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Hello, I’m Chris Peterson, AFC and Founder and CEO of Penny Ahead.

Hello, that is Kane Brolin. I’m a Licensed Monetary Planner Skilled. I’m a board member of Penny Ahead, and that is your Assistive Know-how Replace.

Hiya, and welcome to your Assistive Know-how Replace, a weekly dose of knowledge that retains you updated on the newest developments within the subject of expertise designed to help people with disabilities and particular wants.

I’m your host, Josh Anderson, with the INDATA Challenge at Easterseals Crossroads in stunning Indianapolis, Indiana. Welcome to episode 715 of Assistive Know-how Replace, it’s scheduled to be launched on February seventh, 2025. On immediately’s present, we’re tremendous excited to welcome Chris Peterson and Kane Brolin from Penny Ahead to the present. They’re going to inform us all about monetary literacy and a few superb issues out there by way of Penny Ahead to assist people with imaginative and prescient loss in turning into financially unbiased. Don’t neglect listeners, you possibly can all the time attain out to us with strategies, feedback, questions, or something you might need. You’ll be able to shoot us an e mail at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org, or name our listener line at (317) 721-7124. We all the time love listening to from you.

Quite a lot of us right here on the INDATA Challenge, our medical assistive expertise program within the Atlas venture simply obtained again from ATIA and it was a tremendous journey. I used to be fortunate sufficient to get to current a few occasions, to fulfill simply a number of actually nice of us. I’m all the time amazed by all of the information, all of the simply ingenuity, all of the unimaginable folks that I get to fulfill at this convention. I need to admit, it’s a bit exhausting afterwards simply getting again and making an attempt to course of every thing, however we’ll do all that we are able to to get a few of our workforce right here on the present within the coming weeks simply to form of share their ideas, perhaps a number of the nice stuff that they noticed, a number of the superb periods they had been capable of attend, and all the good issues that they obtained to do down there in Orlando this final week. However now we’re all again, we’re all getting again within the swing and for proper now, let’s go forward and get on with the present.

Listeners, immediately we’re excited to be joined by the oldsters from Penny Ahead to speak in regards to the nice assets that they provide to help people with imaginative and prescient loss in turning into a financially unbiased. Kane, Chris, welcome to the present.

Yeah, I’m excited to get in and study this very form of well timed and vital matter. However earlier than we get into speaking about Penny Ahead, might you inform us a bit bit about yourselves?

Positive. I’ll begin and I’ll go it over to you, Kane, in a sec right here. I’m Chris Peterson, I’m an Accredited Monetary Counselor and the Founder and CEO of Penny Ahead. We’ll discuss what which means in a second, however first, a bit bit about me.

I’m completely blind and have been so since start. I’ve labored as a software program developer, a supplies and assets coordinator for a nonprofit group, and most lately, as an Accredited Monetary Counselor and the CEO of Penny Ahead. In my private life, I’ve two fantastic youngsters, ages 5 and 13, a retired information canine, and I’ve a phenomenal girlfriend who I’m very happy with, who’s a really profitable enterprise proprietor in her personal proper. I prepare Brazilian Jujitsu, am a beat baseball participant, I’m additionally a blind bowler, and I play blind audio darts, and I’m a licensed novice radio operator, amongst many, many different issues. So, I’ve a splendidly full life and am actually happy with all of the issues I’ve achieved. Kane?

I’m Kane Brolin, and for in regards to the previous 25 years or so, I’ve labored as a monetary planner or if you’ll, as a dealer. So, my work day-to-day has a number of variance in it, however I do promote and repair funding merchandise, together with shares, mutual funds, and annuities, and bonds, and numerous insurance coverage and actual property associated merchandise. And I helped folks to resolve a number of completely different objectives that it takes cash to resolve. I actually consider myself as extra of a life planner than as somebody that basically works daily with simply cash. It’s all the time about getting folks to the place they wish to be of their objectives.

I used to be initially skilled as a broadcaster and a journalist. Like many individuals again within the ’80s, I wished to get into radio full-time and I did work in that business some, however then realized after some time that I beloved broadcasting much more than it beloved me. However happily, I used to be capable of take a plan B and I obtained right into a enterprise college, I obtained a grasp in administration from Northwestern College. I did some company work for the Dow Chemical Firm. And obtained a bit expertise together with my spouse as a small enterprise proprietor, we had a small retail operation for a few 12 months, after which I moved into the monetary planning and securities enterprise. And at the moment, I try this enterprise underneath my very own identify, however the licenses that I maintain and the securities that I promote are underneath the umbrella of is known as the Commonwealth Monetary Community, which is a nationwide community of advisors. It’s a member of FINRA and SIPC, I can clarify afterward what that’s if anybody actually needs to know.

I’m a husband, I’m a father of 4 fantastic youngsters. I reside within the Larger South Bend, Indiana space, and I’m additionally at the moment serving because the Treasurer of the Indiana Affiliate of the Nationwide Federation of the Blind. So, I’ve a busy life as nicely.

Wow. Nicely, thanks each for taking outing. I can positively inform by your voices that you simply each had a bit little bit of expertise in broadcasting and radio, so we all the time respect when that comes. However the actual purpose we now have you on is to speak about Penny Ahead. So I assume, let’s simply begin with form of huge image. What’s it?

It’s a nonprofit group based and led by blind folks, who collectively thought that it was vital for us to assist one another study to navigate the difficult panorama of non-public finance. And we not solely thought that it was vital to assist one another, however we thought it was vital to assist our group study these expertise as nicely. And so we provide self-paced on-line monetary training programs which might be display reader pleasant. We maintain weekly Wednesday monetary training workshops, and we additionally supply one-on-one monetary counseling and advantages planning providers to our group as nicely.

We’re actually making an attempt to assist folks to get rid of the concern, the confusion, the uncertainty and the doubt about their monetary choices, as a result of we wish all people within the blind and low imaginative and prescient group to have the ability to reside full, blissful, wholesome and safe, and resilient lives. And cash is an underpinning of actually, all of these issues.

No, it positively is. Nicely, we’re going to interrupt down these just a bit bit deeper. Chris, I assume let’s begin by speaking in regards to the self-paced on-line programs. What sort of programs can be found or what sorts of knowledge can people study from these?

So we’ve designed these programs to be one thing you can sit down and absorb about an hour every. The matters are thus far, budgeting and banking fundamentals, involved about credit score, digging out of debt, employment necessities, simplifying social safety, and taking up taxes. And we’re engaged on this 12 months, due to a grant from the NASDAQ Basis, an introduction to investing course, and that’s truly going to show right into a collection of investing programs. And we’re persevering with so as to add extra as our time and our capability permits. So, we hope to actually cowl sooner or later in our evolution, each matter that cash touches not directly or one other.

Good, and that’s nice info for folk and form of like we had been speaking off air form of beforehand, you don’t all the time know if you happen to’re getting info that’s all the time in your finest curiosity. However I really like that that is info simply to teach and to get of us these instruments that they could want. You additionally supply the web workshops and also you talked about these. Inform us about these.

So, these had been an inspiration that comes from a number of completely different locations in my previous. One is, I discussed that I skilled Brazilian Jujitsu, and one of many issues that I discovered about coaching within the martial arts, and it’s true of a number of issues not simply martial arts, is that you simply go to courses, these courses repeat the identical issues over and time and again for a really particular purpose. You’ll be able to study one thing as soon as and also you may intellectually perceive how one can put it into observe, however solely by way of observe and observe and extra observe do you truly get to be good at it. And that’s true with monetary functionality as nicely. You might know in your thoughts what the fitting monetary choices are for your self, however you additionally assume lots, whether or not you wish to or not, together with your coronary heart. And generally the fitting monetary determination additionally could really feel like a really scary monetary determination. And to be able to overcome that concern and to have the ability to make these proper wholesome choices time and again constantly, we consider that observe is the important thing.

And so, one of many causes for holding these workshops is to permit folks to speak by way of with us and with one another the sorts of selections they is perhaps referred to as upon to make all through their lives. To assist them to return to the conclusions of what are the fitting choices for them and to be assured about making these proper choices for them.

One other factor that it does is it builds group, and being round a group of folks that assume as you do, which have the identical objectives you do, or in the event that they don’t have the identical objectives, they at the very least respect your objectives, is basically vital. It might probably make it easier to to remain motivated when issues get powerful. It might probably make it easier to to be extra assured in making choices when perhaps some folks that say they’ve your finest pursuits at coronary heart, however perhaps are themselves working from a perspective of concern and uncertainty, are providing you with recommendation that isn’t essentially the most effective recommendation. You’ll be able to’t go off of your mother or your dad saying, “Nicely, I heard that that is true.” It would in reality be true, however it additionally is perhaps solely false and so they is perhaps afraid of encouraging you to take dangers, to take a leap of religion, to consider that you simply truly know what you’re doing and you can go on the market and reside a wholesome monetary life. And likewise, a monetary life that may make it easier to to construct wealth and the form of safety that having actually wholesome funds brings together with it.

Good. I really like that. I really like that you simply introduced up the constructing group, I used to be going to say that too. Simply as folks can study from one another, not simply be instructed by a monetary skilled, but in addition simply study from one another and one another’s experiences for issues they might have skilled or could expertise form of arising. So, that’s actually superior. After which Chris, you talked about this additionally for folk who perhaps want a bit bit extra, you supply one-to-one monetary counseling. I assume, what sorts of help can this one-to-one counseling supply and how much info will be shared in these?

So, a counseling surroundings one-on-one is sure by a code of ethics. As an Accredited Monetary Counselor, I’m sure by a code of ethics to maintain issues confidential, to be non-judgmental, to offer steering and assist, however to not inform anyone what to do or how one can do it, and positively to not do one thing for anyone once they can do it themselves. And I consider that Kane would say that being a Licensed Monetary Planner is sure by an identical, if not an identical code of ethics in the identical manner.

So, the forms of info that may be shared are just about the sky’s the restrict, no matter you’re feeling snug with. Typically my counseling periods are nearly like remedy periods. Gosh, I’m feeling actually afraid of those choices that I’ve to make, or I’m feeling actually overwhelmed by the entire issues that I must do financially. And generally they’re much more mental. What do you consider the thought of me utilizing my bank cards to pay all my payments? Is it okay if I try this and be sure that I pay the bank card off in full on the finish of the month? Ought to I pay my mortgage off early? Ought to I take into account this job supply that I simply obtained?

I believe being a part of a group similar to Penny Ahead, one other huge benefit for that from my standpoint, is that it helps us to bust some myths. As a Licensed Monetary Planner, I speak to lots of people privately too, and I’ve had the possibility to talk with a number of folks one-to-one that discovered me by way of… Who’re blind and produce other disabilities, can even have monetary energy and important monetary assets.

Prior to now few months, I’ve talked to 2 completely different blind people who had very profitable careers and who immediately have over $2 million within the financial institution. And I believe a number of occasions we are able to function underneath a dangerously false assumption. Even these of us that share that incapacity, that the majority blind folks actually don’t have a lot of something. We reside in penury and we now have to rely on state or federal advantages simply to reside, and we’re in all probability not going to get a very good job and we simply need to take what the world palms us.

However being part of the Penny Ahead group, I’ve truly had folks come to me with legit questions on investing, primarily based on the premise that they’ve cash to speculate, that they’ve a house. There’s blind folks on the market with mortgages, there are blind folks on the market that play an energetic function in even bodily fixing up their very own dwelling, which have every kind of expertise, and lots of of them have been monetized. And that doesn’t imply that we as a group are out of the woods, it doesn’t imply that there aren’t lots of people that want a substantial amount of assist and steering and confidence. However by way of being part of the Penny Ahead group, we all know that success on a number of ranges is feasible. And it’s attainable as a result of we are able to meet others who’ve been there, who’re doing profitable issues, who’ve an amazing consequence, and who truly can reside a wholesome and affluent retirement after having put the constructing blocks in place to avoid wasting and make investments for that for a few years. And that’s only a nice shot within the arm to have that foundation for such confidence.

Oh, for certain. Simply understanding that it’s been accomplished, it may be accomplished. At the very least I do know in my work I encounter of us who appear to more often than not be instructed the alternative. So, I like you can present or not simply assist of us alongside, but in addition simply present that it’s attainable, that folk have accomplished it and it’s not the largest factor on the planet. And with a bit bit of labor, you possibly can handle your funds and be capable to do these issues and all the opposite belongings you talked about as nicely. So, that’s superior, Kane.

In wanting by way of right here. I additionally discovered that you simply guys have a podcast as nicely. Is that appropriate?

We do have a podcast. We name it a present about blind folks constructing shiny futures, one penny at a time, as a result of that’s actually what it’s. We’re on the market making an attempt to focus on the entire blind folks on the planet which might be discovering success in each manner possible. We’ve had visitors on starting from Bruce Horak, the primary blind actor to play a task in a Star Trek collection, to George Wartzel, who was well-known for some time in 2018 in a Subaru industrial. And what you don’t learn about him is that he’s an extremely expert and achieved woodworker who has been a many time enterprise proprietor and is at the moment operating a gallery in Greenville, Tennessee.

And we’ve talked to plumbers, we’ve talked to attorneys, we’ve talked to chiropractors, nutritionists, software program builders creating video games and different forms of apps. We’ve talked to oldsters, single mother and father, married mother and father, folks which might be elevating one youngster, and even folks that have labored within the foster care system and have raised over 30 youngsters. In addition to folks that every one they wish to do is reside on a farmstead out within the nation and lift goats. And the individual that I’m pondering of that truly does this, makes a dwelling boarding different folks’s canines and taking good care of their canines once they go on trip.

So, we reside all walks of life and a few of us are completely blind, a few of us have some imaginative and prescient, and it doesn’t matter, we discover a manner. And there’s an amazing quantity of dignity and functionality that I’ve present in our group that I believe is unfortunately going unrecognized. And what’s even sadder nonetheless is that it goes unrecognized even in our personal group. Like Kane stated earlier, and I do wish to contact on this as many occasions as I’ve the chance to, many people as blind folks even type of determine that we simply want to simply accept what the world presents us and that we don’t deserve anymore. I reject that. We’ve got benefit, we now have talent, we now have expertise, we now have functionality, and we’re deserving of each alternative that anybody else, whether or not able-bodied or disabled, has on this world. And I’m difficult the entire blind and low imaginative and prescient folks listening to this to make the most of these alternatives once they come up.

I couldn’t have stated that higher myself. Guys, we’ve obtained a bit little bit of time left, I assume, and I do know it’s going to be exhausting to actually whittle this down, however perhaps what’s one fast piece of recommendation that you possibly can give people with or with out low imaginative and prescient, nearly funds, about monetary literacy, or perhaps one thing vital to maintain entrance of thoughts as they give thought to these items?

Oh, that’s such a tricky one. One of many issues that I counsel folks on on a regular basis is to be assured. You might not all the time make the fitting determination. Typically we don’t know what proper determination goes to be till we attain the longer term and we are able to’t predict the longer term with out 100% certainty. So, generally we simply must make the most effective determination that we are able to with the knowledge that we now have, and make our greatest guess about how the longer term goes to end up. And one thing that we could have been very afraid of could by no means come to go, and one thing that we could by no means have been afraid of in any respect may very well come to go.

And so there’s a super quantity of stability in making good monetary choices. It’s vital to take some threat. With out some threat, there isn’t any reward. Taking no threat, taking the protected path entails some threat all by itself, on lacking out on alternatives which may come up. However, you possibly can’t or don’t wish to tackle an excessive amount of threat, and also you don’t wish to faux like dangerous issues by no means occur as a result of they do, and also you do wish to shield your self towards these dangerous issues. It’s part of being resilient to that future that we are able to’t predict. So, I believe that’s my recommendation. Kane, do you may have something so as to add?

Yeah, if attainable, develop a money reserve. I do know that’s not simple for lots of people to do, however in case you have the means to do it, all the time make sure you may have at the very least three to 6 months value of your bills paid. After which shield issues which might be vital to you or shield towards the lack of these issues.

As a monetary planner, I’ve had some blissful tales, some triumphal tales to report, however I even have some heartbreaking ones. In case you’ve ever talked to somebody who misplaced a partner after which realized after the truth that they or their partner had left the life insurance coverage on that particular person lapse, in order that they had been relying on at the very least one thing to stem the tide and to provide them one thing to reside on whereas they recovered from the lack of a beloved one which was very significant to them. That’s form of a double whammy, and that’s very exhausting to get better from. It’s additionally exhausting to get better from the lack of one thing which may be stolen or misplaced or burned up which may’ve mattered lots to you, however you simply forgot to be sure that that was coated in a home-owner’s or a rental coverage.

So, a number of occasions, despite the fact that folks ask me about cash making alternatives and need me to provide them a inventory tip and all these different issues which might be extra colourful that you simply may examine eager to get wealthy, an enormous a part of being affluent is simply not making choices or failing to decide that the consequence of that’s that you end up again able of poverty while you didn’t need to be. Or when it’s a must to exchange one thing that was very costly at a full market worth simply since you didn’t shield it and ensure it was coated as an endorsement in your property insurance coverage coverage. These items are vital, and so they’ll change into extra vital to us, particularly within the blind, low imaginative and prescient group, as extra of us could resolve to decide like to purchase a automotive, despite the fact that we could not drive it, however we would rent somebody to drive it for us, however that also makes us a automotive proprietor.

And so we discover that as we change into extra affluent, we cope with a number of the similar issues that folks with eyesight have handled for years, similar to with the ability to afford the price of upkeep and the rising price of gasoline for that automotive, at the very least if it burns fossil fuels, hydrocarbons like gasoline or diesel. So, just some issues to remember. It’s about taking dangers. Chris is correct, it’s additionally about ensuring that you simply do a sweep from time to time in entrance of you to be sure that there’s no landmines that you simply may step on which might be going to take you backward in your journey towards monetary health.

Superior, and if our listeners wish to discover out extra about Penny Ahead and all these nice assets that you’ve, what’s one of the best ways for them to do this?

Received three other ways. Our web site, www.pennyforward.com. We will be reached by e mail, the deal with is pennyforward@pennyforward.com, or we are able to attain by telephone. The telephone quantity is 1-888-332-5558, and we now have an answering service that’s standing by 24/7. They’ll reply some fundamental questions and if they’ve issues that they’ll’t reply straight, they may make it easier to to rearrange a callback from considered one of us so as to get your questions answered.

Guys, we’ll put all that down within the present notes so of us can attain you in any manner that they could see match. However thanks a lot for approaching immediately, for offering such a helpful, and I hate to say, form of a lacking service that’s on the market. However actually, with the ability to assist of us who could also be blind or have low imaginative and prescient with with the ability to simply be financially, nicely, unbiased and all the good issues that may come from that. So, thanks a lot in your work, thanks for what you do, and thanks for approaching.

Do you may have a query about assistive expertise? Do you may have a suggestion for somebody we should always interview on Assistive Know-how Replace? If that’s the case, name our listener line at (317) 721-7124. Ship us an e mail at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org, or shoot us a notice on Twitter at INDATA Challenge. Our captions and transcripts for the present are sponsored by the Indiana Phone Relay Entry Company, or InTRAC. Yow will discover out extra about InTRAC at relayindiana.com.

A particular due to Nicole Prieto for scheduling our superb visitors and making a large number of my schedule. At present’s present was produced, edited, hosted, and fraught over by yours really. The opinions expressed by our visitors are their very own and should or could not mirror these of the INDATA Challenge, Easterseals Crossroads, our supporting companions, or this host. This was your Assistive Know-how Replace. I’m Josh Anderson with the INDATA Challenge at Easterseals Crossroads in stunning Indianapolis, Indiana. We look ahead to seeing you subsequent time. Bye-bye.