Making Up for Lost Time and Money

8 min read

Can you make up for lost time and money?

Is it possible without risking more money or crushing yourself by working so hard that you have little time or energy for anything else?

In a world filled with health hacks, money hacks, tips, tricks, and social media universities (TikTok, IG, YouTube), these are mostly…hacks.
Hacks. You know, the synonym for a bad comedian.

Chasing returns without a framework and a premise leads to loss.
Loss of money.
Loss of time.
Loss of energy.
Loss of confidence.
Ultimately, loss of trust.

It is a steep price to pay.

Loss can harm relationships and, in the worst case, destroy families.

Loss leaves its mark.
It can impact generations, inviting scarcity and repelling prosperity.

Heavy.
Generational scarcity.
Generational poverty.
Never rising above the rat race, the ranks, and feeling the pressure of the fleeting middle class.

Worried about inflation, in bondage to the banks, and at the whims of the economy.

The Path to Scarcity

How does it happen?
Bad advice.
Bad investing.
Bad philosophies.
High risk = high return.
You’re in it for the long haul.
It takes money to make money.

If we think that risk equals return, every investment sounds good. At least, it sounds good upfront.

Great salesmanship, great stories, excellent track record, impressive returns… blah, blah, blah.

But what is the downside?
What could go wrong?
What are the contingencies?
Do you have control over any of the variables? What are the guarantees and exit strategies?

Sometimes we ask questions to confirm our bias.
It isn’t true due diligence as much as making us feel better about what we have already chosen to do.

Sometimes, the timing feels right.
We have the money; the deal is there, so it seems serendipitous.
Is it?

Yet, we often know deep down when something doesn’t sound right, seem right, or feel right, but the story is just so compelling.

We don’t want to miss out.

We want to make up for lost time.

We want to fix past mistakes or things we missed out on.

We want to get ahead.

Have some breathing room.

Feel better about our finances.

Dream again.

I get it.

I’ve done it.

It’s part of the learning process, like a rite of passage.

Investing in something that isn’t what it seems—takes more money, takes longer, or doesn’t work in the end.

The Two Emotional Culprits

How did we get here?

Fear and greed.

Two culprits of emotional abuse and loss.

Two emotions that lead us down the road of risk.

Fear.

Fear of missing out.
Fear of not belonging.
Fear of not looking smart.

Greed.

I deserve this. I want this. I need this. I. Must. Have. This.

This will show them (whomever you want to prove something to).

You may even dream of what the money could bring you. How easily it will spend and make life better.

Have you been on the wrong side of fear and greed?

I have.

Started a hard money lending fund.

A distraction. A very big distraction.

Lost memories. Lost money. Lost hair (or at least it went gray).

It was expensive.

Fortunately, I learned the lesson.

Most don’t.

Learn the lesson or repeat the mistake, but this time with more pain and more at stake.

After losing, starting late, or wanting to improve your finances, rather than working harder, taking more risks, or completely giving up, there is another way—a better way.

A Better Strategy than Chasing Returns

There is a way to make up for loss.

It doesn’t require risk, it isn’t some hack, and you don’t have to chase returns or take risks.

It is about plugging leaks.

AKA cash recovery.

AKA boosting the bottom line.

AKA keeping more of what you make… but without cutting back or budgeting.

This is about wealth capture.

Wealth creation will require time, work, effort, expense, and so much more. Sure, always grow your income, grow your money, and grow yourself. But you can also help yourself with efficiency.

Wealth capture requires knowledge.

Savvy.

A small amount of time for a big payoff.

It begins with awareness.

Then automation.

Rather than risking your capital, it is about protecting and preserving it.

Efficiency.

With this found cash, you can improve your lifestyle, invest in yourself, or invest in cash-flowing assets. Reclaiming your cash is just the first step.

This is cash that is rightfully yours.

Money slipping through the cracks.

Unnoticed, but worth a fortune.

One of the main culprits of financial leakage (sounds like a terrible disease) is overpaying on tax. It is less likely for a W-2 earner, but for any 1099 independent contractor or business owner, it leads to substantial money nine times out of ten.

You are also likely to overpay on interest if you have more than one loan.

Or, if you have investments in a retirement plan, there are likely hidden fees, non-performing fees, and a myriad of fees that confiscate wealth.

Plus, most people have duplicate coverage with their insurance. This improper structure leads to less coverage or money loss.

The Four “I’s” to Efficiency

I call these the 4 Is to efficiency

IRS
Interest
Investments
Insurance.

Often, people lose ten percent or more of their money due to these hidden factors. Once you know how to recover the cash, it is the elusive obvious. Once you see it, it is easy to see.

Easy to recover.
Easy to capture.
Easier to get ahead.
With tax, most people do a decent job on tax deductions. However, if you don’t know about 280(g), 132(j), or 199(a), you are likely overpaying on your tax.

The bigger tax savings come from how you classify your income as a business owner. You can move some of your active income to passive income (saving up to 15.3 percent), or some of your ordinary income to capital gains (going from as high as 37.5 to 20 percent). With some exit strategies, you can avoid tax altogether (section 1202 or charitable remainder trusts).

If you want a comprehensive checklist of tax strategies and the proprietary framework I’ve created for tax savings, DM me with the word “blog” on Instagram, and I’ll send it to you right away.

The Three “R’s” to Recovery

The second I to efficiency is interest. There are three R’s to recovery:

Reallocate
Renegotiate
Restructure

If you have underperforming assets, paying more in interest than you are making on your investments, there are guaranteed savings to pay off the loan with the underperforming asset. There are considerations for redemption fees and penalties, but this can be an immediate benefit.

Most loans are negotiable, especially if you have a good credit score, collateral, the right connections, or organized cash flow reports.

Some loans can help your credit, while others can harm your credit. For some loans, it is easier to get preferred rates as well. An example would be a car loan versus a credit card.

A car loan is an installment loan, which helps your credit, whereas a credit card is a revolving loan, and if your utilization is over 20 percent, it can drop your score. And because a car loan has collateral and a credit card doesn’t, the interest rate is typically lower (excluding some introductory rates).

Small percentages make a big difference in the investing world. Fees matter. There might be legal and admin fees in a retirement plan. Or a percentage of assets that can increase as your accounts grow. Or 12B-1 fees (marketing fees for your funds). Or managed funds that aren’t worth the extra fees over robo-advisors or index funds.

$100,000 invested over 30 years, growing steadily at 10 percent, grows to $1.74 million+. If you have 0.8 percent in fees, and instead gain 9.2 percent on that same amount of money over the same amount of time, it only grows to $1.4 million and change. That is over $340,000 out of your pocket. Small percentage, big impact.

And finally, insurance.

Insure the catastrophic, not the inconsequential.

Something you can pay for today and sleep well tonight is inconsequential. Something consequential will create stress, may harm your finances substantially, or is something you cannot afford. Transfer catastrophic risk with insurance.

Design matters. The first dollars of insurance coverage are the most expensive because they are the most likely to be utilized yet have the most negligible impact.

It is also helpful to coordinate coverage with insurance. Combined coverage with the same company can lead to discounts. Higher deductibles, because you have cash or cash equivalents, allow you to eliminate inefficient, inconsequential insurance. Have the insurance kick in later by changing elimination periods or having higher deductibles, so you can cover the small things, lowering your premium.

There are ways to implement the Rockefeller Method to recapture term insurance premiums, lower the price of long-term care insurance, minimize tax, improve your savings rate, and have an automated way to capture your wealth.

These are just a few items to consider.

If you want a personal look at these areas, set up a Cash Recovery session.

We can look at your taxes for the last three years.

We can review your financial statements.

We can find the non-performing fees with investments.

We can analyze the design of your insurance.

We can bring the personal back to your personal finances.

And like money detectives, we can detect leaks. We can prevent inefficiency and help you capture wealth.

So before you scrimp, sacrifice, or delay, let’s find money that is rightfully yours. Before you put another dollar into a retirement plan or some speculative investment, let’s investigate your cash and cash flow.

By boosting your bottom line, you can improve your life and finances today and in the future. Several of the strategies impact your finances year after year. And some of the past damage can be undone. You may be able to amend your tax returns and get money back from Uncle Sam.

Capture your wealth, then create it with more certainty. Reduce your risk, enhance your lifestyle, and increase your peace of mind.

Ready to Stop Guessing With Your Money?

Most financial advice tells you to save more and spend less. That’s a losing game. Garrett’s free book Killing Sacred Cows reveals why the conventional wisdom is costing you—and what to do instead.

Get the Free Book →

Do it yourself? Try the free Relationship Currency tool on X1 Wealth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you really make up for lost time and money?

Yes, but not by chasing returns or working yourself to death. You make up for lost time by building a framework that works — leveraging your value creation, plugging cash flow leaks, and investing strategically instead of gambling on hacks.

What’s wrong with money hacks and financial tips?

Hacks are shortcuts that skip the foundation. Chasing returns without a framework leads to loss — loss of money, time, energy, confidence, and trust. You can’t hack your way to wealth; you need a philosophy and a premise.

How do you recover from financial loss?

You recover by building trust — in yourself, in your decisions, and in a proven framework. That means stopping the gambling, getting clear on your Value Equation (mental capital + relationship capital = financial capital), and focusing on cash flow instead of speculation.

What framework should I use to catch up financially?

Start with Financial Fitness — plug the leaks before chasing returns. Understand your Cash Flow Index, your Cost of Money, and your Value Equation. Build liquidity, create tax efficiency, and invest in areas where you have edge, not where TikTok tells you to.

One thought on “Making Up for Lost Time and Money”

Sean Keeley says:

September 20, 2024 at 6:23 am

Good morning, I’m basically starting from scratch. I’ve been divorced and I’m pretty much an empty nester. I’m 56 yrs young and ready to relocate an start living with abundance.

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