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33% of working Americans don't have a single cent in any kind of retirement account. And 42% of Americans with [clears throat] a 401k [music] have less than 10 grand in there. And I don't like that. I don't like it. Not for me.
10,000 [music] bucks will get you about 3 months into retirement if you're lucky. And with $0, you could only eat by waiting behind a Panda Express until they throw away their leftovers at 9:00 p.m. Don't ask me how I know. I like that. Next day rice. That's how you make fried rice. You know that. Got to put it in the fridge, then you fry it up again.
>> Next day rice. A new show coming soon. >> I don't want you to wind up in that spot behind a Panda Express or broken retirement. You don't want to be on the business end of a Panda Express. >> George, why are you doing this?
Which is why today I'm laying out my personal step-by-step investing [music] blueprint. It's going to help you build wealth and rise above our national investing suck bar. But before we hop in, why not help this channel stay above the suck bar by liking this video and subscribing to the channel if you haven't already. And as a thank you, here's a picture of Graham Stefen. That's the best one we could find. And huge shout out to Delete Me for sponsoring [music] my channel. More on that in a bit.
And when it comes to investing, there's a right time, there's a right amount, and there's a right way. So, let's start by laying out the right time to start investing. Because one of the most common things I see is people who want to build wealth, but they've got a bunch of debt and no savings, which [music] means limited money to invest. And a single emergency will bring their investing to a full stop. Which is why I only recommend investing once you've paid off all of your consumer debt and built a fully funded emergency [music] fund. And yes, that includes the match.
Now, when I say consumer debt, I'm talking car loans, student loans, credit card balances, that money you borrowed to pay for the World of Warcraft midnight expansion. [music] Everything. If you owe anything to anyone, that is debt. There's a reason folks in the finance biz refer to debts as liabilities. [music] Debt equals risk, and the payments keep you from maximizing your budget to its fullest potential. So, get rid of it before you start investing, and [music] do it ASAP as possible.
And when I say full emergency fund, I'm talking about 3 to 6 months of your typical expenses tucked away in a savings account you can access without any withdrawal fees. Because planning for retirement is great, but it's [music] useless if you can't afford to fix a flat tire or cover your health insurance deductible or hire a plumber to remove the pumice stone your kid flushed down the toilet. Pumice. [laughter] I might be the first YouTuber to mention the word pumice in a video that isn't about pumice. People need to talk about foot care cuz some of these guys, you got some crispy heels, bro. Some crispy heels. Crocs can't hide it any longer. [laughter] Ask me how I know.
So, once you've built your emergency fund and paid off all of your debt, you're ready to start investing. Next, let's cover the right amount to invest. I recommend investing 15% of your pre-tax household income for [music] retirement. So, that's gross, not the net. And why 15%? Well, it's a big enough number to build momentum in your net worth, but not so much that you don't have enough money to put toward other financial goals. Things like investing for your kids' college or paying off your house early or going on vacation. Now, if you want to invest more once your home is paid off, [music] go for it. Be my guest and you should do that. But for now, stick with 15%.
All right. At this point, you know the right time to invest and the right amount to invest, which means we're ready for the fun part, the right way to invest. Now, this is where I'll spend [music] the rest of the video. Now, lots of so-called finance experts want to make this topic more overwhelming than the list of exclusions on a Macy's 25% off code, which you can use code friends to get 25% off. But it really doesn't need to be that complicated. And before you ask, yes, it excludes Crocs. Because if you're buying Crocs from Macy's and trying to use a promo code, you don't have friends, bud. Crocs.
But let's talk about the right way to invest. You only need one type of investing vehicle, one investing strategy, and one [music] type of investment. So, first let's cover the one investment vehicle that you need. I'm talking about tax-advantaged retirement [music] accounts, which a lot of you have already through your employer. For many of you, that might be a 401k. If you're a federal employee or a member of the military, it could be a Thrift Savings Plan or TSP. [music] And if you're a teacher or nonprofit employee, it's probably a 403b plan. And listen, if your employer doesn't offer a retirement plan, you can always invest in an IRA or non-retirement investment accounts. And if you're self-employed, you can look into options like a solo 401k or [music] SEP IRA. Lot of letters, a lot of numbers. Do not let it overwhelm you.
Now, if you're wondering whether this actually works, eight out of 10 millionaires say investing [music] in their employer-sponsored retirement plan was a primary vehicle for reaching their millionaire status. No magic, no beans, [music] no stock. It's actually very unmagical, which is good news because that means anyone can do this stuff.
All right, next up, let's cover the one investing strategy you need. Five words: Match beats Roth beats traditional. Let's break that down. So, first, you're going to take all the company match you can get through your retirement plan at work if you have one. Here's why. A match gives you instant return on your investment. So, it trumps everything else. Do that first. So, if you make, let's say, $4,000 a month and your employer offers a 4% match on their 401k, you'll start there. At 4%, you'd be putting in $160 and your employer would match it with another $160. That's 100% ROI.
Second, you're going to take what's left of your 15% and put as much of it as you can into Roth plans. And Roth is a magic word that means you're going to pay the taxes now. You're not going to get a deduction, but you don't have to pay later in retirement, which means tax-free growth for the rest of your life. And you can do this at work through a Roth 401k or Roth 403b or Roth TSP, or as an individual through a Roth IRA, regardless of your employment. And the only person who loves Roth more than me is Mike Tyson. In fact, he exclusively shops at Roth Dress for Less. Fight me, bro. We'll do it for millions on Netflix. I'll let you win. But don't touch me. I swear if you touch me, I will get so hurt. [laughter] Dude, my bones are so brittle, dude. I can't even drink milk. I drink oat milk. You know how brittle that makes a man's bones. [laughter] Keep them at bay.
All right, so we've got match, we've got the Roth. Now, finally, if you've hit the limits on those options and you still haven't invested 15% of your income, go back to traditional tax-deferred plans through your employer and put the rest there.
Now, a retirement account is only a shell you put over your money to protect it from Uncle Sam. The money doesn't grow until you actually choose investments to purchase inside of those accounts. So, when people say, "I invest in my 401k," they have to actually buy funds within that 401k in order to be investing. And this is where most people get overwhelmed since there can be a ton of options. But good news, you only need one type of investment to build [music] wealth, and that is mutual funds. You see, a mutual fund pulls together money from a bunch of investors to buy a range of stocks in different companies. So, think of it this way. If this was the Kentucky Derby, instead of betting on a single racehorse to win, you're betting on the entire racetrack, which reduces your risk.
Now, there's a few types of mutual funds. You've got the actively managed mutual fund, which means the stocks inside the fund are handpicked by a team of experienced, nerdy investing professionals. And they might be adding some or moving some based on what they think the performance will do or what it's currently doing. And maybe you've heard of something called an index fund. Well, that's actually another type of mutual fund that is just passively managed. Here's what that means. It automatically follows the market index instead of trying to beat it. And so, think about the S&P 500. That's the top 500 US companies. That's all it [music] is. And if they fall off the list, they fall off. But nobody's hand-selecting them and moving [music] them around.
So to further reduce your risk, you want to diversify your investments across four different types of mutual funds. Here's the breakdown. And just for funsies, I'll use boat analogies. First up, you've got growth and income funds. Think of these like a cruise ship. They are funds invested in big established companies like Proctor and Gamble, Johnson and Johnson, and Coca-Cola. You might see these listed as large [music] cap, which is short for large market capitalization. Think billions of dollars. These companies might not grow as fast as others, but they are stable and steady, and they're a solid backbone to your portfolio, a great foundation.
Next up, growth funds. These investments are more like a a [music] racing yacht. They focus on established companies with the potential for rapid growth, even if the companies may not be as large or established as the ones your mom and dad grew up with. [music] Think Amazon, Netflix, Tesla. These are a few examples of the companies you could find in a growth fund.
Next up, we've got aggressive growth funds. Think of this one like a jet ski. [music] It's the wild child roller coaster ride of your investments. They invest in newer companies that are growing fast [music] and trying to get much bigger. Even though that growth comes with more risk, there could be some high highs and probably some low lows. Think companies like Zoom, Square, and Shopify.
And finally, you've got international funds, the globe-trotting sailboat of the mix. Investing in large non-US companies like Alibaba, Samsung, Nestle, it gives you a good buffer in case the US economy takes a hit. And we saw this from the period of 2000 to 2010. The US market went down and the international market went up. And so it's a good hedge against the US market.
And that's it. The only investing plan you need: 25% in each of those funds inside of one of those tax-advantaged retirement accounts at 15% of your income. [snorts] But there's one other thing you have to understand for all of this to work out. And if you miss it, you could screw the whole thing up. I'll explain what I'm talking about in just one second.
But first, you know what else can screw up your life? Falling for an online scam. And with AI getting more powerful by the day, scammers wanting to steal your money have gotten really good at their craft. And that's exactly why I use Delete Me, a sponsor of today's video. Delete Me helps to keep you from being targeted by removing your personal info from hundreds of data broker sites before they can sell it to the highest bidder. And you never have to guess what they're up to because they send you a custom detailed [music] report every few months showing you what they've removed and how much time they've saved you. And best of all, they're offering my audience 20% off their annual plans, which comes out to about $9 a month. So sign up today at joinedme.com/jorge or click the link in the description.
And before we get back to talking about how to invest for retirement, let me give you one of my favorite tips for saving money in the here and now. And that's by switching to Boost Mobile, another sponsor of today's video. Boost offers 99% nationwide coverage at a fraction of what the big-name carriers charge. And their unlimited plan with unlimited data, talk, and text is just $25 a month. And they won't just pull out the rug from under you in a few months. That is their locked-in, no bait-and-switch, no switch-and-bait price. Plus, there's no contract required. So, there's no reason not to give it a shot. So, to make the switch, head over to boostmobile.com/ramsey or click the link in the description. Based on average annual single line payment of AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile customers compared to 12 months in the Boost Mobile Unlimited plan as of January 2026. See website for full offer details.
All right, here's what you have to understand. [music] Investing requires a long-term mindset. You see, the plan I've laid out in this video could take a decade or two to start building momentum and wealth, [music] which I know seems completely unappealing compared to all the short-term investments on TikTok that promise to make you a millionaire by the end of yesterday. But those so-called investments are always too good [music] to be true. The get-rich-quick universe is a magnet for fraudsters, grifters, shysters, and swindlers who only want your views, clicks, and your money. On the other hand, my blueprint is a simple, proven method to build wealth without stress. [music] And sure, it may take a while, but the results can be huge thanks to the eighth wonder [music] of the world, compound growth.
So, let me show you how that works using my favorite investment calc, which [music] Chat, that is short for calculator. Never going to leave you hanging. Short for hanging. Hanging. >> [laughter] >> All right. So, let's say you're a young [music] buck. All right. You're 28 years old. You've got nothing saved, but you've done what I said. You paid off your debt and you have that emergency fund. So, we're going to start at 28 and we're going to go till, [music] let's say, 63. How long is that, you ask? I don't know. You do the math. I'm kidding. That is 35 years, as [music] the crow flies. So, for this example, let's say you're making $50,000 a year and you're [music] investing 15% of your income. So that comes out to $625 a month. [music] So we're going to pop that into the monthly contribution: 625, and we're going to go with an annual rate of return of 10%. [music] And if you look at decades of the US stock market, you will see that the average has been 10 to [music] 11%. So we're going to pop that in and hit calculate. Look at that. [music] $2.37 million. And that is if you never got a raise and you never had an employer match, which would [music] be insane.
So, let's look at this. How much did you actually put into that account? You [music] put in $262,500. 11% of that total nest egg. The growth, the compound growth magic moneymaking scheme, $2.1 million, almost 90% of that account was [music] you just letting it sit and ride. Now, you're going, "Well, George, how where did that who put that money in there?" Jesus. He was there all along. He carried you.
Now, here's how really happened. Homeschoolers, don't listen to your mom. You buy these shares [music] of companies, these 500 shares inside of this mutual fund. Well, those shares, they make money over time. They grow in value, and you keep buying more and more as they keep [music] growing. So, $100 turns into $110, and you make 10% on that. Well, now you've got $121. And you can see it starts to really spiral until there's a hockey stick effect as you get later on [music] in life. So, that's why you got to start now. It may not seem like a lot to put $600 away. It may feel like too much money to put away cuz you don't [music] have it. But listen, you got to make it a priority to invest and keep investing consistently [music] over a long period of time.
And listen, I know it's going to take a little while to start seeing some momentum and progress here. And [music] that's why you got to watch this next video on why your net worth explodes once you hit $100,000. So click here to watch it next or use [music] the link in the description. That's it for today. Be sure to share this video with a friend who shops at Roth Dress for Less, they will love this video. Thanks [music] for watching.