Money-Smart Mondays
Hi, I'm John Lanza. 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?
Raising money-smart kids? Join my free class Thursday!
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, My wife and I just got back from moving our older daughter into her new apartment. (Wish her luck. And working Wi-Fi.) She starts her job today—a big day in the Lanza household! I'm teaching this Thursday Texans Credit Union is hosting my complimentary, one-hour online class for parents who want to raise money-smart kids. ➡️ [Register Here] It's the perfect way to kick off an allowance program or pick up fresh tips to strengthen the...
Want to know how one CEO is financially empowering today's youth?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I'm back from surprisingly not-so-sweltering Savannah, where I spoke to some terrific credit union folks at the SRCUS conference. More on that event below. But first, my latest podcast episode is fresh off the griddle—and served with a side of unsolicited wisdom. Step into the mind of a forward-thinking CEO Steve Bugg and his future-focused team at Great Lakes Credit Union have been working with us since 2021. Steve is an impressively clear...
What if success is just ... feeling good about ourselves?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I'm preparing for two hour-long presentations at the 2025 Southeast Regional Directors' Conference next week. The first is new: a keynote on "The Unstoppable Power of Habits." The second, "Kids These Days," is about helping credit unions connect with Gen Z and Gen Alpha (and their parents). You can find out more about both on my speaker page. These presentations require a LOT of prep—which is both exciting and exhausting—so I'm going to keep...
What's missing from your kid's financial education?
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I appreciate your attention, and I hope you find this week's newsletter useful. Open head & pour in knowledge Our school systems are mostly designed around a flawed paradigm: Send kids to class. Open their brains. Pour in knowledge. Apply some discipline. And voilà! The knowledge sticks. Though many educators strive for interactive learning, standardized tests and classroom structures still reinforce passive absorption and rote memorization...
More Wisdom from the "Godfather of Financial Independence" and the LinkedIn Post of the Year
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, I'm back with more wisdom from my conversation with JL Collins and his daughter, Jess, on The Art of Allowance Podcast. But before we dive into that insight, I have to share a laugh from my favorite LinkedIn post of the year. (You won't want to miss this one. I promise!) These guys nailed a persistent LinkedIn problem While I realize it's passé, if not rude, to cite Louis C.K., he was spot-on when he said we overuse the word "awesome." If we...
The Godfather, Freedom and the "Tyranny of Must-Haves"
Money-Smart Monday with John Lanza Hello, friends, Today I get to share a wide-ranging conversation I've been hoping to have since finishing The Simple Path to Wealth. For my 80th podcast, I interviewed the "Godfather of Financial Independence," JL Collins, and his daughter, Jess, who inspired his writing. What is "The Simple Path to Wealth"? I hope you'll listen to the full episode. But if you do just one thing, please watch JL and Jess explain how simple "The Simple Path" really is. It's...
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...
Hi, I'm John Lanza. 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?