There’s nothing more sobering than a distant stat hitting close to home—and we’re not talking physical distance. Mental distance: the kind of distance we manufacture in our minds to separate us from the pain of truth to enjoy the comfort of ignorance. Whether it’s hunger, cancer, disease, or poverty, most of us will never think twice until we experience it ourselves. And yet, in 2016, nearly 70% of all Americans reported having less than $1000 in savings, while 34% reported next to $0. What’s more? The outlook is bleak: estimates suggest 39% of Americans will have close to $0 in their savings by the end of this year. So, what’s happening? Misplaced taboo, insufficient education, and bad habits, according to Jennifer Myers, founder and president at SageVest Wealth Management. Not surprisingly, these three symptoms are related, having been passed down from one generation to the next. “[Financial stability] is a subject nobody really wants to talk about, [but] we need to change that in our society because someone’s financial standing dramatically impacts their lifestyle, their health, their ability to survive.” Tragically, most people don’t even realize how little they’re saving. Jennifer’s advice: Take action now (if you can start in your twenties, don’t wait), make a wise investment in a financial future, and consider what matters in life. “I pursued corporate finance for a very brief period of time before someone wisely said to me: ‘Go into the office tomorrow and look around and decide if you want to be the people that you work with 20 years from now.’” Realizing she wanted nothing to do with that future, Jennifer dedicated her life to educating clients, and extending high level wealth management structure to ordinary people. “Finances are related to real people who need real advice… Too often wealth managers just simply look at retirement and crack the numbers and they don’t get to know what’s really important in somebody’s life. And life is short. You want to make sure it matters.” SageVest Wealth offers a myriad of other services beyond retirement planning, including SageVest Kids – a family focused branch of SageVest, and a passionate rebuttal to breaking the financial illiteracy cycle. You can learn more about Jennifer and SageVest at: https://www.sagevestwealth.com/
