Free Money! (no lie - it's really free!!!!)

If your boss offered you free money, you'd jump at the chance, wouldn't you? Of course you would! Sound like a fairy tale? Actually, it's not. A great many employers worldwide already do! Now, I know the old saying, "Things that are free generally don't hold their value," but in this case that simply isn't true. You would be a fool not to grab onto this freebie!

I'm talking about a 401(k) or a 403(b) plan for those of you who live in the U.S., but many countries have similar retirement schemes. Canada has the RRSP and the U.K has a similar pension plan for some companies as well. Check out your company's benefits to know what their retirement plan is. After all, you could be missing out on free money!

Here's how it works: for every dollar you invest in the plan, your employer will match all or part of your contribution. I have a 403(b) plan (like a 401(k) plan, but for non-profit organizations) and my match is 50 cents to the dollar up to 6% of my annual salary. Let's say I earn $60,000, and I invest 12% of my salary in the plan. I am getting an extra $1,800 every year - free.

The best part is that if you leave the money in this plan for the next 30 years, the free money earns compound interest right along with the earned money. Assume I choose a mutual fund to invest my 403(b) earnings that has an average annual return of 11%. (This happens to be about what the stock market has averaged over the last 80 years) That free money will have earned me an extra $420K!

In addition to that bonus, the earnings you contributed to the plan is actually deducted from your annual earnings and that's what you'll report as your taxable earnings. So instead of having to pay taxes on $60,000, I use $48,000 as my taxable income. This is a huge tax savings - and you're creating a nest egg that will only grow until you retire. Now that's financial security!

Make sure you're contributing to your retirement plan. This is one benefit that cannot be taken away from you if you leave - you'd be insane not to take your company up on this offer! How many times in your life do you come across a freebie deal that's actually worth taking? Don't wait another day - find out if this is an option for you today!

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