Todd Tresidder - The Leverage Equation: How to Work Less, Make More, and Cut 30 Years Off Your Retirement Plan (Financial Freedom for Smart People)

Life is too short to be living somebody elses dream.

Hugh Hefner

How can you lift a 7000-pound car without anyone to help you?

The answer is the same as how you can achieve financial independence well before your retirement age. Its the same solution that will get more done in a day, with less effort. And its the answer to breaking free of almost any limitation you think you have whether its time, money, skills, connections, or anything else.

Leverage is the strategic tool that expands your resources beyond your present limitations to produce greater results than you could generate on your own. Leverage gives you access to more capital, more technology, larger networks, greater knowledge, and smarter systems than you personally possess.

Mastering leverage can:

• Accelerate your financial results
• Multiply your wealth
• Improve your quality of life by freeing up your time from mundane tasks
• Allow you to focus your attention on what you enjoy and are good at

Mastering leverage is how I retired at age 35, just 12 years after graduating from college with thousands of dollars in student loan debt and zero assets. In this book, youll discover how to apply the same leverage principles I used (and more!) to break through whatever limitations hold you back so you can produce even greater results.

Most people misunderstand leverage.

For example, when you hear the term leverage do you think of financial leverage, such as mortgages in real estate or debt financing?

Sure, thats one type of leverage, but its only one of six! Its also the riskiest. The other five types of leverage multiply reward without increasing risk. Even better, when you master certain types of leverage, its entirely possible to increase your reward while reducing your risk at the same time!

Another common myth about leverage is that its exploitative or manipulative. Maybe youve seen the depraved villain on a daytime soap use people through leverage in some shocking and morally bankrupt way. You think: I would never do a thing like that!

But leverage is not about using people. Its about making smart business decisions that benefit all participants; and its about responsibly applying other peoples resources to overcome obstacles that limit your success so you can achieve greater results with less personal effort. Leverage done right creates jobs, grows wealth, and serves people.

Theres plenty of success advice out there. Unfortunately, many of the ideas taught are really just conditional half-truths masquerading as universal facts. The problem is: these half-truths frequently work well and are repeated so often that its easy to accept them as fact. But thats where the danger begins, because any idea taken as fact when it actually isnt will limit your ability to see better alternatives. You wont recognize the exceptions that disprove the rule.

The good news is that when you learn the pros and cons of the multiple leverage strategies taught in this book, youll see how much of the conventional wisdom is really just low-leverage half-truths.

For example:

1. Retirement planning is NOT just about saving and investing until age 65 (Spoiler alert: You can become financially independent at any age! You dont have to wait until age 65; leverage will show you how to enjoy financial freedom earlier).
2. Asset allocation across a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds is NOT the only way to invest for retirement (Spoiler alert: Higher leverage asset classes and investment models exist that can accelerate your wealth while reducing your risk).
3. Making more money is NOT just about getting a promotion, or a raise, or working longer hours (Spoiler alert: trading time for money caps your income because theres a limit to how many hours you can work. You must learn how to separate your income from hours worked so you can make more while working less).