We look forward to the Van Mueller newsletter every month. It's chock-full of sound bites, sales tips, and eye-opening statistics. Here are our favorite parts of the August 2023 edition. We're sharing the full introduction, and 2 of the 7 monthly sales ideas. If you like what you read, we encourage you to click here and become a subscriber.
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August 2023 – 7 Ideas and Views Newsletter by Van Mueller
For the over 16 years I have been sharing this newsletter, I have extolled the tremendous benefits of using questions to inspire our customers to convince themselves that they want to take action to successfully deal with the challenges Americans will face to achieve financial success and retirement success and financial freedom. Financial Freedom is the ultimate goal for all Americans.
I have asked all of you many times if you wanted to impress someone, if you wanted to convince someone that you had their best interests at heart, would you talk about you or would you ask about them? Even with the answer being ridiculously obvious many of you continue to fight against your own best instincts. You continue to believe that you must share your credentials or your ideas or what you think your customer should do. Most of the time this discussion doesn't work. Yet, because you were trained to believe that if you had the best interest rate, the lowest premium or the highest cash value, that would be enough to inspire your customer to want to buy from you.
That has never worked and will never work. It won't work for artificial intelligence either! Telling is selling. Asking is advocating. The more you tell someone something the more they tend not to believe you. "What are they trying to sell me, or even worse, what are they not telling me." Telling doesn't work. Great salesperson Zig Ziglar has shared with all of us many times, "Our customers don't care how much you know until they know how much you care."
Our customers don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Asking questions prevents you from ever having an adversarial relationship with a customer. If a customer loves to give their opinion; and they all do, wouldn't it be more efficient to only ask your customers for their opinion?
Wouldn't the buying process be much simpler if the customers used our questions as a guide to convince themselves that they should take action. Even when we offer solutions shouldn't we offer several choices and ask questions like, “would this be a better strategy for you your family and your business or do you think or feel that this would be a more efficient way to stay out in front of all of these challenges?”
Our customers then feel involved and a participant rather than someone being led around and not understanding what they are doing.
Additionally asking questions builds trust much more quickly, efficiently and effectively than espousing your credentials and how long you have been in the business and sharing with your prospective customer all the people you've helped. They really don't care. They only care about themselves and their families. They trust you more when you ask about them and you really listen to their opinions. It doesn’t take long to build that trust because, so few people ever take the time to listen to the opinions of our prospects and clients.
So few people ever take the time to listen to the opinions of our prospects and clients.
I hope it is becoming obvious that I am building up to an experiment I would like to try with all of you this month. Before I begin my experiment, may I please share some additional thoughts you should give consideration to? Really think about what I am about to share with you. If you want someone to like you, shouldn't you like them first? If you want someone to trust you, shouldn't you trust them first? Finally, if you want your customer to be vulnerable with you shouldn't you be vulnerable first?
Aren't we the professionals? How do you think your prospect would respond if you were vulnerable first and shared that you really didn't know what was going to happen with the economy? The next question could be, wouldn't it be amazing if we could develop a strategy that even if no one knew what was going to happen you would still be protected? Better still, wouldn't the ideal strategy be one that allowed us access to the money we didn't lose so we could take advantage of the opportunity that was being provided? Finally, wouldn't it be spectacular if we could do all of this with little or no income tax liability? If you knew you could develop a strategy like that, when would you want to get started, before or after the next downturn?
How do you think your prospect would respond if you were vulnerable first and shared that you really didn't know what was going to happen with the economy?
In this uncertain world, wouldn't people ask for that kind of a strategy? You didn't tell them. That would be a strategy they would want to use going forward.
Now, for my experiment. I am going to share my 5-question sales presentation without asking one question. Why? Because that is how most insurance and financial professionals sell. Many of you tell me all the time that you're using some questions, but not all the time. You must understand that you are undercutting the progress you have made using the questions. When I begin sharing this presentation, I would appreciate it very much if you would read the presentation out loud. I want you to hear what telling sounds like.
BEGIN READING THE NEWSLETTER OUT LOUD NOW.
Mr. and Mrs. customer, thank you for meeting with me. I would like to talk with you about some challenges that I believe you and your family should be very worried about. If these challenges are not addressed, they could change your life forever.
The first and most important concern is taxes. With everything happening in our country governments at every level will require more and more revenue. Income taxes will increase. Property taxes, sales taxes, excise taxes and inheritance taxes will increase, just to name a few. The tax you and your family should be most concerned about will definitely be income taxes. Since only around 10 percent of Americans make more than $100,000 per year the only way to increase revenue will be to increase taxes dramatically on those 10 percent. Here's another surprise. The government will also have to increase taxes on the other 90 percent because that is where the most people are. A smaller tax increase will still help the governments to begin to achieve their revenue requirements.
The biggest tax surprise of all will come when you want to transfer tax deferred retirement plans such as regular IRA's, 401K's, 403B's, 457 plans and deferred annuities to your family after you die. The Internal Revenue Service has a first mortgage `on that money, and they are paid first before your family receives anything. Because it is almost always taken in a lump sum, if it is piled on top of the beneficiary’s current income the income tax liability can increase to 30, 40 or even 50 percent in some states. You essentially turn yourself into a tax collector for the Internal Revenue Service. If I was in your shoes, I would do something about that.
You essentially turn yourself into a tax collector for the Internal Revenue Service. If I was in your shoes, I would do something about that.
I have some plans that would help you to reduce or even eliminate that income tax liability.
The next thing you should be planning for is an income that you cannot outlive in retirement. A study was just completed that identified that Americans are more concerned with running out of money in retirement than they are concerned about dying.
We believe that a guaranteed income that you cannot outlive solves the issue of running out of money in retirement. Only insurance companies can provide that benefit. We have one of the best income annuities ever developed for retirement. I would give serious consideration to a benefit like this if I was you.
Another serious issue that we would like you to consider is debt. Because more and more Americans are finding themselves having to increase their debt to maintain their standard of living, it creates real problems for a family or business, if the primary wage earner dies too early.
Because more and more Americans are finding themselves having to increase their debt to maintain their standard of living, it creates real problems for a family or business, if the primary wage earner dies too early.
Statistically, many, many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. And if those paychecks were interrupted because you died prematurely, it could create tremendous problems. Don’t you understand that if it is difficult to afford a premium while you are here and working, wouldn’t it be even more difficult for your family or business to deal with all the debt if you weren't here?
Let's see what it would cost to eliminate all your debt, including your mortgage and how much income we would have to replace if you died too soon. Your family and business would face tremendous difficulty if you were not here. Let's make sure your income is still here, even if you are not.
Another concern Americans are starting to realize is long term care. Many family’s life savings are destroyed in a short amount of time paying for long term care.
Then another even more serious problem arises. When people run out of money or don't have enough money for long term care, the responsibility falls on a family member. Usually, it is a female family member. According to AARP, one out of every five Americans is an unpaid family caregiver. The person giving the care loses income because they are not working. This causes stress on the family, financially and emotionally. These events destroy the family’s assets and savings.
According to AARP, one out of every five Americans is an unpaid family caregiver.
We have many different ways we can cover these costs for you. Events like these are devastating to families. Let's get started with a program that will allow you and your family to be in control when this happens. I have some exciting plans to show you.
Finally, we believe that this is the most serious challenge Americans will face in the years ahead. We call it a "stealth" tax. The government is intentionally destroying the purchasing power of our money so they can pay down the debt using dollars that are cheaper in value. The problem is being caused by the fact that the government is going into debt much faster than they are diminishing the purchasing power of our money. That means our debt will increase dramatically.
On October 4th, 2022, our country climbed to $31 trillion in debt. Eight months later, on June 16th, 2023, our country became $32 trillion in debt. According to the https://www.usdebtclock.org it is only one month and 11 days later, and our country is now $32.66 trillion in debt. The debt clock predicts that we will be $56 trillion in debt by 2031 and the Congressional Budget Office just issued a report disclosing that our debt will increase to $144 trillion by 2053.
The only way our government can come up with the money to deal with servicing all this debt is to print more money. It is easy to predict that there is massive inflation ahead. This is a way for the government to reduce the purchasing power of our money. They can service the debt with dollars that are cheaper in value than the original debt. That is a stealth tax. We know that these debt projections are probably less than what will currently be needed. It is predicted that Social Security and Medicare have unfunded liabilities of currently around $88 trillion. It is pretty much guaranteed that most Americans will see a lower standard of living because of our government's decision to not get spending under control. I can provide several methodologies that will allow you to offset some of the damage caused by this "stealth" tax, called inflation, while you are alive and some additional strategies that can reimburse you and your family for the damage inflation does during your life. If you don't take action soon, your family and business could be permanently harmed by this "stealth" tax called inflation.
YOU CAN STOP READING THIS OUT LOUD IF YOU CHOSE TO AT THIS TIME.
I know many of you will read this and determine that it is a pretty good presentation filled with many important pieces of information that our customers should know and further take action to prevent and finally build strategies that take advantage of these challenges rather than being hurt by them.
The presentation will not work most of the time. It is way too much information to absorb. If Americans have an attention span that is measured in seconds, how long do you think they will be listening in an inspiring way if THEY ARE NOT PARTICIPATING?
Have you ever thought that if they only disagree with one aspect of the presentation, that they will discard all of the other information they agree with to focus on what they disagree with? Who's is the only opinion that counts? Isn't it theirs? If you only give your opinions, how will you ever determine what their opinions are? Don't we develop trust by being great listeners? No matter how wonderful of a talker you are, isn't it true that, if you thought about it, that you lose more sales than you make by talking too much?
If you only give your opinions, how will you ever determine what their opinions are?
The role of all of these questions has another benefit that we don't give enough consideration to. Showing our customers that we are interested in their opinions helps to build trust FAST. It dramatically shortens the sales cycle. Questions also help us to FAIL FAST. We can find out very quickly if we are making a connection. We can learn very quickly if we have inspired our prospects and clients to take action. Wouldn't it be efficient and effective not to waste time with someone you could never inspire. Wouldn't it also keep your energy level high, rather than wasting two precious hours with someone who never had intentions of taking action. Please remember when you read this section, I asked you to read it out loud.
These several considerations should be clearly understood to use this information beneficially.
1. Telling Is Selling
2. Asking Is Advocating and Advising
3. Americans Love to Buy, But They Hate To Be Sold
4. What Should You Do If You Are In Trouble In A Sales Presentation? Isn't It Ask A Question?
5. Shouldn't We Then Assume We Are Always In Trouble In A Sales Presentation And Only Ask Questions?
Finally, please stop skimming the newsletter. Please read the entire newsletter out loud with a notebook next to you so you can write down the ideas that look, sound and feel like they will benefit your career. You will discover amazing results much quicker.
Idea #1: Ed Slott Says Stop Contributing to IRA's and 401K's
Here is a quote from the article. "Deferring the tax is only a short-term savings. In the long run, if tax deferred retirement accounts continue to grow, so will the eventual tax bill."
Because tax rates are so low right now you are trading a small tax benefit right now for a much larger tax rate in the future. According to Social Security's wage statistics, 91 percent of Americans make less than $120,000. If the marginal tax bracket for that amount is 12 percent, then the effective tax rate for that amount is 8.6 percent. So, you are getting an 8.6 percent deduction now, on a small amount of money so you can pay 20, 30 or even 40 percent in the future on a much larger amount of money. It is even worse for the 70 percent of Americans who make less than $53,000. Their marginal tax bracket is 10 percent; however, their effective tax rate is 4.2 percent. Again, trading a small deduction on a small amount of money for a much larger tax on a much larger amount of money.
You should only be putting money in Roth IRAS, Roth 401K's and cash value life insurance. Use this article as support for your questions about why your customer would want to ever contribute to a regular IRA or 401K.
Title: It’s time to stop contributing to IRAs and 401(k)s
https://www.investmentnews.com/ (Investment News, July 24, 2023)
https://www.investmentnews.com/stop-contributing-to-iras-and-401ks-240215
Idea #6: Break Even Age for Social Security
Why is knowing the break-even age important when it comes to deciding when to start taking your Social Security?
First, here is why it is important to the claimant alone. Wade Pfau, the retirement expert shares with us, if a male makes it to age 65, their life expectancy is 86 years old. If a woman makes it to age 65, her life expectancy is age 89. If a married couple makes it to age 65, there is a 50 percent chance that one of them will live until age 95. This is not life expectancy from birth. This is if they make it to age 65.
Here's an example of the cost to that person if their full retirement age is age 67 and they take their benefit in age 62. Their full retirement benefit was $2,000 per month. Their reduced benefit at age 62 is $1,400 per month. If they live until age 86 and are male, taking the benefit early cost them $43,200. That is $7,200 per year past the break-even age.
It is way worse if you would have deferred until age 70. Your Social Security benefit would have increased to $2,480 per month. The lost benefit would now be $77,600. All of this gets worse the longer you live.
For a woman, there is more loss. Using full retirement age 67, if a woman lives to age 89, she loses $64,800 taking the benefit at age 62. If she would have deferred until age 70, she loses $116,640 if she lives to age 89. That is a lot of money.
If you are married, you should consider deferring until age 70 to increase the benefit to the surviving spouse.
Finally, you should consider deferring until full retirement age regardless of whether you live to the break-even age or not if the goal is to maximize guaranteed retirement income.
Title: Delaying Social Security? Here’s How Long It Could Take You to Break Even
https://www.fool.com/ (The Motley Fool, July 3, 2023)
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2023/07/03/delaying-social-security-heres-how-long-it-could-t/#:~:text=Waiting%20until%20your%20full%20retirement,taking%20benefits%20at%2067%20vs
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