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Quick
LIVE FREE,Start Guide
RETIRE WEALTHY:
How to keep more of what you make without
sacrificing, scrimping, or becoming Scrooge
 Quick Start Guide

Budgeting Sucks
LIVE FREE, RETIRE WEALTHY:
How to keep more of what you make without sacrificing,
scrimping, or becoming scrooge

GARRETT B. GUNDERSON

“If money is your hope for independence you will never have it.
The only real security that a man will have in this world is a
reserve of knowledge, experience, and ability.”
– Henry Ford
CHAPTER 1: From Scarcity To Abundance, The Smartest Way To
Live Within Your Means 3
CHAPTER 2: Hidden Capital 5
CHAPTER 3: Save Money Without Budgeting 7
CHAPTER 4: Increase Expenses, Grow Wealth 9
CHAPTER 5: The Fastest, Safest Method To Pay Off Loans 11
CHAPTER 6: Wealth Architecture 13
CHAPTER 7: Become a Better Investor 15
CHAPTER 8: Accelerate Investment Income 17
CHAPTER 9: Cash Flow Banking 19
CHAPTER 10: Eliminate Budgeting with Value Based Spending 21
CHAPTER 11: Dollars Follow Value 2​4

2
CHAPTER ONE: From Scarcity To
Abundance, The Smartest Way To Live
Within Your Means

SUMMARY

Money is a key area to shift from a scarcity mindset to an abun-

dance mindset.

The scarcity mindset says, “I can’t afford it.”

The abundance mindset asks, “How can I afford it?”

At some point, most of us have been advised to “live within our

means,” and generally speaking, that’s wise. The problem is that
most people try to incorporate it through a budgeting-based
strategy—to live the advice, they reduce spending.

They scrimp, save, delay and defer. But the smartest way to live
within your means isn’t to think in terms of reduction, but in terms
of production.

KEY POINTS

● Scarcity is by far the greatest destroyer of wealth.​ If people

are focused on reductionist thinking and on constantly
cutting back, then life will always be rigged against them.

● When you obsess on cutting back, you cheat yourself.​ You

miss out on the day-to-day moments that can make you

3
 wealthy right now.

● Money is one of many forms of currency. ​Other

measurements of wealth include recreation, relaxation, and
rejuvenation (e.g. spending time with family, gardening,
working out, etc.). Activities that indirectly support us to be
more productive or to enjoy life can be as valuable as money
in the bank.

● Shifting into the Producer Paradigm starts with simply

being mindful about your money​—how much you’re
making, how you’re spending. There are 6 ways to move from
budgeting to “Mindful Cash Management," and they will help
you overcome scarcity and create greater abundance in your
life.

● Financial independence means having enough recurring

revenue, a.k.a. passive income​, to cover basic living
expenses. Financial freedom means that money is not the
primary reason or excuse to do or not do something.
Financial freedom has everything to do with mindset, and
nothing to do with actual financial resources.

● The smartest investment you can ever make is an

investment in yourself. ​No other investment will give you
greater returns and long-term stability. You are your most
important asset.

4
CHAPTER TWO: Hidden Capital

SUMMARY

To build wealth requires going beyond budgeting.

Instead, it is imperative to focus on delivering value, serving others,

or solving problems for people. These are the resources that drive
money. Our Financial Capital is merely the receipt of building and
utilizing our Mental Capital and Relationship Capital.

Whenever we think we have a money problem, it isn’t a money

problem. We’re always one idea or relationship away from solving
any financial problem.

Actually, if we have the money to solve the problem, it is no longer

a problem. The Value Equation will be instrumental in your
implementing strategies that overcome the constraints of scarcity
and the budgeting mindset.

The Value Equation:

Mental Capital * Relationship Capital = Financial Capital

You may be short on cash. But if you’re resourceful and giving,

you can build and leverage Mental and Relationship Capital into
Financial Capital.

“The richest people in the world build networks; everyone else is

trained to look for work.”​ – Robert Kiyosaki

KEY POINTS
5
● You have to be clear about what you want​ and willing to
not only ask for it, but also, have an answer when people ask
you how they can support you and your work. People love
what they have the ability to be part of. What they can help
build, they will support.

● Your financial success isn’t determined by the Financial

Capital you start with​. Rather, it’s determined by your
Mental and Relationship Capital.

● It is time to scrub the phrase “pick your brain” from your

conversations.​ This implies a withdrawal of Mental Capital.
Think instead of how you can add value, build a relationship
and therefore learn as you spend time with the individual.
Think deposit first.

● Rather than budget and cut back, instead invest in your

knowledge and develop your relationships.​ Hard work with
the wrong philosophy will produce mediocre results at best
and at worst, can still lead to bankruptcy. Don’t budget your
way broke. Invest in yourself.

6
CHAPTER THREE: Save Money Without
Budgeting
“How many millionaires do you know who have become wealthy by
investing in savings accounts? I rest my case.”​ - Robert G. Allen

SUMMARY
I am sure you have heard from well-intentioned family and friends
that the path to wealth is to cut your expenses and scrimp like a
miser.

The truth is that there’s a much smarter way. You can free up way
more cash than cutting out your daily trip to Starbucks. In fact, it
doesn’t require that you cut out anything at all.

If you want to budget, budget your time, not your money. To free
up cash, forget about your daily coffee or cable bill.

Instead, analyze your taxes, loans, insurance, and investments.

Dale has coached for my firm Wealth Factory since 2006 when it
was called Freedom FastTrack. Through these sessions he has
discovered ​more than 10% of most people’s income is lost on
unnecessary taxes, interest, insurance, and investment fees.

By structuring each of these properly, thousands of people have

saved thousands of dollars per month—and all without changing
their spending habits.

7
KEY POINTS

● Your credit score can be leveraged to your advantage.​ Ideally,

you want your credit score to be at least 720. In a perfect world, it
would be 760 or higher. With a higher credit score, you may be
able to negotiate better interest rates, refinance a loan to get a
lower interest rate, or lower your car and homeowner’s insurance
rates. To get your most accurate credit scores that are used by
creditors, go to ​myFICO.com​.

● When you have loans and investments, you may be earning

less interest from your investments than you’re paying on the
loans.​ It may be to your advantage to pay off the loan before
putting more money into the investment. This way, you save more
money by recapturing the loan interest than you would earn from
your investment.

● If you haven’t incorporated with a legal entity, such as an LLC,

S Corp, or C Corp, you’re likely overpaying on taxes.​ Business
owners get more tax advantages than employees. Even if you’re a
W-2 employee and technically don’t own a business, you can still
set up an entity if you do any independent contractor work.

● Even if you already have an entity established, you can

probably still save money in taxes.​ In fact, our surveys for the last
decade have found that more than 93% of business owners are
overpaying taxes.

● Most people aren’t even aware of the many hidden fees in

retirement plans and investments.​ Even a 1% fee can end up
being hundreds of thousands of dollars over thirty years. The key
is to consider your bottom-line returns after expenses rather than
discounting something that on the surface seems like a small fee,
that can actually have a massive impact.

8
CHAPTER FOUR: Increase Expenses, Grow
Wealth
“Don’t tell me what your priorities are. Show me where you spend your
money and I’ll tell you what they are.”​ - James W. Frick

SUMMARY

Assets are things that either put money in your pocket (increase
cash flow) or can be sold and converted into cash flow.

Assets could include land, buildings, businesses, stock certificates,

life insurance cash values, precious metals, intellectual property
rights, etc.

Liabilities are recurring expenses we pay for like credit cards, auto
loans, student loans, payroll, or mortgages.

We often limit our financial choices by not differentiating between

actual debt and mere liabilities. Remember: to get beyond
budgeting, the goal isn’t to simply pay off all loans and get rid of as
many liabilities as possible. The goal is to maximize cash flow and
achieve economic independence.

9
KEY POINTS
● Economic Independence means having enough recurring
revenue (cash flow) from investments to cover your basic
expenses.

● If the goal is to “stay out of debt” at all costs by never

borrowing money, then we would never borrow to get an
education​, improve our business productivity, or build cash
flowing assets. Sometimes, increasing our liabilities can be a
safe, wise, and effective way to increase our cash flow. This is
done by borrowing money to acquire assets.

● When it comes to expenses, the standard advice we’re

often given is to cut, cut, cut.​ Scrimp, sacrifice, and save.
Reminder: no one shrinks their way to wealth. This advice is
born from the mindset of budgeting. It tends to invite
scarcity thinking. Budgeting ignores details and nuances
that create wealth. Learn the four types of expenses and you
will know which ones to eliminate, manage, address, and
even increase.

● Once you understand the four types of expenses, it’s time

to classify your spending​. Look at your bank statements for
the past thirty days. You will want to categorize your
expenses into one of the four quadrants.

● In many cases, the way to become wealthier is not to

decrease your liabilities, but rather to increase them.​ For
example, it may cost you $2,000 to go to an event and get
specialized training. But that training may result in tens of
thousands of dollars in increased revenues.

10
CHAPTER FIVE: The Fastest, Safest Method
To Pay Off Loans
“Some debts are fun when you are acquiring them, but none are fun when
you set about retiring them.”​ - Ogden Nash

SUMMARY
If you have already paid off any outstanding loans that were
important for you to eliminate, you may want to move quickly
through this chapter.

On the other hand, if you have loans you would like to eliminate in
less time, with less risk, and without living off rice and beans, pay
close attention.

Mindful Cash Management (MCM) is a system that focuses on

maximizing cash flow to create economic independence,
plugging leaks, and accelerating investment income. The more
cash flow we free up on a monthly basis, the more we have to
invest in ourselves, our businesses, and our projects.

MCM begins with how we go about paying off loans to

immediately increase cash flow. Many people gravitate towards
paying off the loans with the highest interest rate. But that
strategy may prevent us from maximizing cash flow.

The Cash Flow Index is a simple mathematical formula that

reveals the loans that are the biggest drains on our cash flow.
Although they may not be the loans with the highest interest rate,
it is still smarter and more efficient to pay down these loans first.
This can improve your debt-to-income ratio (the amount of

11
payment required relative to your total income) and improve your
purchasing power over time.

CASH FLOW INDEX (CFI) = LOAN BALANCE /

MINIMUM PAYMENT

A low Cash Flow Index means the loan is inefficient and should be
paid off quickly. By inefficient, I mean you have a high payment on
a monthly basis relative to a relatively low loan balance. A Cash
Flow Index with a high score is the preferred, more efficient loan.

KEY POINTS

● We recommend that you make only the minimum

payment on efficient loans.

● In order to improve the interest rate on your loans, use the

4C’s to better cash flow.

● The secret is to ignore the interest rate.​ Chasing your

highest interest rate can lead to a slower path to paying off
loans and take longer to achieve economic independence,
improve your financial statement or restructure loans with
more favorable terms.

● There are 4 steps to the Mindful Cash Management

Strategy for paying off loans:​ 1) build savings first, 2) utilize
the 3R methodology to restructure your loans, reallocate your
funds, and renegotiate your interest rates, 3) pay down one
loan at a time using the Cash Flow Index, and 4) be cautious
about locking up money in an asset.

12
CHAPTER SIX: Wealth Architecture
“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.”
- Lewis Carroll

SUMMARY

Most retirement planning comes down to salespeople selling

products in order to earn a living through making a commission.
These financial products typically require that you relinquish
control and wait for decades before a potential payoff.

There is another option: Wealth Architecture.

Wealth Architecture is the map that connects your financial past,

present and future. It starts with you and your preferences in mind
and brings the word “personal” back into personal finance. It
clearly defines your financial outcomes based on your vision.

Once you have that clarity, you can wisely choose the professionals
and products you need to accomplish your goals. You define your
win, create focus through purpose, and build a plan to support
that win.

The five Ps of Wealth Architecture lead you to sustainable and

lasting wealth:

1. Perspective
2. Purpose
3. Plan
4. Professionals
5. Products

13
KEY POINTS

● Perspective is the first and most important pillar of Wealth

Architecture.​ No matter how hard you work, how lucky you are,
or who you know, if scarcity is your dominant paradigm, you
can’t win the money game. If you live in scarcity, then no
amount of money will ever be enough for you. Remember:
Hard work + bad financial philosophy = financial
limitation/destruction.

● Once you’ve cultivated an abundance mindset where you

create value with fewer limitations, concerns, or obstacles,
purpose will bring greater focus to your life. ​You focus your
efforts on the projects you care deeply about and align with
your Soul Purpose. You focus your investments on what you
know and for which you have ability and passion.

● The third pillar in your Wealth Architecture is to create a

plan for economic independence.​ This is different from what
people call financial freedom. ​(Economic independence is a
state of having enough recurring income/cash flow from
business and/or investment income to cover all your personal
expenses. This gives you more options.)

● It’s not enough to work with individual professionals.​ First,

knowing exactly which professionals are required is key.
Secondly, the best results are achieved when all your
professionals are working together as a team and
communicating with each other to properly support you. The
game is often won when the team is picked.

● Do not select any products until you have addressed the

first four “P’s." T
​ his is one of the most important pieces of

14
 advice for sustainable wealth, for not losing money, and for
peace of mind.

CHAPTER SEVEN: Become a Better Investor

“When in doubt, check if your actions are aligned with your purpose.”
- Azim Jamal & Brian Tracy

SUMMARY

With the expansive possibilities of abundance come potential

distractions. In order to protect your time and maximize results,
we created a tool called the “Investor DNA Decoder.”

By employing and being empowered with your Investor DNA, you

will know when to say no, therefore protecting your time and
money.

For the deepest insights supporting your Investor DNA, we focus

on your Soul Purpose: the values, abilities, and passions combined
for the highest context or outcomes of your life. Investor DNA is
how you invest outside of yourself in the products, companies, and
opportunities other than your own business or education.

SOUL PURPOSE​: Who you are when you are at your best. Your
unique set of abilities, passions and values combined for the
mission that you were born for.

Investor DNA gives you insights into the best places to invest for
you. We call this overriding philosophy “Strengthsvesting.”

15
With Strengthsvesting, you only invest in yourself or in
investments that make sense to you based upon what you know
and value. Elements of your Soul Purpose are recognized and
multiplied in the areas where you have passion, experience, and
ability. Even better, using Strengthsvesting does not require
having money to invest.

KEY POINTS

● The Investor DNA Decoder​ helps you refine your values,

competencies, and drivers to become a better investor.
* Go through the exercise for maximum benefit *

● Risk is in the investor, not the investment. ​There are some

inherently risky investments, like Ponzi schemes or the
lottery. But no legitimate investments are inherently risky; it
is people who make them safe or risky. It is people who make
investments productive or not.

● Multiple streams of income can be multiple streams of

distraction. T
​ rying to monetize everything becomes
problematic. It can create distractions and lose momentum
on core offerings.

● The Investor Scorecard can be used to evaluate the risk

that comes with any investment​, given the financial and
personal circumstances of the investor.
* Use this exercise to evaluate investments one at a time *

16
CHAPTER EIGHT: Accelerate Investment
Income
“Never take your eyes off the cash flow because it’s the lifeblood of business.”
- Sir Richard Branson

SUMMARY

If I told you I would give you either $100,000 in a lump sum, or

$1,000 per month for twenty years, which would you choose?

Granted, your answer may depend on what you plan on doing

with the $100,000. Maybe you can invest it and get a better return
than $1,000 per month. But given that choice, I take the cash flow
any day.

Anyone can save and accumulate net worth. But once you’ve built
net worth, how do you access and utilize it without spending it
down?

What matters isn’t how much money you save. Rather, it’s how
much cash flow your assets produce. Cash flow, not net worth, is
the better measure of wealth. One of the best ways to protect your
net worth is to create plenty of cash flow so you won’t have to
liquidate any of your net worth to pay the bills in an economic
downturn or turmoil.

Strategically engineering your wealth is enhanced through

accelerating your investment income by focusing on cash flow
investing. By converting your accumulation assets to cash flow as
quickly, safely, and sustainably as possible, you can achieve
economic independence sooner.
17
KEY POINTS

● Financial professionals teach accumulation philosophy. ​The

goal is to build up enough savings to retire and live on. They are
paid to manage your money for possible future growth. If you
bet on future growth, let’s say a thirty-year plan, you take on
substantial risk for that growth. It is increasingly difficult to
course correct as you age. But by focusing on the cash flow, you
can adjust along the way.

● The more you can create a cash flow with your assets, the
faster you can achieve economic independence.

● We have worked with hundreds of clients who came to us

with an impressive net worth— millions each—but who were
somehow still living paycheck-to-paycheck each month.
Many of them stressed over how they would make payroll for
their business next week, or when they’d be able to take a trip.
We call this asset-rich and cash-poor.

● Believing in accumulation is to believe that money is power.

But instead put faith in the things that create money, not
money itself. Money is not power. It is merely a representation
of value.

● We don’t teach you this so that you can work forever.​ We do

it so that you can retire in your business. We do it so that you
can start living the life you love today, instead of hoping to
retire from your business someday, many years down the road.
You don’t get a second chance to build a life you love and
create a legacy that lasts. You have the opportunity to change
your family’s financial destiny.

18
CHAPTER NINE: Cash Flow Banking
“Many folks think they aren’t good at earning money, when what they don’t
know is how to use it.”​ - Frank A. Clark

SUMMARY

Cash Flow Banking is a personal finance system, a personal bank-

ing system to c​ ut out the middleman, earn interest rather than
pay it, save on tax, and rig the financial game in your favor
(legally and ethically).

In addition, it creates multiple benefits including saving on

insurance costs like term life insurance and long-term care. It
allows you to preserve and protect your wealth.

It is also the perfect place to store cash until the right

opportunities arise to grow your wealth. You can access and use
your money anytime you want for any purpose.

This can give you years of liquidity instead of a few months,

therefore giving you more sustainability and the ability to
capitalize on opportunities.

Your Cash Flow Bank is the financial engine to enhance Mindful

Cash Management. It allows you to build wealth without
budgeting. It takes into consideration living within your means,
but without limiting productivity.

It’s not about shrinking thinking. You no longer focus on the fear
of spending too much. Instead, you pay attention to creating more
value and increasing productivity.

19
Cash Flow Banking is about setting up a system to capture wealth,
increasing cash flow 20-50% by unlocking assets, and protecting
your downside when the market and economy change.

KEY POINTS

● To fund your Cash Flow Bank, you start with a “Wealth

Capture Account,"​ which is a savings account that works as a
sort of holding tank for your money. We recommend that you
work towards automatically moving 18% of your personal
income into your Wealth Capture Account.

● One of the most powerful tools that allows you to make

money the same way the banks do is a specifically designed
type of whole life insurance policy with extra cash using a
feature called a “paid-up additions rider.”​ Paid-up additions
(PUAs) are the extra money and overfunding you put into your
policy beyond what the policy would require. This money
accelerates the growth of the cash value and grows the death
benefit as well.

● Cash Flow Insurance has multiple dimensions: ​tax

advantages, liquidity, safety and security, estate protection,
legacy planning, and the ability to recover the cost of term
insurance, and more. There are 7 big benefits of using it instead
of a savings account.

● Pensions and retirement plans have failed.​ The only financial

tool that has stood the test of time and has survived World War
I, the Great Depression, World War II, and the high inflation of
the 1980s, is whole life insurance. Whole life insurance as a
wealth capture tool has only improved over time.

20
CHAPTER TEN: Eliminate Budgeting with
Value Based Spending

“Wealth is the ability to fully experience life.”

- Henry David Thoreau

SUMMARY

Money is a lifestyle. The key is to lead by example and live a life

that you love.

Value Based Spending is the alternative to budgeting that allows

for your finances to support that life.

Budgeting sucks. That’s why hardly anyone does it. It implies

restraint and sacrifice, rather than abundance. Budgeting is about
eliminating experiences, or not taking trips, and or even delaying
making memories. It’s all about scrimping in the hope of future
wealth.

The budgeting mindset lowers people’s standard of living, as well

as their quality of life. It tends to have people think in terms of
competition rather than collaboration. Reduction and selfishness
rather than production and cooperation.

Creating a life you love, full of value creation, is unlikely if you never
enjoy your money or create meaningful experiences.

Budgeting has come to mean c

​ an’t​:

● We can’t afford it.

21
 ● We can’t do date night.
● We can’t arrange that trip with the family.
● I can’t hire help; to save money, I have to do everything
myself.

In contrast, the mindset of Value Based Spending is not

budgeting.

Instead, it utilizes Mindful Cash Management—prioritizing to get

the most out of our spending. With Mindful Cash Management,
you don’t track your expenses down to the last penny. You’re
simply aware of how much money is flowing through your hands
at any given time, by automating how you save and manage
money.

KEY POINTS

● You can achieve financial independence within three to

seven years without budgeting.​ It’s a matter of the right
methodology and an abundant, value creation mindset.

● Price alone can’t determine what something is worth.​ You

must also consider its value—and everyone perceives value
differently. So, if you value a Rolex watch more than you value
$7,500, then anyone who tells you it’s a waste of money is
simply wrong.

● When you follow Value Based Spending, it’s perfectly fine

to live wealthy today and buy what you value​, especially if
it gives you peace of mind and abundant thoughts.

22
● People in financial scarcity consider price and price alone​.
Those who are financially free look at value first, cost second,
and price last.

● Value Based Spending means buying what you want with

cash.​ This takes into consideration enjoying life, having fun,
and spending from your perspective and values.

● Mindful Cash Management and Cash Flow Banking are the

solutions to budgeting. ​They allow you to avoid debt and
stop aimless spending, while enjoying life.

● Be aware of where your money is going.​ Every dollar we

spend shows our priorities.

23
CHAPTER ELEVEN: Dollars Follow Value

SUMMARY

Most people never get a grip on their finances.

First, congratulations because you have overcome the first

obstacle - having the courage to face your finances and gain
knowledge on what to do.

The good news is you don’t have to know as much as you think.
There is no requirement to become an expert in the stock market,
learn to trade options, know how to buy tax liens, become a real
estate expert and so forth.

With Investor DNA it is about your competencies, values, drivers

and you focus on what you know in order to grow. Rather than
spend the majority of your time cutting back and eliminating
quality of life in the name of a better future, you now have this
guide and the resources provided within to implement Mindful
Cash Management.

Instead of being a miser, you chose to be mindful. Instead of

delaying gratification until the day you die, you create an
infrastructure to prepare for the future while enjoying life along
the way - living wealthy.

KEY POINTS

● Pay yourself first.

● Invest in yourself.
● Manage your risk.
24
● Plug the leaks.
● Create economic independence.
● Build your team.
● Become a better investor.
● It is time to expand your means, create value, and take
control of your financial destiny.

25