Your Reputation Precedes You (Part 2)

In part one of this post, I discussed some steps everyone should take to find out what kind of online reputation they have. Now that you have found yourself online and thought about your presence, I will discuss what actions to take to maximize your online brand.

While all this new technology is unquestionably exciting, educational and awe inspiring, it lacks something we humans need and crave and that’s other real sentient beings to talk to, to touch, to share experiences with, to feel and make an emotional connection. And when we do, those connections are the deepest, the most meaningful and the longest lasting.

So if you’re just starting out in business you may have a great idea but you need other people to help you build it, finance it, promote it, sell and service it, ship it and yes, sometimes, take it back because it failed to meet your customers’ expectations.

When building and promoting your reputation make sure that you are not creating some emotionless, superficial avatar designed to fool or mislead people to obtain some momentary objective. Instead pay particular attention to ensure that you are constructing a real persona, one that has feelings and emotions, imperfections and scars, habits you’d like to overcome or skills you may wish to develop and places you wish to go. If not, you’re highly unlikely to make true connections with real people and when those people you are trying so hard to impress actually meet you, they will be greatly disappointed when you don’t measure up to the idealized version you created online.

Unless you’re a professional magician, most people don’t want to be fooled. They seek honesty not perfection, in the relationships they choose to cultivate.

Be honest with yourself. If you consciously or unconsciously delude yourself you will undoubtedly never understand why others haven’t bought into your BS… “better self.”

So if you want to attract those people, entice them to become part of your business or social network you’re going to have to reach out and touch them emotionally. You’re going to have to convince them you have vision, ability and determination. They have to believe you are a leader, that you are trustworthy, flexible, and caring both to your employees and your customers.  And while they may admire your commitment to your ideas they also have to believe that you are equally open to theirs as well.

To accomplish that, you have to have a “reputation” where people feel you are the best person for them to be associated with.  These associations may last for just one transaction or become an integral part of your life forever. It all depends on how you are perceived in relationship with what the other person is seeking at a specific point in time. The question is. “Are you going to shape that perception or are you going to let others? Because like it or not, you do have a reputation. We all do. It’s just that some of us don’t have the reputation we want or have the people we care about know who we truly are.

You are responsible for your destiny. You can’t control it perfectly but you can take specific actions that will ensure you present your best possible image to the people you care about most at the exact time you need them to take a specific action. It all starts (and ends) with you.

So take a deep breath, google yourself and face the unvarnished truth of who you are to others… and it you don’t like what you just read, immediately develop a plan to do something about it.

This blog was originally published at www.franklinwolfson.net.

Your Reputation Precedes You (Part 1)

When you're the CEO of a fortune 500 company, the odds say that you are concerned with your company's online reputation. Going a step further, you are also probably concerned with your own reputation. What many people fail to realize is it's not just the CEO who has to monitor their reputation. Millions of people let their online reputations fall by the wayside until it comes into question. By taking a few steps, you'll be able to discover what other's think about you online and begin building your personal brand.

Obviously, if you’re a doctor, attorney, financial advisor, architect or do any kind of custom or personal work, like a building contractor or artist, your business reputation and your personal reputation are closely aligned.

But what if you’re just starting out? Your company has no reputation and, for the most part neither do you… except for those embarrassing photos you posted online that are now coming back to haunt you. And if you’re an entrepreneur and are going to meet with prospective employees, suppliers, investors or clients, your personal reputation or at least what people can find out about you online is probably a lot more important than you ever imagined. So what are you doing to create it, shape it, enhance it and promote it?

If you’re like most people, you’re doing absolutely nothing. You treat your reputation like the weather, you know it’s important when something extreme happens like a hurricane or snowstorm and you dress appropriately or adjust your travel plans but for most days, you don’t pay any attention to it whatsoever… and that’s a huge mistake.

Start by doing a Google search of your name. Now you see what strangers see. Since they don’t know you, their opinion is going to be 100% based on what they just found… whether it’s accurate or not or flattering or demeaning.

What do you think of yourself? Write a short summary of who you are… not who you really are but who people think you are based on what you just found.

Did you find someone who is smart, dependable, innovative, honest, charismatic, hardworking, trustworthy and inspiring? Is the online you a leader or a follower? A future success story or a disaster about to happen? A winner or a loser? Someone who inspires confidence or a confidence man?

If you don’t like what you just found, you better get to work on improving your online persona until it is in sync with the real you or at the very least, the “you” you hope to project because until then, your chances of raising money, getting people to work for you, follow your advice or even buy from you are slim.

Yes, we live in a technological society. We all carry a little computer in our pockets or on our belts. We use it to get directions, research products before we buy them, see what and where our friends are, make telephone calls, send texts, check e-mails and yes, even check on the weather. In short, we’re now connected to just about everything and everyone 24/7 and despite all those connection, we’ve become more isolated than ever. We have hundreds of friends on Facebook that we check on multiple times a day but our very best friend we haven’t had dinner with in weeks. We attend webinars several times a week, we take and post an untold number of “selfies,” we take visual tours of an apartment we plan to rent or a home we’d like to buy but we’re too busy to spend time with relatives or visit a museum or enjoy a concert… and now we’re anxiously anticipating the day when we can get even further away from reality in anticipation of Oculus Rift’s Virtual Reality, Google’s Augmented Reality and the latest soon to be escape… Magic Leap’s “Mixed Reality.”

This blog was originally posted at www.franklinwolfson.net. 

How Much Money Will You Need to Retire?

 


This article was originally published on Franklin Wolfson's website. Part of his series on Retirement, you can read the entirety of the blog, here.

Hint: It’s a Lot More Than You Think… and it’s a lot less than you’ve probably saved.

How much money do you need to retire in comfort and security? That’s the million-dollar question and for most Americans, that’s also the million-dollar answer.

According to Fidelity Investments, the nation’s largest retirement-plan provider, to be financially ready to retire by age 67, the average American should aim to have 10 times his or her final salary in savings.

Let’s face it. For most Americans “that just ain’t gonna happen.” The time you should start planning for your retirement is when you get your very first paycheck but even if you didn’t start then, there’s no excuse for not starting now.

If you accept Fidelity’s recommendation, and I highly recommend you do, here’s the time line in which Fidelity suggests you increase your savings so you can achieve that financial goal:

• In your 20s, put enough away so that by the time you turn 30, you’ll have the equivalent of your salary saved.
• By 40, aim to have three times your salary saved.
• By age 50, you should have enough saved to equal six times your salary.
• By age 60, your savings should be eight times your salary.

And you should save 10 times your salary by the time you reach 67.

Of course, life is never predictable. In some years you may have a greater surplus while in others you may suffer unexpected expenses so plan to adjust your savings accordingly.


Although most people will never have ten times their last year of salary saved for retirement start saving as much as you can beginning now so you have sufficient funds to truly make your sunset years, your golden years.

The 13 States that Tax Your Social Security Benefits

This article was originally published on Franklin Wolfson's website. Part of his series on Retirement, you can read the entirety of the blog, here. 


If you’re not worried about your Social Security benefits…you should be.

Did you know there are currently 13 states that tax your Social Security benefits? I didn’t either. Don’t be surprised if many more adopt the same tactics.

We keep hearing stories that Social Security is in long-term trouble. This is extremely bad news for the large and growing numbers of retirees whose future is growing more dependent upon this failing system.

According to a national survey conducted on retirees, 59% rely on Social Security as a major source of their retirement income and an additional 31% cite Social Security benefits as a minor source of their income. As for non-retirees, more than one-third expect Social Security to represent a major source of their retirement income and almost half anticipate it will be a minor source of the income they depend upon. In short, without Social Security, a large number of Americans are going to struggle just to meet their basic needs.

So if you’re in or approaching retirement you need to be aware that Social Security is in trouble, real trouble. Beginning around 2020, according to a report by the Social Security Board of Trustees, the program’s cash inflow including interest earned, will turn into a cash outflow due to the increasing number of boomers leaving the workforce, a falling worker-to-beneficiary ratio and longer life expectancies. By the year 2034, per the Trustees, the program will have used up the entirety of its spare cash, potentially leading to a 21% cut in benefits.


The conclusion you should draw from this is simple. If you’re young, get prepared. If you’re older, you should be scared.

Check out Franklin's article to read the entirety of the article. 

3 Reasons Why the Middle Class is in Trouble

This article was originally published on Franklin Wolfson's website. Part of his series on Retirement, you can read the entirety of the blog, here. 

Are you approaching retirement? Do you have parents or relatives who are facing uncertain times as they reach the end of their careers and launch into their golden years?

While it's no longer a shock, the United States's economy is just not getting any better. And the middle class continues to bear the greatest burden of the nation's financial challenges. According to an analysis by the Pew Research Center, almost 90% of the major U.S. metropolitan areas it surveyed between 2000 and 2014 showed a decline in middle-class families. In some cases families have ascended into higher income levels while many others have descended into lower income levels. This study appears to corroborate a nationwide trend that’s been evident for the past thirty years or more.

What's causing the middle class to shrink? Take a look at the following 3 reasons behind this dip.

1. Wage growth has been relatively stagnant

Although nominal wages have been rising, inflation adjusted wages have been relatively stagnant.
This has a profound negative effect on a major portion of our society. For young adults, the cost to attend college and for senior citizens needing proper medical care costs keeps rising at a faster pace than wage growth. In the last ten years or so, medical care costs have risen faster than the Consumer Price Index and college tuition costs have increased at even a faster rate. These are ominous signs affecting both the young and the old.

2. Failure to Balance Income and Debt

The wide spread adoption of the use of debit and credit cards has made purchasing products and services much easier but high interest rates and an unbalanced income to debt ratio has made paying for those things more difficult. As a result, most Americans are carrying too much debt in relationship to their income, their ability to handle emergencies or their discipline in allocating funds for savings and investment to ensure a safe, secure and extended retirement.

According to the Survey of Consumer Finances, the debt burden of the average middle-class family in 2013 was more than 120% of annual household income. Although this is down from its peak of more than 140% in 2010, the amount is more than twice as much as it was just 25 years ago.

These high levels of debt are forcing middle class families to divert funds that should be saved for retirement to paying monthly debt payments instead. Families that don’t plan properly or fail to stick to their plan are destined to go from crises to crises until just one unforeseen or unplanned event becomes a financial catastrophe that affects the entire family.

3. Historically low interest rates

The Federal Reserve’s low interest-rate policy has been a boon for existing and new homeowners seeking to buy or refinance their homes and businesses that rely on access to cheap capital to expand their operations, hire new employees or develop new markets or finance other business opportunities.

As with so many things that sound good, some groups benefit while others may suffer even though the long-term effects for the nation as a whole may be positive.

There is no question that many middle-class families have benefited from low mortgage rates but with yields on CDs, savings accounts, checking accounts and U.S. Treasury bonds hovering around all-time lows, many middle-class families that counted on the guaranteed income of interest-bearing assets are suffering from shrinking incomes and reduced purchasing power.

Check out Franklin's article to read the remaining four reasons why the middle class is in trouble when it comes to saving and living through their retired years. 

Silverstone Auctions' Porsche Sale Impresses Bidders Worldwide

Very interesting article written by our friends over at Auction Bible. 



Read more at: http://nextedge.a2hosted.com/auctionbible/index.php/2016/10/14/silverstone-porsche-sale-impresses-bidders-worldwide/

Avoiding Online Scams

Online buyers and customers must be vigilant in protecting themselves from fraud and scams associated with their online behavior.

More products, lower prices and more transactions…

that’s a good thing, right?

Each year hundreds of billions of dollars in business-to-consumer online shopping is conducted and the amount is far greater when you include business-to-business transactions. Online sales are, and have been, increasing much faster than offline sales and the trend is likely to continue. Therefore, just as with all debit and credit card transactions, it is imperative to make sure both buyers and sellers feel totally secure when entering these transactions.

When fast and inexpensive becomes time consuming and very expensive

This is the first in a series of articles designed to educate or remind parties, on both sides of the transaction, of online behavior they should do to protect themselves and avoid the hassle, expense, time and aggravation of being the victim of a crime that with a little understanding and a few precautions could save months of consternation and regret.

Practice the following and you can relax while enjoying the ease and convenience of shopping online.

Be Diligent

Avoid going to suspicious websites offering products at totally unrealistic prices, gossip and nude photos of entertainment and sport celebrities, fail-proof ways to win the lottery, offers of huge sums of money from overseas people you don’t personally know or requests to send money to people you do know who have lost their cash or credit cards while traveling overseas.

Be particularly diligent if you receive e-mails or phone calls from known companies notifying you of a problem with your software or from banks saying they are checking suspicious transactions and are asking you for your password to verify that you are who you say you are. DON’T DO IT, THESE ARE SCAMS.

Never click on links in e-mails, even if they come from a friend as their computer could be affected. Always type in the name of your bank, credit card company, stock broker, etc. to assure you are going to a legitimate site.

Be very cautious when opening attachments unless you are expecting something from a friend, colleague, family member or known associate.

When shopping online, it is safer to use the company’s app than it is to enter your payment information over a phone. DON’T TAKE SHORTCUTS, IF YOU BECOME THE VICTIM OF FRAUD OR A SCAM, YOU’LL WISH YOU DID THINGS THE RIGHT WAY.

According to various state attorney generals, people who should be particularly vigilant are young people who share a great deal of information, often from questionable sources, regarding sexual or salacious behavior of celebrities and senior citizens who are not technologically sophisticated and can easily fall victim to online tactics that appear credible.

Crimes against seniors, are on the rise according to various almost all state attorney generals and it’s become so common it even has it’s own name… elder fraud. Don’t become a victim.

Please see the following

State Attorney General Sites for additional information

http://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Individuals-and-Families/Seniors/Elder-Fraud

http://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/seniors/

http://www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/2389.htm

http://www.ag.state.mn.us/consumer/publications/seniorsguidefightfraud.asp

https://www.ago.mo.gov/divisions/consumer/for-seniors

https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/seniors/senior-consumers

http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/Main/42F7E9863E5E076E852570AB0059ED90

INTERESTED PARTIES SHOULD ALSO READ INFORMATION FROM:

Colleges and Universities

http://www.stetson.edu/law/academics/elder/ecpp/media/update-why-the-elderly-02-11-2013.pdf

http://epublications.regis.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1477&context=theses

http://downtowndevil.com/2013/12/12/52705/elder-scam-fraud-asu-research-study/

The FBI

https://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/fraud/seniors

Media

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/12/07/elderly-financial-exploitation-holidays/1746911/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+usatoday-NewsTopStories+%28USATODAY+-+News+Top+Stories%29

http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303330204579248292834035108

http://www.cnbc.com/2014/07/18/the-grandpa-scam-thats-costing-seniors-a-bundle.html

Senior Organizations

http://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-03-2011/fraud-victims-11.html

Franklin Wolfson is the Founder and CEO of Revenue Enhancement Worldwide, Inc., a FREE membership-based online shopping site, his company’s website is designed to bring its Members “the most rewarding shopping experience on the Internet.”