Gold

When it comes to investing, a large number of people are lazy. They vaguely understand that wise investments are a cornerstone of building long term financial security and abundant wealth. But they really have no idea of how to go about it. They rely on the (often misguided) advice of family, friends and business associates. Or they adopt a "herd" mentality, and follow right along with what everyone else is doing. Unfortunately, the herd resembles a pack of lemmings that follow one another as they plummet off of a cliff somewhere. These people follow traditional strategies that produce traditional results, which is to say marginal ones.
This general lack of understanding about wealth pervades society itself. Several decades ago, then President Richard M. Nixon took the nation off of the gold standard. Up to that point in time, every dollar printed and issued by the federal government was backed by its face value in gold bullion, held at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Nixon changed our system of money to a "fiat" standard where money is worth something because the government says it is, based on law.
Now the gold standard isn't necessarily perfect. There is only so much gold that can ever be mined on the planet-it's a finite, fixed supply. This is the very reason the gold standard was adopted in the first place-gold is a precious metal and is therefore intrinsically valuable. You can't print or manufacture more of it, ever. With paper money though, if the government needs more cash, they simply print it. And therein lies one of the biggest reasons that inflation happens.
Wise investing must include a sound understanding of fundamental investment principles. Any financial advisor will tell you to diversify your portfolio by concentrating on mutual funds. These funds include a pool of stock managed by a "professional money manager." And everyone who had dutifully followed this advice took a huge hit when the economy tanked. Again, this is the herd mentality, buying investments that are printed on paper, instead of being intrinsically valuable. Herd mentality is following what others do or say to do without doing much homework of your own. If the masses say to invest in investments that are printed on paper instead of something that has intrinsic value, then that's what they do-unlike the smart investors, who fully analyze the consequences.
If you truly want to build wealth, first obtain the financial education you need to do it. And then start looking for investment strategies that are built on intrinsic value, not on what everybody else happens to be doing at the time. Any precious metals-gold and silver for example-should be considered. Consider real estate as well, because it too has clear intrinsic value-provided that it generates a positive cash flow, particularly important in light of today's economy.
Become a student of the principles of prudent investing, even if they appear non-conventional. Then take back control of your own wealth-and future.
Goodness is a business coach and mentor that assists serious entrepreneurs in building a profitable online business with multiple incomes streams. Larry and his team have assisted hundreds of people in generating profits that exceed $250K or more in their first year. For more information contact Goodness on goodnessadebo2yahoo.com