Suze Orman Praises Bermuda Pension Policy

May 11, 2014

Suze OrmanEmmy Award winning TV host and New York Times mega bestselling author Suze Orman believes one of the best policies Bermuda ever introduced was mandatory pension contributions.

Greeted by a standing ovation, Ms Orman was speaking at the Mid Ocean Amphitheatre, at the Fairmont Southampton Princess, yesterday [May 10] on getting rid of debt, the issue of ‘need’ versus ‘want’ and for people to give themselves time to take control of their finances.

“My main message is: you can do this people,” said Ms Orman. “Make the decision that you are worth it. You are worth that one hour looking after your money. If you don’t do it, who else will?”

Ms Orman was brought to Bermuda by Colonial Pension Services Ltd, a member of the Colonial Group International. After Bermuda, Ms Orman is talking at The Bahamas and then the Cayman Islands.

An expert in personal finance, Ms Orman urged the audience to rid themselves of the shackles of debt and warned that Bermuda was headed down the road America was now treading.

“We spend our lives as financial fakers. We all have debt of some kind. But debt is bondage and you will never have freedom if you have debt. Debt will eventually catch up with you,” she said. “You should get out of your credit card debt.

“Do you understand what you are doing to yourselves? Every time you buy something, ask if this is a want or a need. If it is a want, you walk away.

“If you spend money on needs, not just wants, you will have money left over to save for retirement. You are spending less and saving more, that is the key to your financial future,” added Ms Orman, who teased audience member Premier Craig Cannonier about the price of gas in Bermuda.

She added: “One of the greatest things that this country did was to make it mandatory to contribute to a pension. But all of you should be putting an additional ten percent, or more, into your pension.”

Ms Orman, who started working as a waitress in Chicago, told the audience: “The other thing that is happening in Bermuda is that you are starting to go the way of the US, where credit card debt is rampant and where 50 million people are in poverty.

“The poor are getting poorer, the rich are getting richer and the middle class is disappearing and you do not want that to happen here.”

Ms Orman is recognized as one of the top motivational speakers in the world today. In March 2013, Forbes magazine awarded her a spot in the top 10 on a list of the most influential celebrities.

In January 2013, The Television Academy Foundation’s Archive of American Television honoured her broadcast career accomplishments with her inclusion in its historic Emmy TV Legends interview collection.

She is also the contributing editor to “O”, The Oprah Magazine, and is in her 13th year as host of the award winning Suze Orman Show, which airs every Saturday night on CNBC.

Marie Jo Caesar, Chief Operating Office for Pensions at Colonial Group International, said: “Her talk was riveting and the standing ovation she received even before talking was indicative of the high regard in which she is held by people.

“I hope that her talk will help to inspire some of the audience members to tackle their personal finances and to get themselves of a sound financial footing.”

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Comments (12)

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  1. Family Man says:

    “Ms Orman was brought to Bermuda by Colonial Pension Services Ltd”

    He who pays the piper calls the tune.

    “Suze Orman Praises Bermuda Pension Policy”

    It’s a good thing her pension isn’t with a Bermudian insurance company and subject to a 1.5% per annum ‘administration’ fee.

    • Cuddly boy says:

      Agree completely. Like you have any idea Suze. I always found you slightly odious anyway.

    • hmm says:

      So family man, I’m curious, how do you think insurance company staff get salaries, or should we just work for free and not be able to pay our bills, you are a clown.

      I guess wherever you work, you must work for free

      • Family Man says:

        I can tell you, in the real world you’d never get away with charging 150 bp for administering a plain vanilla pension plan.

        And why is the fee based not on the work they do (which is very little) but on the asset size of my plan. Does it cost you more to send me a statement on a plan with $250k in it then it does if there’s only $25k in it?

        But as I’m always told Bermuda is another world.

        • Doesn't add up says:

          She was praising the mandatory pension contribution.
          You put in 5% and your employer matches it (you’ve doubled your money already).
          As simple as it sounds, how many people would opt out if they had the chance?
          She also rubbished a lot of financial products available (including ones offered by Colonial).

          The biggest disappointment was Chris Furbert being 5 mins late and then the Premier, Grant Gibbons and Pat Gordon Pamplin being 10 mins late. They were on the front row as esteemed guests and their tardiness was embarrassing!!

  2. Archie says:

    The Govt policy, sret in places years and yearsa g o…..

  3. Ladeej says:

    Suze Orman calls it as she sees it, regardless of the payer, as anyone in attendance would have discovered. We should be making more noise about interest rates at the banks where we are being “nickle and dimed” to death while receiving almost zero interest in return.

    Suze Orman gave us the same good advice our grandparents gave us. We just have not been listening. Maybe her talk was the wake up call we all need.

    Thanks to Colonial for seeing the need and bringing someone of Ms Orman’s caliber to Bermuda.

  4. Islander says:

    So how does she expect us to go about challenging the Banks ? Like really.
    Walk in and just demand a lower rate. I will try today and report back.

  5. Mumbo jumbo says:

    There are far more lucrative products out there,mandatory sequestered private investment stratagy in this endeavor….why would I accept 1% or far less,when I am offered 5% elswhere…..balderdash!….I my money is utilised by others to get rich…..then you best believe I am due a larger chunck offit!No offence….but …horseship!

  6. Mumbo jumbo says:

    That is another matter….we get our gas cheaper and pay three times the point of sale…or more…

  7. Legal Eagle says:

    Is that the same Govt Pension Plan that is underfunded by $2Billion that Suzie thinks is great..AND suggested people put even 10pct more into it?? Wow!

    • Kat says:

      No, it’s your work pension plan she was talking about. The one you contribute 5% to and your employer matches it… nothing at all to do with government other than the fact that they legislated the idea many years ago. And thanks to them for doing so.