When it comes to dealing with the recession, the best

advice is your own advice, with one huge and important footnote-you

have to know what you\\\'re talking about. It is sometimes said that in a

court of law a person who chooses to represent themselves has a fool

for a lawyer. Because of the complexities of the law, and the extensive

schooling required to obtain a license to practice it, serving as your

own lawyer doesn\\\'t make much sense. You\\\'re not really qualified to do

it, and the outcome is almost invariably disastrous.

Financial

advice on the other hand is much different. Although some financial

advisers operate on a straight fee basis, more often than not a

financial adviser is paid a commission. They profit from anything that

you buy based on their recommendations. The more they get you to

invest, the more money they make. The potential conflict of interest

that this creates is clearly obvious.

The problems that this sort

of relationship creates come into stark focus when considering personal

financial security in the face of a thundering recession. Many people

have lost millions of dollars of wealth over the past several years as

the recession has caused the economy to crumble around us.

Unfortunately, very few financial professionals, including investment

advisers, saw this coming. Consequently, many people were caught short

with bad investments that ultimately lost value.

A study of

financial professionals shows that less than 5% of people who use a

professional adviser have a written financial plan in place. We\\\'re not

talking here about the general thoughts and advice of the adviser, but

instead about a written document that defines a detailed and actionable

financial plan. This is an astounding statistic because the very first

step in creating long-term financial security is to build a solid

financial foundation. And the very first step of building that

foundation is to craft a comprehensive plan.

This is why in

planning for your financial future, the best advice is your own advice.

Nobody cares about you like you do. Obtain a financial education that

enables you to understand how money works, and the best investment

strategies for use during a recession. Only when you are able to make

your own investment decisions, will you be able to realize true and

absolute financial security. Once you know what you\\\'re doing, start

giving yourself good advice.