned all these bridges along the way, that’s not success. In the same way it’s not success if my kids hate me, it’s not success if my clients hate me.”  Connect with Brian Brian Dixon brian@briandixon.combriandixon.com/blueprint1-6194567579 About Brian Dixon “And I believe that you were made for a purpose. By clarifying your calling, discovering your audience, and creating your products, you can navigate a clear path to impact and income. My mission is to help authors, speakers, and aspiring messengers to create a sustainable business through navigating tech overwhelm, learning to market with confidence, and making money authentically!  Your message matters! I'm here to help you share your message authentically, make money ethically, and grow your business sustainably.” Book A Strategy Call Do you want to coordinate your finances so that everything works together to improve your life today, accelerate time and money freedom, and leave the greatest legacy? We can help!  Book an Introductory Call with our team today https://themoneyadvantage.com/calendar/, and find out how Privatized Banking, alternative investments, or cash flow strategies can help you accomplish your goals better and faster. That being said, if you want to find out more about how Privatized Banking gives you the most safety, liquidity, and growth… plus boosts your investment returns, and guarantees a legacy, go to https://privatizedbankingsecrets.com/freeguide to learn more.

Why is financing with Infinite Banking better than paying cash? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzQ73xBl2TE Today, we’re answering a listener question about the Infinite Banking Concept. And we're going back to Nelson Nash's book, Becoming Your Own Banker to explain the concept. So, if you want to better understand the Infinite Banking Concept and how it helps you make more effective financial choices that put you in control… tune in now! Table of contentsAnswering a Listener QuestionHere’s Dave’s original question:The Short Answer to Financing with Infinite BankingWhat Are the Options for Financing a Car?Why Use a CD?Why You Wouldn't Want to Buy a Car With Cash?The Math of CompoundingIs Financing with Infinite Banking "Paying Yourself Interest"?How is This Method Not a Wash?What Insurance Has that Cash Alone Does NotBook A Strategy Call Answering a Listener Question We love to see what our community is saying, and answer any questions. Recently, we had an insightful question from a listener named Dave. Dave's done the homework and read up on Infinite Banking. His question gets to the heart of the concept, so we wanted to dedicate some serious time to answering it.  Here’s Dave’s original question: "...I do have a question regarding the chart and explanations on page 41 where Nelson Nash discusses the different ways to purchase a car. Methods A, B and C are very familiar to me, but method D and E are new concepts to me. It never occurred to me that I could purchase a car using the Bank C/D method, which shows to be superior to paying cash.  Since this is the banking "concept,” but just using someone else's bank I think it is important that I understand how this works and I am just not quite grasping it. I think it would be helpful to me if you could explain and provide examples of how the Bank C/D method works and why is it more effective than paying cash. I can see from the chart that it is obviously better, but I just don't totally understand why. Somewhere I am missing something in my understanding of this concept and I'm not learning it very well from the book. Maybe I am just not seeing the math the same way and it doesn't seem to be explained very well in the book, at least to me.  If I store money in a bank and earn interest, but take out a loan from the bank to make a purchase isn't it a wash?  Where is the leverage and how does that benefit me?  Is it because the interest rate on the C/D is higher than the borrowed interest rate? I know that you have recently been answering questions on your podcast and I hope you will find it worth your time to address this one. It seems to be at the center of how this concept works and once I understand that I think I may have a breakthrough in my understanding. Thanks for your time and effort.” The Short Answer to Financing with Infinite Banking Dave’s question is a great one that really addresses why someone would use infinite banking. We think, first of all, that what Nelson Nash did with his book is create options. There are different reasons, both personal and economic, to finance a car with each of his examples. However, leveraging a life insurance policy is often not considered among all the options. Primarily for the reasons that Dave brings up in his question–people aren’t familiar with it, and it can seem complicated.  The short answer is that using life insurance to fund a car allows you to take advantage of uninterrupted compounding. Because while you may pay interest on a loan, you’re also earning interest on the full value of your cash value. This means that you can both take advantage of capital without losing the momentum of your accumulation account's ability to earn interest and grow. [8:52] “Nelson used to always talk about this: It’s not about the rates of return… it’s about who’s controlling the banking function.” The person who controls the banking function has the flexibility. While a principle of infinite banking is to be a good steward of your account and pay loans back diligently, a policy loan does have flexibility. With a bank loan, you cannot decide to lower your payment or skip your payment without a penalty. If you wish to do so with a policy loan, you can. Being the banker gives you power.  What Are the Options for Financing a Car? We’d like to reiterate that the point of Becoming Your Own Banker is not to share the “only” way to do things. Instead, it reveals options and helps expose the pros and cons for each. For example, leasing a car can be the most expensive way to finance a car. And at the end of the lease, you don’t own the car. However, a lease can enable you to drive a car outside of your typical means. While we aren’t recommending this, it’s simply an option. The problem with leasing a car, however, is that there can often be a lot of unknown costs. Most leases, for example, have a mileage cap. Driving over that cap can incur expensive fees, which take many people by surprise.  Other than leasing a car, you can also finance a car through a bank loan, or you can pay in cash. These three methods of financing are all relatively straightforward, and each have pros and cons. In terms of pure cost, leasing is often more expensive, and you typically don’t own the car at the end of the transaction. A loan may be slightly less expensive in the long run, yet you’re still paying interest. Many people see cash as the most advantageous way to buy a car because it eliminates interest payments. Yet, it doesn’t eliminate the interest “cost.” Instead, you incur “opportunity cost,” because you lose the ability to use the lump sum of cash elsewhere, including an interest-earning account.  See: The Right Way to Spend Money: Spender, Saver, or Steward? Why Use a CD? In Becoming Your Own Banker, Nelson Nash mentions using a CD (Certificate of Deposit) from a bank as a way to finance a car. This is a similar option that allows you to accumulate money at a higher interest rate than a simple savings account. Once you’ve accumulated (which is necessary for both a CD or life insurance policy), you can utilize the cash stores.  This can be a more efficient way of buying a car than paying in cash. The reason is that not only have you built up capital with which you can borrow; you’ve also created a system of money that is earning a small percentage. If you withdraw enough from your CD to purchase your car, and then continue to buy CDs that earn an interest rate–enough to “catch up” to what you’ve taken–you can combat opportunity cost.  [22:22]“The person who chooses to capitalize a bank of their own by using a CD is at least doing the capitalization. They value putting capital aside and getting that to work for them and earning a return. [They’re] not just letting it sit in a bank account, barely earning anything.” Why You Wouldn't Want to Buy a Car With Cash? If you have the cash to buy a car, why wouldn’t you just do that? This is one of the most common questions when talking about financing. After all, you can clearly see that paying cash eliminates all interest payments, right?  While many people may prefer to pay cash if they can, it’s not as efficient as many people think. This all comes down to “opportunity cost.” If you pay for a car in cash, you don’t have to pay interest, however, you also lose the opportunity to earn interest. In the right financial vehicle, this can make a huge difference. The Math of Compounding The more you accumulate, the better the compounding effect will be. If you liquidate your money in a typical savings account, you lose the ability to earn interest on that sum, and your money becomes less efficient. In the same way, paying for a car with cash can cause you to lose potential earnings. Not only does your cash lose future earnings potential—but the account you’ve drawn from also loses the momentum of compounding.  Dividend-paying whole life insurance policies, for example, can actually create a lot of opportunities for you. Let’s say that with dividends and interest, you earn about 5% on your account. Additionally, your premiums also contribute to your cash value. Every time your account increases, you’re earning on that new total. That’s the compounding effect.  The point is not just that you’re earning a rate of return with whole life insurance. The wider benefit is that your reserves are not disturbed, and yet you still have access to them. When you remove money from your savings account or CD, you are only earning interest on the remainder. With a policy loan, you continue to earn interest on the full amount of your assets, while also leveraging it for a purchase. Is Financing with Infinite Banking "Paying Yourself Interest"? [25”52] “To put this in layman’s terms, currently every insurance company except a few…are all hovering around five percent, because they base it upon the Moody Bond Index. The interest rate that you have to pay back to the insurance company. So Nelson would say, why not charge yourself eight percent, why not charge yourself ten percent?” That additional three or five percent that you charge yourself is going into the PUAs. It’s not magic, it’s simply a way to encourage you to save more money, and accumulate more efficiently. It’s important to note that you are not paying yourself interest, though you may hear this from some people. You are simply paying into the PUAs, or paid-up additions, which are an optional portion of your whole life insurance. If you’re already maximizing your PUAs, there will be no room to make additional interest payments into your policy.  [29:50] “When you borrow from your cash value in a whole life insurance policy, there is an interest rate associated with paying back that loan. The interest rate, say it’s five percent, is not interest you pay to yourself, that’s the interest you pay to the insurance company for the use of their money.”

How do you raise confident, successful, happy children who use their uniqueness to contribute the most in the world? What kind of family leadership do you need, so that you build strong families? And what is the secret to generational family wealth, really?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUGCz2R830g Parenting is one of the most complex tasks we will ever face. It can feel like a mountain of skills our kids need to gain—everything from arithmetic to writing essays to public speaking to driving to finding their passion, choosing a college, a career, and a mate, to making and managing money, and eventually raising their own family. Families with money have compounded challenges. That’s because, often, the rising generation is overlooked, falling into the shadow of silence. We’re talking with Keith Whitaker, an educator who consults with leaders and rising generation members of enterprising families. The last time we had him on the show we discussed his book Complete Family Wealth. Today we’re exploring the question: how do I parent well and teach my children to become wise stewards of wealth, so that money doesn’t corrupt them?  So, if you want to help your children to make good decisions as they decide on a college major, choose a career path, find a partner, parent their own children, use and make money, and ultimately serve as the bridge to connect families across generations, you need to hear this one thing. Tune in now! Table of contentsGenerational Family Wealth: Qualitative WealthHuman CapitalThe Three Stages of LifeCommunicating with Your ChildrenUnderstanding Your ChildrenExamining Your Ideas About MoneyThe Family BusinessGenerational Family Wealth: The Voice of the Rising GenerationYour Hopes vs. Their HopesConnect with Keith:About Keith WhitakerBook A Strategy Call Generational Family Wealth: Qualitative Wealth There's quantitative wealth, and then there's qualitative. The former is money—what most people think of as wealth. However, when looking at a unit, in the context of generational family wealth, it's critical to examine qualitative wealth. In other words, we must consider "human capital" as a part of the family's wealth. Human capital is comprised of personal strengths, passions, and skills that every human possesses. Knowing and fostering human capital as a part of the family wealth system is crucial. This is what helps our children to become well-rounded, capable, and confident people. People who can thrive and carry on the family legacy, for true generational family wealth. So how do parents help their children grow their human capital? Human Capital [5:28] “Even though the context is family, the focus is on individuals, and that goes back to another principle we have. Our own thinking about family wealth is that really great families or healthy families are made up of great or healthy individuals. So sometimes, especially in the context of large financial wealth, people have a tendency to focus on the family. Having a hundred-year family plan, having a hundred-year constitution, talking about family values–-all of those things are important, but they really pale in comparison to the importance of helping each individual in that family grow and be as healthy as strong, as confident in him or herself as can be.” Without fostering individual confidence and capability, you can have all of the documents and mission statements in the world, and they will simply be words. You must raise children who feel heard, and can develop their own unique abilities in a way that serves the family's greater purpose. Keith suggests you ask yourself what good parenting is? This question is important regardless of wealth because every family involves parenting. Only then can you layer on the aspects of parenting with wealth involved. The foundation of this conversation is good parenting, and what that looks like to you. Then you can introduce special considerations that come with significant wealth. These components combined allow you to raise children who are confident and capable. And, they can also understand the context of generational family wealth. The Three Stages of Life Once you've considered your parenting style, you must adapt to your children's needs. Keith breaks down the stages of life into three major categories—each having different needs. First, you have your young children, from infancy to about eleven years old. Then, you have children from twelve to twenty, in the prime of their school-years. Finally, you have people twenty-one and older. The first stage, parents are the major influence. Children in this stage use their parents as their primary example for behavior. At the middle stage, children begin to develop more tightly knit friendships, and their circle widens. People at this stage are firmly in their schooling years, and they have more mentors in their lives. Then, you have children who are 21 and up—they're leaving school and entering the workforce. This is the time where children become adults, and start shaping their own lives, and building families. It's the epic journey stage.  Throughout these stages, parents must navigate verbal communication–what you tell kids to do—and non-verbal communication, which is what you teach through example. For younger children, those behavioral, non-verbal communications are the MOST important. Young children watch you closely, and they pick up habits and behaviors from you at this stage. Communicating with Your Children This is an important time to ask yourself: do your actions line up with the things that you say and are trying to teach to your children? For the middle group, verbal communications are more important. However, you also have less of your children’s time and attention, so you must be more strategic. Spend more time, at this stage, being intentional with what you say to your children. Above all, it's important that your actions and words truly align with the values you say are important to you. For example, if acts of service are your greatest value, acting in alignment with that is crucial. It's how you teach your children what it means to be of service to others. The words you speak will also have a profound impact. So while it’s great to outline your values in words, as a point of reference, it's even more important to live and speak in accordance with those values. Especially in your darkest hours. This is what your children will learn from you, after all. Understanding Your Children Your children, while able to learn and adopt habits, also have their own God-given nature, or disposition. Recognizing that your child is an independent person with their own nature can help you better connect with and understand them. This is especially true if their nature is much different from yours. All children are different. And knowing your child's nature can help you instill the right habits for success in your child. Habits are learned through imitation. Therefore, the things that you do tend to have a larger effect on your children than the things you say. If you want to model good personal grooming, better eating habits, or foster a love of reading—doing those things yourself will go a long way. Your children will pick up some of your habits through imitation, so being aware of what you project is important. Next to action, speech is the weakest cause of action. We tend to over-focus on speech—in other words, what we tell our children to do or value. This, however, is the weakest compulsion to take action. Of course, words become more important as your child ages. The key is for your actions and words to match; your children will notice. Nature and habit together inform what your children do, and how they do things. The secret is to understand your children and who they are, and to develop habits in alignment with your own values that your children can pick up.  Examining Your Ideas About Money In the context of wealth, what you say and do will rub off on your children. In order to impart the wisdom of wealth that you have to your children, it’s crucial to recognize your own story about money. Do the deep internal work of understanding the factors that are driving your words and actions around money so that you can project the right messages and habits to your children. This means addressing your fears about money, fixing your relationship to money, and being very careful how you talk about it in front of your family. A scarcity mindset can even extend to non-financial topics, so practice abundance in all things. The Family Business Many families of means have aspirations for their children to join the family business one day. Keith shares an interesting insight about his approach with his family and those he consults. He shares that it's important to give children their own time before pulling them into the fold of the family business. In other words, let them make their own way for a while. If you were hiring outside the family, you'd likely be seeking someone with experience. Give your children the same leeway. First, this ensures that they can develop a sense of self outside of the family business. They'll learn more about who they are and what they want outside of the family business for the first 3-5 years of their career. Then, if they do choose to join the family business, they can come back into the family fold with confidence and certainty that they’re a good fit for the job.  This is much better all-around for children–it eliminates entitlement and also lets children know that they are still of value if they choose a different path. This also gives your children the space to learn how to make it on their own. This is knowledge that can only help them. Generational Family Wealth: The Voice of the Rising Generation When wealth is involved, how do you keep from overshadowing your children?

Many people believe that money is the root of all evil. But is money really evil? Is the love of money evil? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1zVsI6Inpg Today, we’re taking on a topic that creates so much confusion, tension, and challenge for people. We’re talking about money, the love of money, and the real root of all evil. And we’re revealing how this one huge mistake in our thinking literally causes all the money problems we see in our own life and the world. So if you want to dig deep into what the love of money is—and what it isn’t—so that you can flourish in the right relationship with people, yourself, and with God… tune in now! Table of contentsWhat Does the Bible Say About the Love of Money?Understanding the Context of Money in the BibleIs This “Prosperity Gospel”?Reconciling What We Know with What We DoIs Money the Root of All Evil?New Living TranslationThe MessageThe Amplified TranslationThe Love of MoneyWhy “Loving Money” is EasyMoney is a ToolParting Thoughts About the Love of MoneyBook A Strategy Call What Does the Bible Say About the Love of Money? Earlier this year, we had special guest Rabbi Daniel Lapin join us to talk about his book Thou Shall Prosper. We thought his biblical wisdom about money was so profound, and we actually had him join our show two more times this year. However, we also received many comments about biblical interpretation. We thought it would be a good idea to break down what we interpret in the Bible.  As we lay the groundwork for this discussion, we think it’s important to point out that English-speakers are reading a translation. We don’t have the benefit of reading the text in its original language. As such, there are many modern translations we can seek, with different interpretations. Then, on top of that, we have our own human interpretation of the texts we read.  The Money Advantage is not a ministry, but a business. As entrepreneurs, and particularly as ones in the financial, we talk about money. Wealth can be a taboo topic in many religious circles, and in an effort to talk about money from all angles, we want to touch on biblical wealth. Whatever you believe, we think this topic can help to assuage shame or guilt around money.  Understanding the Context of Money in the Bible Many people draw their feelings and philosophy on money directly from the Bible. When you’re building and protecting your wealth, it’s important to have a solid understanding of things so that you can make the best decisions possible. Without it, you’re financially coasting. We think this same logic can apply to your understanding of money in a biblical sense. If your entire philosophy of money is Biblically centered, it makes sense to dig deeper. The more you can understand the cultural context and original meaning of the text, the more concrete your understanding can be.  Is This “Prosperity Gospel”? Prosperity Gospel is a term that often comes with negative connotations. Wikipedia defines this as: A religious belief among some Protestant Christians that financial blessing and physical well-being are always the will of God for them, and that faith, positive speech, and donations to religious causes will increase one's material wealth.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosperity_theology This, however, is not the reason that we find value in looking at the Biblical context of money. We believe that wealth is something accessible to all and is directly proportional to the amount of value you provide others, and the number of people you provide value to. However, we live in a society that often vilifies wealth, which can cause negative feelings to fester within us all.  However, based on our own understanding of the Bible, we see that wealth is not “evil,” or something to be despised. This does not, however, mean that we advocate that the wealthy are favored by God more than others. We are proponents of obtaining wealth through peaceful trade, and believe it’s noble to do so. We aren’t saying that God promises you wealth in the 20th century if you simply have faith—we believe that money is a tool, it’s amoral. It’s a magnifier of your soul–it will make you more of who you are.Lucas Marshall - The Money Advantage CEO The core of our belief is that each individual is talented and gifted in a unique way. When you can use those talents and gifts to create value for others, you can become wealthy–no guarantees.  Reconciling What We Know with What We Do The bottom line: the Bible influences the way much of our country thinks about money. False interpretations can lead to shame, guilt, and internal conflict that hold people back from taking control of their money.  The belief that money is evil often exists simultaneously in our minds with a desire or drive to make more money. This incongruence can be damaging for many people. It causes many people to question what it says about them that they care about something that is “evil.”  Is Money the Root of All Evil? Let’s consider different translations of a popular passage about money: I Timothy 6:9-10 New Living Translation 9 But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+6%3A9-10&version=NLT The Message 9-10 But if it’s only money these leaders are after, they’ll self-destruct in no time. Lust for money brings trouble, and nothing but trouble. Going down that path, some lose their footing in the faith completely and live to regret it bitterly ever after.https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+6%3A9-10&version=MSG The Amplified Translation 9 But those who [are not financially ethical and] crave to get rich [with a compulsive, greedy longing for wealth] fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction [leading to personal misery]. 10 For the love of money [that is, the greedy desire for it and the willingness to gain it unethically] is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves [through and through] with many sorrows.https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+6%3A9-10&version=AMP The Love of Money These translations have subtle differences, yet one thing is clear. It’s not money itself that is evil, it’s the love of money or the lust for it over all else. We interpret this that those who put money above all else, selfishly, can succumb to disaster. When money becomes more important than God and other people, it becomes a problem. In the original Greek text, as the New Testament was originally written, “love of money” is a single word in Greek: Philarguria. The most accurate translation we have in English is “avarice,” which Merriam-Webster defines as “excessive or insatiable desire for wealth or gain.”  The deeper you study, the more you see these words come up: covetous, greedy, cruel, extortion, self-seeking, and unethical. In all senses, the flaw here is not money, but people who will do unethical things to obtain money.  Loving money properly translated results in either: covetousness: "ruthless self-seeking and an arrogant assumption that others and things exist for one's own benefit."avarice: "miserly and stinting, withholding and keeping such things as thou hast, without rightful need." Why “Loving Money” is Easy [25:43] “It can feel that the answer to having everything that you want in life is more money. And it can feel that there’s never a point that you have enough…If you’re always seeking more money, the challenge can be that when you get the ‘more money,’ you still feel the emptiness. You still feel that somehow there’s still not enough.” Many times, money can feel like the answer to all of our problems. We think money will bring more success, deeper relationships, more time…the list goes on. However, putting money above all can actually weed out the things we want to keep in our lives. In the end, if we’re not satisfied now with the things we DO have that make our lives richer, the pursuit of money will continue to lead to feelings of emptiness. And unfortunately, this persists unless we change our money mindset.  [28:00] “If we can figure out how to be content and at peace with exactly what we have, right now…then having more will feel good. But if ‘enough’ doesn’t satisfy, there’s no amount of money that will ever be enough.” Furthermore, desiring money isn’t inherently wrong. It’s the unhealthy relationships with money that can corrupt. In other words, money before all else, including people, quality, and ethics.  Money is a Tool Rather than seeing money as a cure, it’s wiser to view it as a tool. When we do good, honest work, in service of other people, money is often a natural result of that. Providing value and service to our fellow man can create wealth as a by-product. So it stands to reason that when we care for others and the work that we do for them, we create value for ourselves.  In this scenario, there’s love, not evil. And because you are putting people (and God) first, above money, you are not going down that self-destructive path. If you make more money, your soul is not inherently at risk. You won’t sabotage yourself for creating money as a result of helping others.  When you recognize your own value and the value of those that you serve, you will lift a lot of the limits you place on yourself about money and wealth.  [42:10] “The proper love of money, then,

What is a Modified Endowment Contract, and what does it have to do with life insurance? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXI-iOZylhU If you’re using Infinite Banking as a savings tool, you want to avoid having your policy become a MEC. But what exactly are modified endowment contracts? How does it change the taxation on your life insurance policy? Why does it exist, and when might you want to use a MEC? If you want to know more about how to use Infinite Banking to accomplish your financial goals… tune in now! Table of contentsWhy the MEC Rule ExistsDefining the Modified Endowment ContractHow Modified Endowment Contracts WorkThe Tax Consequences of Modified Endowment ContractsThe 7-Pay TestIs There An Upside to Having a Modified Endowment Contract?How to Avoid MEC StatusStay Strategic, Not OverfundedBook A Strategy Call: Build a Policy That Works for YouWe offer two powerful ways to help you create lasting impact: Why the MEC Rule Exists Back in the late 1980s, the IRS noticed that some people were putting large sums of money into life insurance policies, not to protect their families, but to take advantage of the tax-free growth.  These policies were being used more like investment vehicles than insurance. So in 1988, Congress stepped in and created the Modified Endowment Contract rule as part of the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenue Act (TAMRA). The goal wasn’t to punish anyone. It was to make sure that life insurance stayed true to its original purpose - protecting families, not becoming a tax shelter. A modified endowment contract life insurance policy is simply one that crosses the funding limits and gets reclassified for tax purposes. MEC rules don’t penalize policyholders; they just keep life insurance structured fairly. By drawing a line between insurance and investment, the IRS helped preserve the benefits of permanent life insurance for those who use it as intended. Defining the Modified Endowment Contract There are a lot of great reasons to have a whole life insurance policy. This includes tax advantages, uninterrupted compounding growth, and income protection. It’s the ideal vehicle for an infinite banking strategy; however, you can lose these benefits if you overfund your policy. When you put too much money into a whole life insurance policy, it becomes something called a Modified Endowment Contract. When a policy becomes an MEC, it loses its tax advantages. The IRS created this legislation to cut down on what they deemed as taking advantage of life insurance. The original purpose of life insurance's tax advantages was to incentivize people to buy insurance. That’s because life insurance can protect families financially from a loss of income during a difficult time. This also prevents the government from having to commit tax dollars toward supporting these families. The government first implemented these benefits with a specific purpose in mind: to be a win for families. They didn't create the advantages as a loophole. In order to protect the original intent of life insurance—to provide a death benefit—the IRS decided that if policyholders didn’t follow certain guidelines, it would functionally be classified as an investment, rather than an insurance policy.  How Modified Endowment Contracts Work Let’s consider an example. Say you want to buy a life insurance policy with a $1 million death benefit. The least you can pay, or the “floor,” is going to be term insurance. This is the most affordable premium option; however, it only includes the temporary death benefit and nothing more. What you can pay on a million-dollar policy, however, is a sliding scale. You can have different life insurance products or structures that change the premium. For example, you can have whole life insurance, structured in a few different ways. Typically, the higher your premium, the more benefits you get, including living benefits like a cash value account.  A whole life insurance policy structured for infinite banking is at the top of this scale. Largely because of all the living benefits. Tax-favorable growth, uninterrupted compounding interest, and tax-free access via policy loans. These are just a few benefits, on top of your permanent insurance. The MEC rule creates an official “cap” to the sliding scale, preventing people from paying beyond the maximum, as they did prior to the late 80s. Now, if you go through the pay ceiling, you still have life insurance, but it will no longer have the same tax treatment. You might say it’s like crossing a line between tax-free savings and a taxable investment. Once you go beyond the threshold, the policy keeps functioning, but the tax perks change. Even when a policy becomes a modified endowment contract, it still provides a death benefit and permanent coverage. What changes is how you’re taxed when you access the living benefits, like loans or withdrawals. The Tax Consequences of Modified Endowment Contracts With a modified endowment contract, your death benefit still passes to your heirs tax-free; however, your living benefits no longer receive the same tax advantages. If you take a policy loan with an MEC contract, you will have to pay income taxes on that money. Additionally, if you withdraw money from your cash value before age 59 ½, you will be subject to penalties. An MEC policy gets similar treatment as a 401(k) or an IRA. If you are choosing to use whole life insurance primarily as a savings tool, or as an infinite banking policy, it’s important that you don’t MEC your policy. The 7-Pay Test To determine which policies are classified as modified endowment contracts, the IRS uses a test known as the 7-pay test. Essentially, to keep a policy from becoming a MEC, one must pay premiums for at least 7 years. In addition, the death benefit must be suitable for the premium, as calculated by actuaries. In other words, if you over-fund in less than 7 years, your policy becomes a modified endowment contract. For example, single-premium life insurance policies will always be a MEC because they’re over-funded within the 7-year time frame. This 7-year window can also start over any time there’s a material change. A material change is an event that increases the death benefit of your policy beyond its normal growth. If you have a convertible term insurance rider, for example, and then you convert the term later, the 7-year window starts over.  The specific calculations can be complicated, and even now, the limits of endowment contracts are changing under the updated 7702 rule. However, when you buy a policy with a mutual life insurance company, it sends reminders if you overfund your policy. In other words, you won’t accidentally MEC your policy; your insurance company will give you a heads-up. Is There An Upside to Having a Modified Endowment Contract? There’s not necessarily a benefit to having a modified endowment contract; however, it’s not always a bad thing to MEC a policy. While a MEC changes the tax treatment of the living benefits, the death benefit of a MEC still passes tax-free to heirs. If you don’t foresee leveraging your living benefits and want to maximize your legacy in a short time frame, you might not mind having a MEC. This is especially true if you’re funding a policy later in life and feel like you’re catching up. The premiums you pay translate directly to cash value growth, and the cash value is the accessible portion of your death benefit. So when you over-fund the policy, you can also drive up the overall death benefit. It’s just an inefficient way to do things if you hope to use your cash value for life insurance loans. Some people also intentionally use a modified endowment contract for quick growth when access to liquidity isn’t their main concern. That said, most people using Infinite Banking prefer to avoid MEC status, since tax-free access to cash value is central to the strategy.  The real takeaway from this is that any policy has the potential to become a Modified Endowment Contract if it’s not watched over carefully and funded correctly. How to Avoid MEC Status The best way to avoid accidentally creating a modified endowment contract is to be intentional with how you fund your policy. MEC status doesn’t just happen overnight; it’s the result of putting in too much money, too fast, without staying within IRS guidelines. One key tip is to work closely with an experienced life insurance advisor who understands how endowment contracts work and how to structure your policy properly. A well-designed policy will include built-in buffers that keep you safely below the MEC limits, even if you’re contributing aggressively. It’s also important to fund your policy gradually. Life insurance companies track your premium schedule and will typically send alerts if you’re close to triggering modified endowment contract status. Pay attention to those notifications, and don’t ignore them. Finally, be aware that policy changes can reset the clock. Adding riders or increasing your death benefit can trigger a “material change,” which starts a new 7-pay test. That’s why it’s always smart to double-check with your advisor before making major adjustments. Stay Strategic, Not Overfunded A Modified Endowment Contract isn’t a mistake; it’s just a classification. It tells you how the IRS views your life insurance policy for tax purposes. Understanding what triggers MEC status can help you fund your policy more effectively and keep your Infinite Banking strategy working the way it’s meant to. When you plan ahead, work with knowledgeable advisors, and keep an eye on long-term impacts, you can avoid unintentional overfunding and preserve the full benefits of your policy. The key is to stay strategic, so your policy stays efficient, tax-advantaged, and aligned with your goals. Book A Strategy Call: Build a Policy That Works for You

Want to build a work from home business, and scale to create the life you dream of for your family? Would you like to do so without being a salesy weirdo? Today, we’re talking with Martha Krejci, who made her first million in 6 months in business by working from home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roEwVrkfHlg Now, she’s a business growth strategist who helps other work-from-home moms make millions.  If you’re looking for the secret sauce to scale your business today, want to learn a sustainable and repeatable system, convert people into raving fans, and make simple social media posts that create leads… tune in now! Table of contentsHow Martha Started to Work from HomePrepare Yourself for SuccessHow to Pivot Your BusinessProtecting Your Energy and Building CommunityThe Problem with AdsReverse-Engineering the Sales FunnelThe Secret to Live VideosWork from Home and Do What You LoveHow to Start Your Work from Home JourneyWhat is the Ultimate Scaling Tool?Links MentionedAbout Martha KrejciBook A Strategy Call How Martha Started to Work from Home [6:00] “On paper, I was the only breadwinner of my family.” Yet Martha took the entrepreneurial leap anyway. She describes herself as always having felt the pull to be an entrepreneur. However, it wasn’t until she had an epiphany while raising her daughter that she followed the entrepreneurial call. One day at work, she received a video of her daughter taking her first steps. Her first reaction was joy. Then her next thought was that her daughter was walking toward a phone, instead of her mother. This inspired her to take the leap to work from home virtually overnight. Despite supporting her husband, her child, and her in-laws who had recently moved in. Within the first month, she was matching her income at her previous job and continued to grow from there.  Prepare Yourself for Success [11:40 “My favorite thing is the struggle. Is that weird? A lot of people like to illuminate the success, my favorite thing is illuminating the struggle...Let’s normalize it. Let’s normalize that that’s what’s necessary…[Success is] not a promise, you have to do the work, right? You have to make sure that you’re ready for this success.” The reason you have to be prepared for success, as Martha shares, is because quickly after you find success, all of the negative stories you told yourself about yourself are going to start popping up. Your success is going to dredge up your internal baggage, and can derail you if you’re not prepared to handle it.  How to Pivot Your Business Martha’s first agency was an SEO agency, and she joined the chamber of commerce at about $200 a year and began attending events. Soon enough, she was leading training sessions for business owners. Yet business owners often don’t have the time to implement these things. So if you show authority when you’re training, it’s likely that those businesses will want to hire you.  [13:45] “Since then, what we’ve done is we’ve just bobbed and weaved. So we’ve seen where needs were. I guess our formula—and I’ve never really shared this before—our formula is: What do people need, and what do we enjoy doing for them?” Once Martha’s agency identifies what her clients need and what she enjoys doing for them, she’s able to merge those things. This way, she’s not ever pigeon-holing herself and her agency is positioned to pivot.  [15:40] “I think that’s where a lot of the business death comes from, is just simply being afraid to pivot. Because pivot is growth.” Protecting Your Energy and Building Community [20:50] “I don’t ever think we should be doing everything anyway. So what I teach is, you know, you essentially work 5-10 hours a week once all your stuff is set up. So the ‘doing everything’ is a lot of wheel spinning in my opinion. And some would say that it’s strategic and that you’re throwing spaghetti at the wall and you’re gonna see what sticks, and that sort of thing... That’s fine if you are a masochist. “But for me, I would rather do the things that I know are going to work. And the only way that I’m going to know that something’s going to work is by building a community of my people and literally paying attention to what they’re saying. So the quality of your results are based on the quality of your questions.” No matter what your industry is, Martha asserts, you can create a community and learn what they’re in the dark about. Then you help bring the light to them. This means building good relationships with your community. Good relationships breed good feedback, and help you sustain your business.  The Problem with Ads There’s nothing wrong with advertising. However, Martha highlights an interesting point about advertising--that people expect it to do things it simply cannot. People believe that with the right number of ads, or the right language, they don’t have to do the rest of the work. People believe it’s easy.  However, advertising is only a small piece of the pie. And if you’re not plugged into your community and serving them on a real level by listening to them, advertising isn’t going to do that heavy lifting. [25:45] “There was a time where ads did well, and now we’re seeing another time. But there was a time where ads did well, and then people got used to it. And now people are not wanting to be sold to--and they never really wanted to be sold to anyway, but they were allowing it a little bit more. Now you just see sponsored next to something and people are not clicking on it simply because of that. And honestly, even having sponsored next to something is showing them that you’re not organically reaching them.” The reality is that the online user experience is changing every day. You have to stay on top of what people are feeling in their online lives and adjust to that. It’s constant vigilance, not something you can set and never readdress.  Reverse-Engineering the Sales Funnel To combat ad fatigue and create more organic traffic, Martha has created a formula of sorts. For starters, she has committed to showing up in video format once a week, at the same time, to share 15 minutes of content. She determines content by asking herself these questions: How does her audience self-identify? What is her audience wanting? What will stop them from scrolling past her? How will she get them to keep listening to her? Only then can she think about the call to action that will keep the audience involved in her content and community.  Martha even goes so far as to put herself in her audience’s shoes and talk to them the way they talk to themselves. [30:55] “You need to speak to them in their own self-talk, you have to speak to them in their own language that they use themselves, right? You can’t use your own lingo and stuff like that, it’s not going to affect the same.” In other words? Be authentic. [39: 20] “We all are guilty of this in the beginning--we see other people, and we’re like, ‘I have to be like that.’” The Secret to Live Videos If you’re thinking about hosting live videos for your community, you may be nervous about the presentation. Authenticity, as Martha shares, is especially important here, because people can see you. They know when you’re comfortable, passionate, and authentic...and when you’re not.  She even shares that when she first started to do live videos, she would create a whole script, and read off what she prepared to say. Unfortunately, the result was that she looked uncomfortable, and like she was reading.  Her secret is to use a platform like Zoom and just open up a meeting for no one but yourself. Then, practice talking and see what it feels like to talk about a topic off the cuff, and how to emote. Eventually, with enough practice, you’ll feel confident doing live videos. It also mimics the feeling of being live, since you’re only seeing yourself, so it’s the perfect practice mechanism.  You can have sub-points and things you want to talk about, but Martha shares that she likes to simply use a title or topic as her guidance, and leave the rest up to divine inspiration. [42:05] “I’m a praying woman, and every morning my prayer is, ‘Make me a Moses.’ And that’s because Moses stuttered, but he was used, right? And I don’t always come across the most professional person in the world, but I don’t give a rip because...I’m showing up in front of the person that needs to hear it this way. And the only way that they’re going to hear it this way is if I allow myself to be used, and the only way I can actually be used is if I step out of the way. So I just stay with the title, then I go.” Work from Home and Do What You Love [54:29] “My husband and I call it the Star Trek world because they didn’t make any income and they all did what they loved doing...We’re all designed to complement each other is my belief, and I think that while everybody might not be a Jeff Bezos type of entrepreneur, I think everybody wants more. And if they truly can understand how to be able to do it for themselves, it may look very different than the person next to them.” How to Start Your Work from Home Journey The secret, and where Martha got her start, was figuring out who her audience was, and speaking directly to them. That means identifying how you can help people, and what those people need from you, then stepping in to supply the need. If you don't do this from a place of love and service, and don't really care about the person on the other end of the screen, you're just in it for the dollars. And people can tell. What is the Ultimate Scaling Tool? The Ultimate Scaling Tool is what Martha says is one of her favorite products she has created. This tool allows you to track your metrics against yourself, and no one else, meaning you stay focused on your own growth.  This tool helps you keep track of your social posts, emails,

Like a business, churches and other non-profits have a need for financing. Today, we’re discussing options to keep the church financing in-house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSnti9l_C40 So, if you want a strategic financing strategy that guarantees your church or other 501(c)3 would never lack the funding to accomplish the most important mission of all… tune in now! Table of contentsFunding Not-For-ProfitsInfinite Banking Concept for ChurchesWill Infinite Banking Work For Every Not-For-Profit?You Don’t Need to Operate on a Razor-Thin BudgetWho Should Be Insured for Church Financing?Book A Strategy Call Funding Not-For-Profits If you’re running a church or other not-for-profit business, chances are you need funding. Funds allow you to create more good for your community and accomplish what is likely a big mission. Without the proper funding, especially consistent funding, those goals can seem out of reach. Donations are a common source of funding for churches, as well as bank financing, yet relying solely on these methods of financing can be unreliable. If you’re seeking to achieve big goals and take care of a broader community, control of financing is crucial. Fortunately, you can use Infinite Banking for church financing. However, in a church or other not-for-profit sector, it’s likely that much of what you do must include collaboration. In other words, there has to be some consensus. This can mean educating your peers and other church leaders, as well as discussing how privatized banking can benefit your church or not-for-profit. (Note: We recommend having your board or administration speak with a financial professional, as the conversation can be complicated.) Infinite Banking Concept for Churches Why might a church want to use infinite banking? If you’re considering the Infinite Banking Concept for your organization, this is a great question to ask. For many institutions, we believe the answer might be that funding a life insurance policy allows you to save money and finance projects without a third party, such as a bank. This can add more stability to your organization’s financing, beyond the tithe, donations, and banks.  “If you have large reserves, and you’re trying to store that cash as effectively and efficiently as possible so it can do the most good for you, then infinite banking would be an ideal storage place.” That’s because the cash value of a life insurance policy allows your cash to work as hard as possible while you’re waiting to use it. Not only this, but the death benefit of the policy will help you plan in the long-term for your church or organization. When that benefit is paid out, it can be used for ongoing financing for the church or organization. Will Infinite Banking Work For Every Not-For-Profit? If, however, your organization does not have a lot of cash reserves or has a lot of debt, you may not want to start a policy right away. That’s because you must still have a way to fund the policy, which is often with cash reserves. The first step to building a policy for your organization is to figure out how you will finance the policy. Similarly, if your church has significant debt and you are struggling to pay off that debt, it might not be the best decision to open a new policy. An Infinite Banking policy requires debt management, and it’s not advisable to use a policy loan to pay off another loan. Working with an advisor can help you determine the best strategy for managing your organization’s finances and debt. You Don’t Need to Operate on a Razor-Thin Budget “Just because you’re non-profit doesn’t mean that you should not be financially responsible and that you shouldn’t be profitable.” There’s a myth that not-for-profit companies should operate on a razor-thin budget because they’re a public service. However, in our conversation with Kris Putnam-Walkerly, we broke that myth wide open.  The reality is, no business can reach its full potential on a razor-thin budget. The company itself may not profit, however, the company still provides a service. Those services often cost money, and it also costs money to maintain buildings and pay employees. Being financially responsible and generating profit helps non-profits retain good employees and accomplish the company’s wider mission. Without money flowing in, these factors become difficult.  Who Should Be Insured for Church Financing? Pastors, administrators, and other church or non-profit leaders are great options to insure with a whole life insurance policy. Keep in mind that there must be an insurable interest for the church or organization. In other words, the person being insured must be integral to the success of the organization.  The reason is due to the nature of life insurance. Aside from the cash value, the key component of life insurance is the death benefit. This is paid out to the beneficiary, in this case a church or organization, when the insured passes away. In a family structure, you can think of the death benefit as income replacement. The death benefit helps replace the income lost by the passing of that family member, for instance, the head of the household. This gives the family ample time to grieve and determine the next steps while keeping up with bills and expenses. For a church or non-profit, the incentive must be similar. For example, insuring the pastor would give the congregation the funds and time to hire a new pastor, keep things running, and even fund a new policy. In this instance, the pastor is integral to the church’s mission.  Whoever your organization chooses, they should be a key player in the company. Book A Strategy Call Do you want to coordinate your finances so that everything works together to improve your life today, accelerate time and money freedom, and leave the greatest legacy? We can help!  Book an Introductory Call with our team today https://themoneyadvantage.com/calendar/, and find out how Privatized Banking, alternative investments, or cash flow strategies can help you accomplish your goals better and faster. That being said, if you want to find out more about how Privatized Banking gives you the most safety, liquidity, and growth… plus boosts your investment returns, and guarantees a legacy, go to https://privatizedbankingsecrets.com/freeguide to learn more.