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EP.2 Buying Back Your Debt and Becoming The Banker, with Mark Willis

Buying Back Your Debt and Becoming The Banker, with Mark Willis

 

In this episode, our guest is Mark Willis. He is a certified financial planner, a three-time #1 Best Selling Author and the owner of Lake Growth Financial Services, a financial firm in Chicago, Illinois. Over the years, he has helped hundreds of his clients take back control of their financial future and build their businesses with proven, tax-efficient financial solutions. He specializes in building custom-tailored financial strategies unknown to typical stock jockeys, attorneys, or other financial gurus. Mark is on a mission to help you think differently about your money, economy, and future. And today, he talks with us about all there is about Money, Banks, Security, and the concept of “Banking on Yourself.” Stay tuned! 

 

Mark’s First Impression about Money and Banks 

[01:33]

The scenario most of us find ourselves in at some point in our life is we're trading life energy for money that goes through our hands. As the money keeps moving and flowing to somebody else's pocket, we are the waystation. To Mark’s memory, money was his mother taking him to the bank. He accumulated 50 dollars from his allowance and he had to hand over that money to a total stranger, a banker. And that he was supposed to trust that banker to do something good with that money. 

 

“Security” 

[07:19]

You are least secure when you only have one client. When that client has a boss who might have eaten too much guacamole the night before and just walked into the office in a bad mood and decided to fire you, that's devastating to your financial future. You think you're secure when you have that big job, and you got all those employees to surround you. But all it takes is somebody in a boardroom with the wrong idea about a department, and there goes your future. There goes your “security.” So better to have 99 or 100 clients that are all streams of income for your family, for your business. And the more you serve them, the more they'll be happy to refer you to others.

 

The Most Important Dollar in our Lives 

[09:58]

Ask yourself what's going to move the needle. There are plenty of mindset coaches and people who can help you move the needle in yourself. As you begin to see yourself change, it will be internal first. Mark was stuck in a rough spot before because of the debt he carried out of college. He then realized that the money he put out to pay those loans was the most valuable dollar in his life. Mark says that the most potential-laden dollars in our life will be the money we have in our mid to late 20s. Today's money in your pocket is the most valuable money you'll ever have because, at this point, the time you have to invest or compound that money is getting shorter and shorter every day.

 

Bank on Yourself 

[13:39]

Mark’s mentor once dropped by his house and shared the “Bank on Yourself” concept with him. Everything that he said countered everything Mark knew about money. Mark then proceeded to go on with his mentor on a seven-month journey to figure out if the concept was true or a scam. The concept was to bank on yourself, become your own source of financing, take the debt problem, and turn it into a solution. It is much like financial judo, where you take the enemy’s force and leverage it against them to keep yourself defended and protected and even win the battle.

 

[15:12]

Slowly but surely, Mark bought back all of his debt and became debt-free. Mark became a banker for himself. Like a banker, Mark gets to choose his repayment schedule and compound that wealth, just like banks do continuously. Mark began to build a platform of predictable and increasing wealth for his family and future generations. 

 

The Banker 

[21:49]

Mark says that we are all in the banking business. We are just sitting on the wrong side of the banker's desk. Whoever the banker is in your life will win the financial game. It doesn’t matter if you are a business owner or a crypto millionaire. What matters is who the banker in your life is. The banking industry controls the environment that your money lives in. The banking industry runs the world economic reality. But banks are a noun and banking is a verb. And nouns don't always have to do the verb. You can still bring back the banking function in your life and be the bank. You can change who the banker is and still be a part of the banking system. You can still participate in buying cars, going on vacations, and investing in your business. You get to decide now because you have a tool that interacts with the world economy. 

 

Watch what Banks do with Money 

[25:04]

Banks do not own the companies. But they are purchasers of life insurance contracts. Billions of dollars are wrapped up in life insurance contracts owned by these banks. If you have a bank account, the owners of that bank will be insured by that company. There's going to be incredible amounts of cash in those policies. So don't do what banks tell you to do with your money. Instead, watch what the banks do with their money and go do that instead.

 

Training the Family 

[32:33]

If you are a business owner, you can own policies. Your family members can own policies and dividends from your business. It's not just creating money for the people. It's also helping to prepare the people for the money where you train them in the principles and values that you want to share with them. If you didn't leave a set of principles in the hearts of your family, they'd blow it at the nearest Casino. But if you train that family or that business to understand your principles for finance, incredible things will happen. 

 

[33:29]

If you want to build real wealth with contractual guarantees outside of Wall Street and want to do it in a safe way where you're where the outcome is determined, check out kickstartwithmark.com.  

 

The Taxing World 

[35:41]

The money you put into a savings account versus a real estate deal will act differently in the tax world. The same is true with life insurance since the IRS was born in 1913. There have been years since the USA was without an income tax. But when it was initiated in 1913, life insurance had predated the IRS by over a century in the country. So if you put money into a life insurance contract as a business owner, you can do it or as a person. And if you set it up correctly, the tax law says you can get access to that money with no tax due.

 

Mark’s Recommended Books 

[37:51]

Mark recommends the book Bank on yourself. Another recommendation is by Darren Hardy called the Compound Effect. It is such a great book, great for the mindset and for skill sets. And lastly, a book by Bill Perkins called Die With Zero. 

  

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