Money-Smart Mondays
Every Monday, I share ideas to help you and your family on the money-smart journey. I created "The Money Mammals" for kids and wrote The Art of Allowance book for parents like you. Won't you join me on the money-smart journey?
Money is not complicated—so why do we complicate it?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I'm changing up the format slightly this week by sharing a recent LinkedIn post that resonated with many people. (You can read the comments here.) I think you'll like this. Money is not complicated—so why do we complicate it?Here are some truths I've learned.On Kids and Money:▶ Kids can—and want to—learn about money from a very young age. Even toddlers.▶ Every parent wants to raise a money-smart kid.▶ Parents want and can be empowered to lead...
Age Is Your Asset, Summer Reading with Joe the Monkey and Why Giving Might Be Selfish
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, Welcome to this week's Money-Smart Monday missives. Age is your asset The irrepressible Jon Acuff is featured in this multi-faceted gem of a clip on our YouTube channel. And while Jon is talking about young folks leveraging their age to find potential mentors and broader business community support, his short pairs nicely with the following timeless money insight. (The bolded emphasis below is mine.) "His skill is investing, but his secret is...
The Financial Illiteracy Epidemic, Giving Ourselves a Little Grace and Some Timeless Wisdom
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, Welcome to June. (Really? It's June already?) On the financial illiteracy epidemic Courtney Fulmer is a partner and credit union leader (CEO of SECNY Federal Credit Union) working to remedy America's "financial illiteracy epidemic." Test scores sometimes paint a picture of improvement in this area, but the challenge goes far beyond data. As we discuss in this segment of our conversation on The Art of Allowance Podcast, progress involves...
Want your kids to treat money like fuel, not fluff?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I hope you had a nice weekend and you enjoy these Monday morsels of money-smart goodness. Money as gasoline Kevin Kelly is the author of Excellent Advice for Living, the co-founder of WIRED and an intellectual hero of mine. I was fortunate to have Kevin join me for a conversation on The Art of Allowance Podcast last year, and he shared an idea that stuck with me. We should think of money as gasoline, fuel we can douse on our kids' interests...
Good Advice for Graduates, Calculate Your DIMS SCORE®, Join My Course Waitlist and AI Passes the Turing Test 🤯
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I hope you join my course waitlist below. But before you do ... Good advice for graduates We live in a world where answers are at our fingertips, so learning to ask good questions is an important skill. If you're more of a word hound, read my post on "The Link." Do your kids know their DIMS SCORE®? You're probably asking, "What the heck is a DIMS SCORE®?" (DIMS stands for "Does It Make Sense.") Try this useful tool to help your kids spend...
Are your kids launch-ready? 🚀
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends! Launching our kids: Are they really ready? My daughter graduates from college in less than two months, and I'm feeling the urgency. Have my wife and I truly prepared her for real-world money decisions? To find out, I invited financial readiness expert Tony Steuer on The Art of Allowance Podcast. Tony created "The Get Ready Blueprint," a step-by-step guide to help kids thrive financially on their own. Tune in to ensure your kids (And mine!)...
Are you making this money mistake with your kid?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, Thanks for joining me for another installment of Money-Smart Monday. A mistake to avoid Parents often give kids just enough money to avoid any mistakes. But Stacking Benjamins Podcast host Joe Saul-Sehy stresses the power of deliberately giving kids a little more money than they need—enough to let them make some honest mistakes. (Listen to this short clip.) In our conversation on The Art of Allowance Podcast, Joe shares how his parents'...
Tell Me If I’m Wrong, Lazy Investing Secrets, Appreciating Kids Like Sunsets and a Book on BS
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends! Welcome back to Money-Smart Monday, where we explore simple, thoughtful (and occasionally surprising) ideas about money and life. Although the concepts I share are often focused on raising money-smart kids, they're always designed to help everyone (Myself included!) think more clearly about money and living well. Let's dive in! Tell me if I'm wrong (Seriously!) I'd appreciate your thoughts on these recent LinkedIn posts. Lectures Don't Teach...
Financial Literacy Is Not the Goal, a Useful Allowance Check-In and What the Longest Study on Happiness Reveals
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, Let's dive right in! Always. Be. Learning. If that headline doesn't ring a bell, watch this. And for a laugh, watch this. I recently finished Justin Welsh's terrific course on using LinkedIn more effectively. And last week I began implementing that learning by posting about the importance of starting money smarts early, why financial literacy is not the goal and how money can buy you happiness. Please jump into these conversations, and let me...
A Different Perspective on Success, the "Buffer Fund" Tool, Money 0.0 and "Exploding" the Severance Theme Song
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I'm not sure if March is going out like a lion or a lamb, but I do know April is starting out with a monkey. Joe the Monkey, that is! Joe and his Money Mammals pals are bringing Credit Union Youth Month to life. So head over to your nearest branch to join in on the money-smart, mystery-themed fun. A bright idea you might consider Unlike a "rainy day fund," which you expect to use only in emergencies, a "buffer fund" is a practical account to...
Every Monday, I share ideas to help you and your family on the money-smart journey. I created "The Money Mammals" for kids and wrote The Art of Allowance book for parents like you. Won't you join me on the money-smart journey?