The Power Of Zero Show

A recent Penn Wharton study found that the federal government will have to dramatically raise taxes within the next 20 years to avoid sliding into a debt spiral of high interest rates and debt payments. Former comptroller General David Walker has stated several times that taxes would have to double by 2030 or the U.S. will go broke as a nation. When it comes to retirement savings accounts, the fed...

Former comptroller general of the federal government, David Walker, believes that tax rates will have to double, in order to avoid a financial collapse. The U.S. Government should be helped in preventing their growth. David McKnight points out a potential course of action that should be followed to avoid a possible financial collapse. Permanent solutions to stabilize the debt outlook are needed no...

Today's episode is part 4 of David's interview for Jesse Wright's podcast, and it addresses the best way to figure out how much money you'll need to be able to retire. David explains how to be able to identify what your retirement shortfall is going to be.  There are different approaches and each one comes with its unique traits – David discusses his favorite. Citing Suze Orman, David shares his t...

Today's episode is part three of David's interview on Jesse Wright's podcast. They discuss the best way to ensure your savings last as long as you do.  Jesse shares a shocking stat: 65-year-old married couples have an 18% chance that at least one person in the relationship will live to be 95 years old. This means that there is a very real chance that at least one of them will outlive their savings...

Today's episode is the second part of David's interview for Jesse Wright's podcast. Beware of what you see on social media, says David. A lot of that content is by wayward life insurance agents employing pretty despicable tactics. David shares an example of bad advice and highlights why this is advice you should stay away from. For David, 99% of TikTok videos misrepresent what the IUL can do and t...

Today's episode is part 1 of David's appearance on Jesse Wright's podcast. Jesse asks David where one should start from when thinking about retirement. David points out that the types of accounts which one saves money for retirement really matter. According to David, there's essentially two ways to save money for retirement. The first is to get a tax deduction today. The second is to pay the tax t...

David and Khalen Dwyer discuss HonestMath.com's research proposing a conservative 4% annual withdrawal for a 30-year retirement--contradicting Ramsey's long-standing advice of an 8% withdrawal rate. Khalen explains how Ramsey's assumptions defy both mathematical principles and historical data.  He also reveals the financial instability retirees may face when following Ramsey's controversial 8% wit...

David makes a clear preface: "If anyone ever tells you to cash out your 401k and put it all into an IUL, you're to turn around and run the other way!" This episode addresses what David refers to as "the worst IUL TikTok video I've ever seen; a video that's so replete with manipulative sales tactics and lawsuit-worthy financial advice." David points out one of the manipulative sales strategies incl...

One of the things Dave Ramsey is famous for is telling his audience that they can take sustainable 8% distributions from their stock market portfolios in retirement. David has two issues with this recommendation: it ignores reams of academic data on sustainable withdrawal rates, as well as the concept of sequence of return. David points out the potential repercussions of following Ramsey's approac...

David talks to Tom Hegna, an economist, author, and popular industry speaker considered by many to be the retirement income expert. David reveals how he learned about the unstable fiscal trajectory of the U.S. and why he wrote the book, "The Power of Zero." The book emphasizes the importance of preparing for higher tax rates. It offers strategies to help you protect your retirement savings against...

David talks to Jay Disberger, the caller on Dave Ramsey's viral 4% rule meltdown. They start the discussion by describing why the clip went viral and how people can get their questions answered live on the Dave Ramsey Show. Jay's motivation for the call: To get clarity on how best to withdraw your money in retirement and get Dave to take a stand on sustainable withdrawal in retirement.  Jay shares...

Dave Ramsey recently eviscerated his co-host George Kamel for preaching the 4% rule. According to George, withdrawing only 4% of your savings is the easiest way to guarantee your money lasts throughout retirement. George further adds that the 4% rule is a math-based approach to sustainable withdrawals in retirement. For Dave Ramsey, the 4% is senseless and only geared toward stealing people's hope...

David talks about the three main types of tax-free retirement advisors and the one that will guarantee a hassle-free retirement. The first type of advisor is the TikTok advisor. This is the advisor who will preach the prospect of dramatically higher tax rates in the future. The only downside to their message is that they believe the only way to shield yourself from the rising tax rates is to put a...

David breaks down a recent Dave Ramsey interview where he advised a 50-year-old widow on the best way to save, invest, and withdraw her retirement savings. According to Ramsey, if the lady invests $1000 every month for 15 years, she will have accumulated $500,000, which gives her permission to withdraw 10% of her savings every year for the rest of her life.  The problem with this recommendation is...

Today's episode is part three of David's interview with Power of Zero Advisor Terry DuPont.  Trump tax cuts were not permanent – David explains why 2026 is going to be a key year for that. In his book Comeback America, former Comptroller General David Walker predicted that, by 2023, tax rates would have to double – or more – to keep the U.S. solvent. David shares what he believes people should do...

Today's episode is part two of David's interview with Power of Zero Advisor Terry DuPont.  David talks about the approach many major money management institutions follow, and how it differs from how David and Terry do things. There are situations where large money management institutions forbid their advisors from ever bringing up, for example, Roth conversions. David invites listeners to browse t...

Today's episode features some of the highlights of David's appearance on the Your Money with David Hays podcast. David touches upon what he would focus on and how long he believes he would last if he were president of the U.S.. David's next book will probably have the title Guru . For a while, David Hays has half-jokingly said that he would accept the responsibility of mayor. David introduces two...

In a recent interview, Dave Ramsey claimed he beat the S&P 500 over the last 30 years because "it's not hard to do." The big question is, is it really that easy to beat the S&P 500 over time? According to David, it's not. In fact, most active fund managers fail to do it over time. A recent study revealed that 85% of fund managers underperformed in the S&P 500 in the last ten years - this underperf...

David breaks down a recent article by financial advisor Brian Manderscheid on what insurance agents don't tell you about Indexed Universal Life (IUL). David talks about the risk of consuming financial content online without seeking professional advice when making significant financial decisions. David reveals how the claims made by financial influencers tend to be overly promissory and exaggerate...

David gives a 1-minute summary of all his books on retirement.  The Power of Zero: How to Get to the 0% Tax Bracket and Transform Your Retirement. The book outlines a step-by-step plan for getting to the 0% tax bracket in retirement, because if tax rates double, as some experts predict, two times zero is still zero. Look Before You LIRP: Why All Life Insurance Retirement Plans Are Not Created Equa...

David reviews an anti-IUL book, LAPSED, written by financial advisor Elan Moas, who believes IULs are designed to fail rather than succeed. According to David, the book is written with dramatic and highly-charged rhetoric around what will befall you if you make the mistake of purchasing an IUL. So the big question is, "Are IULs too good to be true?" For David, IULs do exactly what they're meant to...

Today's episode revolves around whether Dave Ramsey is right – or wrong – in saying that people can take an 8% withdrawal rate in retirement. A group of fiduciary advisors recently confronted Dave Ramsey on Twitter.  Just like David, they too thought that Dave Ramsey is living in a fantasy world because of the advice he shares with people. David points out a big flaw in Dave Ramsey's recommendatio...

David starts the conversation by describing why he's not a huge fan of Doug Andrew's retirement philosophy. David then talks about the differences between Doug's approach and the Power of Zero approach for funding your retirement. According to Doug, you risk jeopardizing your retirement if you have money in an IRA or a 401K. There's the danger of losing a sizable portion of your portfolio if the m...

David starts the conversation by breaking down his book,  Power of Zero , and the problem with America's ever-rising national debt. For David, the goal of the book is to guide people on how to move their assets into tax-free retirement vehicles - and how such a move is the only way to shield yourself from potentially higher tax rates in the future. David describes the difference between LIRPs and...

David starts the conversation by describing why he believes Dave Ramsey is wrong about Fixed Indexed Annuities. In a recent live call, Dave Ramsey revealed why he is not a fan of annuities and what you should consider doing instead.  Dave Ramsey's thoughts on Fixed Indexed Annuities -  They have a floor that cannot go below a specific number, say 6%.  Fees are double what you might get in a mutual...