Intelligent Money
TM
Intelligent Money is a Financial Literacy and Life Skills initiative showcasing reputable sources in customized platforms for targeted audiences. This multimedia edutainment strategy has a unique social impact by creating an effective and timely program to solve a problem that has yet to be solved. The initial development focuses on high school students in underserved communities with our +Club platform which completed a successful pilot in Newark, New Jersey (See details below).
Unfortunately, whatever has been done to date in financial literacy education is not working well, with many individuals struggling in the post-pandemic economy. Intelligent Money seeks to launch and manage edutainment platforms in financial literacy to drive societal change with the following core differentiated elements:
•Engaging and Relevant: Utilize an edutainment and gaming approach to create and sustain student interest. Designed with a deep understanding on how social media and other societal factors compete for time and attention.
•Community Sensibility: Avoid a “one size fits all” mentality and custom design program with content that properly meets and addresses this underserved segment. Curated with practical and relevant knowledge with relatable community sensibility.
•Proper Messengers: Feature relatable Role Models and Instructors, many of whom are from the targeted community.
•Multimedia: Apply the team’s expertise in Media, Technology, Finance and Education to successful design and implement an interactive, curated, and condensed offering reflecting the TikTok/digital competitive environment.
•Life Skills: Incorporate much needed Life Skills into the Financial Literacy curriculum. For teenagers, improved decision-making, time management, healthy living, and social skills are equally and arguably more urgently important than some of the down-the-road topics covered in current financial literacy programs.
+Club Pilot and Planned Roll-Out
For the underserved communities, Intelligent Money completed a successful fall pilot for +Club in Newark, New Jersey. The afterschool and companion on-line program offers a foundational educational experience for students in an engaging and edutainment manner to help prepare them for life in the modern economy. The initiative aims to foster good financial habits and behaviors, putting them on the long-term path to building wealth and, ultimately, financial independence.
To best understand the +Club teaching approach and program’s impact on students, please view our videos below and visit our website to explore our curriculum and multimedia content, including role model profiles.
Trailer: +Club Overview
+Club Moment: Uncertainty
The +Club Experience offers a concise overview of student reactions and curriculum content and instructional approach.
Community Role Model Eric Pennington shares practical insights to managing uncertainty while revealing his own personal journey.
+Club in the Media
NJ.com's Mosiac Feature on the +CLUB:
This new club teaches young people how to have a good life.
By Robin Wilson-Glover | For NJ.com and Mosaic
August 01, 2024 at 2:38 pm EDT
“[excerpt] Brenda Melissa Sandoval said that what registered with her was Pennington’s talk about his difficult childhood in Newark. “Having him say that was important. I never thought that not giving up was important, but it is,” the 18-year-old from Union City said. “You know, he’s right. I’m not going to give up.”
Pennington is one of several mentors in the new +Club, a project created by business strategist and nonprofit activist Mark Pearlman and his business partner Rutgers business professor John Longo. They designed the program and funded it, along with support from Bloomberg Philanthropy.
Eric Pennington, a lanky man with a greying beard, sat in front of a group of Rutgers students in a refrigerated
classroom on a hot day in July. The students had come to learn how to be successful in business and life. Pennington, Newark’s business administrator and a longtime lawyer who has had several careers, came to tell them how they could succeed.
2024 +Club Class Sessions
Pregame: Develop the Proper Mindset and Attitude
Course Overview: Unlock your potential, reframe your relationship with money, and set the stage to elevate and enhance your personal journey. Learn life lessons from Greatest of All Time (GOAT) Investors and role models. Explore your hopes and dreams. Develop proper attitude, approach and strategies to achieve a “Rich Life.”
3P’s: Perspective, Passion & Personal Plans
Three critical P’s for personal and professional development are Perspective, Passion, and Personal Plans. Cultivate a long-term mindset, discover true passions, and create actionable personal plans that align with values and goals. Build habits to think more long term and formulate relevant and practical personal plan to include short and long-term goals. Be inspired by showcased role models who share their personal approaches.
Manage Uncertainty & Differences
Through personal stories, understand how to best improve decision-making skills and develop personal skills to respond to uncertain and challenging situations. A practical and logical framework will be shared with engaging interactive exercises to reinforce these newfound skills and approach to life.
Game plan: Putting it All Together
Appreciate the journey. A thoughtful recap and summary to develop a "game plan" approach to decision-making, personal growth, and financial management for both personal and professional contexts. Personal KPI metrics help navigate and monitor. Renewed sense of purpose, practical tools for navigating life's challenges, and the confidence to pursue a rich and fulfilling life.
Guide to Better Decisions
Through inspiring personal role model stories, learn how to navigate life's challenges, make thoughtful decisions, and cultivate habits that lead to personal and financial success.
Differentiate between impulsive and considered decisions. Evaluate alternative choices and expected outcomes.
Live Within Your Means and Prioritize Savings
Even those who earn substantial amounts of money cannot build a firm financial future if they don’t spend wisely. This module focuses on the importance of living within your means, starting early, and have the “miracle” of compound interest work for you.
Case Studies: Strategies into Practice
Case Studies from renown institutions reinforcing the approaches, strategies and concepts taught in the +Club Program. Guaranteed epiphany moments.
Bonus: The Joy Of Giving
An introduction to the proper mindset and initial strategies for charitable contributions. Delve into the psychology of generosity and discover how to make a meaningful impact in your community and beyond. Based on role model experiences, explore the psychological and emotional benefits of generosity. Topics include understanding the "helper's high" and its effects on well-being, techniques for cultivating gratitude and empathy and overcoming barriers to giving and developing a giving mindset.
Understand the Dimensions of Time
Time is often considered the most precious commodity we possess, as it is finite and irretrievable. Explore the multifaceted nature of time and its impact on various aspects of our lives, with a particular focus on health, money, and relationships. Delve into the concept of the time value of money, explaining how delayed gratification can lead to significant financial benefits in the long run. Explore techniques to enhance productivity and maintain concentration in an increasingly distracting world.
Find Your Inner Investor
The burgeoning school of Behavioral Economics tells us that many investors make mistakes that costs them substantial sums of money over the long-term. This module identifies the most common investor mistakes and charts a course to correct them.
Marketing & Personal Branding
To create a lasting and impactful career, it’s essential to define your personal brand and how you communicate yourself. This module emphasizes the value of stepping outside your comfort zone, identifying your strengths, and shaping a professional identity that aligns with your purpose. By exploring what makes brands iconic and identifying traits like authenticity, self-confidence, and proactivity, you’ll learn how to build a brand narrative that sets you apart and opens doors to opportunities.
Bonus: Detector - Fact Checking
Introduction to core skills to navigate the complex landscape of financial information and make informed decisions. Drawing insights from legendary investors and leveraging AI technologies, learn how to effectively vet information sources, conduct proper research, and manage portfolios in an era of information overload.