Most of us were raised on the idea that “the path” to building wealth is investing in the stock market.
Garrett Gunderson, our Founder and Chief Wealth Architect, is one of the few who have pushed back against this notion, famously criticizing mutual funds and 401(k)s in his New York Times bestseller Killing Sacred Cows, which presciently was published in 2008, just months before stocks tanked and the Great Recession began.
Because the truth is, the stock market has been overpromising and underdelivering to the masses for a long time.
As a result, it’s in serious danger — and if you’re honest with yourself, you can probably already feel it.
The stock market is a failed financial experiment when it comes to funding retirement or creating economic independence — and it’s only going to get worse.
On top of the fact that you have very little control over your results, and that the “hockey stick” curve your investment advisor teased you with is never going to happen…
There are a few factors that make stock market investing an even less viable option for most people moving forward.
First of all, stock trading success is rigged in favor of a few large institutional investors and investment banks. See, they use something called “flash trading”, which is high-speed computers that analyze market conditions and submit a huge number of orders extremely quick to an exchange.
This is an unfair advantage that makes it very difficult for “at-home traders” to win.
Then there’s the nature of business and consumer spending, which is shifting significantly and rapidly away from large corporations and towards smaller, disruptive businesses.
You’ve probably noticed the “craft beer” movement. Whenever travelers visit somewhere new, they go to the bar and ask for local brew.
Savvy restaurants are getting behind this trend too, sourcing beverages, meat, and vegetables locally as much as possible.
And people worldwide can get online and easily find smaller, mission-driven companies with more personalized messaging and a cause they support that matters.
There are fewer IPO’s happening every year, which is a result of these kinds of trends.
So what’s behind these trends?
Ask yourself this: of all the companies on the DOW or S&P, how many do you enjoy doing business with? Do you feel valued, and believe they’re creating products and services that make your life better?
Or do you simply tolerate them due to lack of options?
Mark our words: the internet, AI, and rapid technology growth like solar, blockchain, and self-driving cars will be the death of current (antiquated) business and investing models.
In the near future, a significant portion of large, publicly traded companies will be replaced by more agile and customer-focused companies.
Entrepreneurs and small business owners that use technology for the advancement of the world rather than padding the pockets of their executive team and blocking (or attacking and taking over) competition will win…
And the exciting news is this will alter the way we live, do business, and invest.
Any business owner, small or large, that sticks to older models and refuses to adapt to the influx of new technology will be buried faster than they can imagine — and will be quickly replaced by anyone providing a service that’s easily automated.
However, if you focus on creating value for others, and use the changes that are coming to produce more, then you’ll always be on the winning side.
New technology can allow for faster development, greater reach, and even a massive reduction in cost for employees and marketing.
AI and its implications on everything from transportation to payment processing and investing will lead to the same sort of change the internet had on our world — but on an even bigger scale.
And just as the typewriter repairman isn’t in business anymore, you can expect there to be some major changes in the status quo as this new technology gains momentum.
Now, and even more so moving forward, everything is moving faster.
Before the internet and automation were available, it took giant corporations with thousands of employees to accomplish great things.
Now, we see more and more small businesses doing the work of thousands of people with just a dozen employees. Automation, outsourcing, and ever-improving technology takes care of the rest.
And soon, we may see one person with the help of artificial intelligence successfully competing against these small businesses — making them seem as antiquated as the over-bloated corporations that they once replaced.
That is the future of business. That is why the future of the stock market isn’t looking good.
Because the important thing to remember is:
When big, slow, archaic companies are at risk, your money is too if it’s invested in them.
In the next 5 years, we’ll see fewer and fewer businesses going public – because why would you need to raise money if you can bootstrap it alongside your very own R2D2?
More and more people will be able to gain their employment not by working for a business, but by opening their own and relying on their own mental and relationship capital to grow it…
And if you’re able to adapt and take advantage of what’s coming, there’s an incredible opportunity for you to create even more value for the world while building an amazing lifestyle at the same time.
Want to know more about how to prepare for both the upcoming recession and the disruptive changes coming into our lives, businesses, and investing?
Watch our Founder, Garrett Gunderson’s YouTube video on “How to PREPARE for the 2020 Global RECESSION!/ Garrett Gunderson” here.
And be on the lookout for an announcement next week on more Financial Trends affecting your economic independence.
That’s it for this week.
Build the life you love,
The Builders at Wealth Factory
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