Not Your Average Financial Podcast™

Episode 456: No. 4 The Red Belt: The Ultimate Retirement and Business Protection Strategy Most Advisors Ignore

May 29, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Are you ready to advance to a pivot point in the financial dojo?
Would you like to review No. 1 The White Belt?
Would you like to listen to No. 2 The Yellow Belt?
Would you like to catch up on No. 3 The Orange Belt?
What are we moving beyond with the Red Belt?
Are you approaching or in retirement?
Are you running your own business?
What are the headwinds?
Are you protecting a nest egg?
What is the retirement repositioning strategy?
Should you stuff every last dollar into tax deferred vehicles?
What is the median retirement account balance for Americans age 55-64?
Who is exposed?
Who owns your retirement account?
What is the forced retirement distribution?
What age are you forced to take these RMDs?
What climbs when in retirement?
What about 401(k)s and IRAs?
What about the built up tax-deferred time bomb?
Do you know how much you owe in tax now?
When should you pay the tax?
What if you have a shorter timeline?
When do you need the money the most?
How about a case study?
What is a qualified plan?
What does the red belt deliver?
Is peace of mind underrated?
Do you own a business?
What is your single biggest asset?
Have you heard the joke?
What about lines of credit?
Where should you route your profits?
How many times have you kissed the ring of a banker?
What does all of this actually mean?
Will you move into a position of total control?
What is the mathematical reality?
Who controls the financing function in your life?
Who sleeps better?
What does Wade Pfau say?
What is a massive I.O.U. to the I.R.S?
How about another case study?
Who wants guaranteed lifetime income?
Would you like to meet with Mark or one of Mark’s associates?

Episode 455: No. 3 The Orange Belt: the Debt SnowBank Method™

May 22, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

What if it is possible to be BETTER than debt free?
Would you like to hear the No. 1 The White Belt and No 2. The Yellow Belt?
Are you debt free?
Is paying cash the answer?
What did a recent federal reserve study conclude?
What is the Debt SnowBank Method™?
What are the 5 steps?
How about two example cases?
Is your thinking short term or long range?
Which matters more?
What’s the bottom line difference?
Do we have to work harder?
Do your emergencies care if you’re in debt or not?
How about a case study?
How does one instantly create a legacy?
What is a trap?
How many months of expenses do you have ready to go?
So what happened to the two example cases at age 70?
Do you have to choose between getting out of debt and creating wealth?
What are some success stories?
Who will redirect the force?
What are the principles?
What about financial flexibility?
What about taxable events?
What is your ideal outcome?
What are the takeaways?
Would you like to meet with Mark or one of Mark’s associates?
Would you like to join our FREE Not Your Average Financial Community?

Episode 454: No. 2 The Yellow Belt: The People Who Matter Most – Kids, Parents and Business Partners

May 15, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Will anything else in your financial life work?
Did you listen and learn about the White Belt in Episode 453?
What is the Yellow Belt?
Where is real wealth built?
What intentional steps are you taking?
What about legacy level power?
How much does it cost to raise one child from birth to age 18 in the U.S.A.?
What are the problems with 529 plans?
What are the advantages of life insurance on children?
When is the best time for children to start leveraging uninterrupted compound interest?
How do the grandparent’s assets affect the grandchildren’s assets?
Where do many families tie up their wealth?
Who can own policies on kids and grandchildren?
What about the sandwich generation?
Who is a caregiver?
What happened to home care and assisted living costs?
Does Medicare cover long term care costs?
What about Medicaid?
How does the Yellow Belt change the game?
Where does the burden land?
What is an accelerated death benefit rider?
Can you get access to your death benefit while you’re still alive?
Who will cover the gap Medicare ignored?
What if the parents are uninsurable?
What about the liquidity?
Will the markets cooperate?
Who is prepared for the money?
Are you a business owner?
What happens when someone leaves?
What happens when a business partner dies?
Have you seen a poorly designed business transition play out?
What could you do instead?
What about cross purchase and entity purchase agreement?
How about liquidity and security?
Would you like to read The Business Fortress?
What are some design ideas?
What about 162A bonus plans?
How will you protect and reward the people who drive your revenue?
What comes with heavy regulations?
What will happen when the unexpected hits?
What beats term insurance or a sinking fund?
What are the key takeaways?
Would you like to meet with Mark or one of Mark’s associates?

Episode 453: The Ninja Belts of Bank On Yourself®: No. 1 The White Belt: Cash Flow Mastery

May 8, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Where is the true sanity?
What about the martial arts belts?
How can we build real wealth?
How many money moves are you making in your cash flow?
How about renegotiating the auto insurance?
What about cutting out subscriptions no longer in use?
Do you need to adjust your tax withholdings?
What about changing how you pay down your debts?
How about consolidating high-interest credit cards?
Who wants to retain more of the hard-earned income each month?
Where you are currently parking your savings?
Is the money in accounts that serve your long-term need for liquid, accessible, and guaranteed growth?
What are your dollars doing?
What did Nelson Nash say on page 52 of Becoming Your Own Banker?
What is the median retirement account balance?
What will happen with a 1% fee?
Would you like to hear two case studies?
How does one build an asset?
Where does the real power of the white belt strategy begin?
What are the takeaways?
What are the action items?
Would you like to meet with Mark or one of Mark’s associates?

Episode 452: Why China and India Just Bought Gold and Silver Like Crazy… and What It Means for Your Money with Dana Samuelson

May 1, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

What is happening with precious metals?
Where do we stand?
Who is Dana Samuelson?
Where is gold, silver and platinum going?
What is the state of the union on precious metals?
What happened in 2025?
What happened in the late 70s and COVID?
What about tariffs?
What about uncertainty?
What are the good alternatives?
Why do other countries have a precious metals culture?
What insulates us from shocks, economically?
What happened in April 2025?
What happened to the bond market?
What is the biggest credit market in the world?
What did China say?
What happened in August?
What did India say?
What broke the London over the counter silver market in 2025?
What happened on January 30th, 2026?
Why have gold and silver coins been currency for so long?
What happened after World War II?
Why are people passionate about precious metals?
What happened to Bitcoin?
Can markets go both ways?
Who has a big gold culture?
What about supply and demand?
What has performed better recently, Bitcoin or gold?
What might cause gold and silver to ease in value?
What benefits from higher interest rates?
What is foundational beyond fiat money?
What’s the safest place to store gold?
What’s the problem with storing silver?
What about storage facilities?
Do you have access?
Can you transact in gold, like we transact in dollars?
Does gold have counter party risk?
What about precious metals bartering?
How do you know if gold is reputable?
What about Dana’s company, American Gold Exchange?
What about trust?
Where are precious metals headed in 2026?
Is the dollar weakening?
What about Central Bank buying?
What about volatility?
What is the difference between investments and savings?
Would you like to visit amergold.com?
What are the takeaways?
What are the action items?

The topics presented in this podcast are general information only and not for the purposes of providing legal, accounting or investment advice. On such matters, please consult a professional who knows your specific situation.

Dana Samuelson is the Founder and President of American Gold Exchange (AGE), a leading national precious metals and rare coin company specializing in dealer-to-dealer trading and direct-to-consumer sales.

He has been active in the physical gold and silver markets for 43 years and is a nationally recognized expert on vintage, pre-1933 US gold and silver coins. Email American Gold Exchange at info@amergold.com.

Episode 451: Refinance Your Retirement – An Important Update on Annuities

April 24, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Do you need the latest and greatest?
Are you rocking a flip phone?
How have interest rates affected crediting rates, caps and guaranteed lifetime income streams?
Did you buy a contract in the low rate years?
What are the new contracts offering with higher interest rates?
Is it smart to run the numbers?
What other everyday financial products need review?
What is the insurance industry’s answer to a CD?
What about income annuities?
Is it time for an annuity refresh?
Is it costly to shop around?
What about fixed index annuities from 2005-2020 or so?
What is the upside potential?
Are interest rates the whole story for annuity products?
What are the better caps and spreads?
What never runs out?
What is the bottom line?
How about an example?
What happened with inflation?
Should all annuities be replaced?
What is a surrender charge?
Is the surrender charge worth it?
Does the contract’s new features benefit you?
Is the old one better?
Has the interest rate environment changed in your favor?
Is this worth a fresh look?
What are the key takeaways?

Episode 450: The Tardus Income Snowball and Bank On Yourself® – Are They Your Financial Game Genie? with Ben Berry

April 17, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Who is Ben Berry?
Would you like to check out Episode 397?
What is Tardus Wealth Strategies?
Would you like to hear Episode 376?
How does the Bank on Yourself tool integrate with the Income Snowball?
Do you remember Nintendo, back in the day?
Do you remember the Game Genie?
Why is control so important in wealth creation?
What are the headwinds working against your money?
Would you like to view video and/or Subscribe on the YouTube page?
How might we think and learn about money differently?
What is a myth?
What can Wall Street legally claim?
What does it mean to change the environment where your money lives?
Who wants the wind at your back?
Is this going to take me all the way to the end?
Will I make more than that in my stocks?
What about the payout or withdrawal rate?
When will passive income exceed your living expenses?
What are the options?
What is a “MELOC,” and how does it differ from a HELOC?
What did Mark Twain say?
How many questions are involved in a whole life insurance loan?
How do you take a HELOC?
What kind of impact would non-direct recognition loans have?
Are you constantly breaking the compounding of your growth?
What is the “eighth wonder of the world”?
What breaks compound growth?
What one little glitch could be the difference between success and failure?
What are the wrong tools?
Is it a cheap knock off?
Are you taking on unnecessary risk?
What becomes more expensive as you get older?
What won’t work with the income snowball?
What about building capital?
How about moving to stable, long-term assets?
What are the paths to getting started?
When is the liquidity ready to deploy?
What about building with monthly cash flow?
Do you need to lock money away for forty years?
What asset can you build right away?
What instantly multiplies your family’s legacy?
What will improve?
What will happen to your lifestyle?
What will happen to your demeanor?
What are the risks of the income snowball?
Who is doing the due diligence?
What is Plan A? Plan B? Plan C?
What do you need to pay attention to?
Who is on your team?
Would you like to reach out to Ben at bencberry@gmail.com?

Ben Berry is the owner of Berry Financial Services, LLC, where he helps individuals, families, and business owners take back control of their financial lives. As a Bank On Yourself® Professional and Safe Money Specialist, Ben focuses on building predictable, tax-advantaged wealth strategies designed to support long-term security and generational impact. His approach integrates advanced business planning, life insurance solutions, contingency capital, and asset-mapping to create clear, customized financial pathways. Known for translating complex concepts into practical guidance, Ben equips clients to make confident decisions in an uncertain world. He is passionate about education, relationships, and helping people build wealth they can depend on.

Episode 449: The Hidden Power of Trump Accounts — What Nobody is Telling You

April 10, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

How has the I.R.S. clarified things with a recent notice on the Trump account?
What changed Mark’s mind about the Trump accounts?
Can you convert a Trump account into a Roth IRA when the kid turns 18?
Why not put money into a 529 plan instead?
What about layering this in with other strategies?
What is a Trump account?
What is huge?
Who can fund this?
Who needs earned income?
What happens for kids who were born between 2025 and 2028?
What happens in July 2026?
How can you set one up?
When are contribution due?
What about ETFs?
What happens automatically at age 18?
What are the limits?
What happens with the taxes on these accounts?
Why does timing matter?
What if the government changes the rules?
What about a case study?
How do taxes work with a Roth?
Should you convert it all at once?
What is the basis in the Trump account?
What is the standard deduction in the year your kid turns 18?
How many taxes will the kid pay?
What is return of basis?
What happens in year 2?
What can you do once the money is rolled into a Roth IRA?
What would the total income become?
How can you make a plan to protect the principal?
Why is starting early the key?
What is like planting an oak tree?
What about required minimum distributions?
What does Ed Slott say in the Retirement Savings Time Bomb?
… and more!

Episode 448: Why the Bank on Yourself Combo Rider is Your Lethal Weapon — If You Use It!

April 3, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

What is the combo rider?
What’s the worst thing you could do?
What is the power of uninterrupted compounding growth?
How about an example?
What about utilizing the paid up additions rider?
What’s the deal with the one-year term cost?
What can be a game changer?
What about parking money a low-yield savings account?
What are mutually owned life insurance companies?
Where does the magic happen?
What is the base policy premium?
What is the paid up additions rider?
How can you fund the paid up additions rider?
What is a combo rider?
What lets you pour in extra dollars?
What boosts your cash value and your death benefit?
What are your numbers?
Why is a custom design important?
Why do term insurance costs go up each year?
How is buying a policy like buying a house?
What makes a life insurance policy bigger and more valuable?
What happens when you fund the combo rider?
What adds to the permanent wealth accumulation?
Why does term insurance reprice each year?
What lifts the death benefit up?
How do you get more head room?
How do you convert term piece after piece over time, to make sure the overall cost doesn’t go up?
What about fully funding the policy?
What about converting the term into permanent paid up additions (PUA) coverage?
What is flexible?
Can you eliminate PUAs entirely?
Can you eliminate the term?
What can you do after the seventh year?
What is temporary?
How is this different from indexed universal life insurance (IULs)?
Why can’t you get out of IUL contracts?
What is the fine print in the IUL contract?
How do you control the conversion and cost in a combo-rider whole life insurance policy?
Should you maximize your paid-up additions rider?
Should you fully fund the paid-up additions rider?
What is the limit you can pack into your PUAs?
What are the policy’s and the government’s guidelines?
What about the time value of money?
What will start compounding for you right away?
How do I grow my dividends?
How do I get liquidity?
Why are savings accounts convenient and safe?
How does inflation affect your savings account?
How does inflation affect your policy’s cash value?
Do you need to make a big purchase without interrupting the compound growth?
Who is burning up opportunity cost?
Did you spend it? Is it gone forever?
What is the magic of a fully funded paid-up additions rider?
How about a case study?
Are you eyeing a property?
What about loan interest payments?
Did you earn more than you spent?
What about arbitrage?
Would that be a good deal for you?
Do you have to choose between access and growth?
What else is there to unpack?
Would you like a freebie at the FREE! Not Your Average Financial Community?
What about rising costs?
What happens with age?
What happens when the term cost drops?
Can you eliminate the term entirely?
Who is in the driver’s seat?
Is this a bold opinion?
What about IUL vs. whole life insurance?
Who wins?
Why is compounding capacity the key?
Can you retroactively stuff more in?
What are the key takeaways?
Would you like to meet with Mark or one of Mark’s associates?
Who needs to hear this?

Would you like to join us for a very special workshop at Hotel Baker in St. Charles, IL? We’re meeting on the afternoon of April 9, 2026.

…Are you a business owner? Are you focused on how to fund your business growth without banks, investors or draining your retirement?
Join us LIVE and in-person, April 9, 1PM-2PM CT | $79 | Register Here

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…Are you going to outlive your money? Would you like to join Mark Willis, CFP® to learn 3 strategies to protect your retirement from market crashes, rising taxes and inflation?
Join us LIVE and in-person, April 9, 2:30PM-3:30PM CT | $29 | Register Here

See you there!

Episode 447: Films That Change Lives and Hearts with Moneeka Sawyer

March 27, 2026 by Not Your Average Financial Podcast

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In this episode, we ask:

Do you remember Moneeka Sawyer?
Would you like to listen way back to Episode 119?
What is the Christmas Rescue?
What did Moneeka notice as an executive coach?
What happens when people lose their joy?
Have you read Choose Bliss?
How can you be blissful when you’re broke?
What transformed Moneeka’s entire life?
How can we recreate joy?
What about hope and second chances and love?
How is choosing bliss a defiant act?
How do we know if people are watching the film?
How is money a certificate of good performance?
How is money an indicator?
What does Mark notice with high net worth clients?
Would you like to reach out to Moneeka at moneeka@coreblisslife.com or at christmasrescue.help?
What are the action steps?
What about journaling?
What one small daily habit will increase your bliss?

Moneeka Sawyer is a TEDx speaker, an international best- selling author of the award-winning book “Choose Bliss: The Power and Practice of Joy and Contentment, and hosts a top rated podcast and nationally syndicated radio show. She has interviewed prestigious guests such as Leeza Gibbons, Dr. Joe Vitale, Hal Elrod, and Mark Victor Hansen, and has been interviewed on podcasts like Entrepreneurs on Fire with John Lee Dumas, Hal Elrod’s Achieve Your Goals, and the Best Real Estate Advice Ever show with Joe Fairless. Most recently she was featured on the cover of Forbes Magazine and in America’s Who’s Who. Moneeka’s expertise, and bliss-filled laugh, have also been featured on stages with Suzanne Somers, Martha Stewart, and Ice T & Coco at places like the Nasdaq Marketplace, Harvard, and Carnegie Hall, and on TV on NBC, CBS, ABC, and Fox impacting over 150 million people. Connect with Moneeka at Blissfulinvestor.com

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See you there!

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