Finding Franchisees Who Embody Our Brand

I’ve been asking myself a question lately: How do we find the franchisees who can deliver the magic of this brand? In the process of re-branding, we have discovered for ourselves and created the truths of our company that make what we do so special. I am not concerned that we will find people who want to start a franchise. Who would not want to start a business that is so needed and wanted right now in our current economy? Financial literacy is in high demand these days. But the people that will be our franchisees will have to be people who “get it.” How do we find them?

Young entrepreneurs conducting business.

Now, here’s what I just realized: when I started working with Moolah U (then The Money Academy), I didn’t get it either! I thought that kids’ behavior should be “managed.” I didn’t get the power of giving a child a real accountability, letting them choose, and asking them questions to help them reflect on their choices. I did’t get that the simple use of the phrase “using money” instead of “spending money” could call kids attention to the fact that how they use their money is their choice and that they have lots of options for how to use it. I didn’t get the power of acknowledgement in a business, or that you could help a child see that real leadership is giving another the opportunity to be great. To reiterate: I didn’t get it. So how did I become a brand champion?

Young people being great with money.

Looking back, what made the difference was being willing to think newly about young people and how they learn. I was willing to let go of having to know so much about who they are and what they are capable of. That, and I was blown away by the young people and what they accomplished in our programs.

All we have to do is find people who are willing to be developed in ways they never expected and give up their pre-conceived notions about what kids are capable of. When they do, they will find themselves on a path that will change their life forever. And they will have that moment where they get the potential for what we are up to. Like me, they will be struck with the question:

What would the world look like if a whole generation of kids were being responsible for their choices with money and knew themselves as capable leaders who can accomplish whatever they choose?

New Name! New Franchise!

Introducing Our New Name at We Are Girls

After seven years providing programs for kids in Austin as The Money Academy, we are proud and excited to share that we have a new name and we are now franchising!

Why Franchise?

In our commitment to kids having a fundamental understanding of how money works and knowing themselves as leaders that can accomplish whatever they choose, we have always dreamed of taking our programs nationwide. Due to the overwhelming support and demand for our programs here in Austin, we are thrilled to say that that time has come!

Who would have known that a simple inquiry between a mother and a daughter would turn into a business that makes a difference for kids all over the Austin area and now the nation?

Our New Name and Logo

In the process of franchising, it became clear that we needed a new name. So after a several pots of coffee and some seriously fun brainstorming, Moolah U was born! We love our new name and tagline. We feel that our new brand is fun and really says who we are and what we are up to.

For those of you who have a special fondness for The Money Academy, don’t worry. Our programs are not going away. We will still be offering all of the same programs locally, just under our new name!

Over the next few weeks you’ll begin to see changes in our materials and on the website. We will share our story with you as it unfolds. For now, we want to thank our community here in Austin for making this possible!

Thanks Austin, and Be Great. With Money.

With Love,
The Team at Moolah U

Learning by Doing

Today’s email post from my favorite parenting group is about how kids learn from their mistakes.  This is key to how kids learn in Money Academy Camp, by trial and error.  It’s the process of coming up with their own ideas, trying them out and then adjusting their plan according to what they learned from the experience.

Enjoy this article and imagine how you can use this to make a difference in your relationship to your child’s learning.

:: Go With the Flow… Even If It’s ‘Wrong’ ::

Sometimes we think we’re doing our kids a favor
when we tell them the “right” way to do something:
“No, dear… Do it *this* way.”

We think we’re just saving them the hassle of
reinventing the wheel, or preventing something from
being “wasted,” or saving time. But our corrections
also send unintended, unspoken messages, like…

* The end result is more important than the process.
* Efficiency is more important than joy.
* There is no value in making mistakes.
* Better to go with a “sure thing” than to take risks.

In other words, frequently correcting children
undermines their (and our) creativity!

So next time you see your child doing something the
“wrong” way, ask yourself if it’s really so bad that
you can’t go along with it. See if you can relax and
enjoy witnessing his or her process of discovery.

Children who are allowed to find their own way
learn that they *can* find their own way.

http://dailygroove.net/wrong-way

The New Science Behind Your Spending Addiction

A recent Newsweek article reported that science is jumping on board to study and reveal the issue of how we use our resources.  It’s fairly commonsense that we are going to operate in the mode that we’ve been trained, and for decades we have been exposed to strong messages of immediate gratification.  We are told that we “Need” all kinds of stuff to make our lives normal, happy, even fulfilling.  Humanity is up against a powerful corporate influence that is driving our economy and ultimately creating false realities of consumption.

In our own subtle way, the Money Academy message is busting this reality for young people, setting their brains on a trajectory for wealth building.  The article points out that we have to “rewire the brain to find pleasure in future rewards.”

If our reality from a young age is that money is a tool that we can use in multiple ways (Spending, Earning, Giving), the choices we make with our money dramatically change.  It’s imperative that the brain be wired for this from the start. Probably the most influential conversation about this in Money Academy is when we address the issue of what contribution the kids want to make in the world.  Kids are naturally altruistic and we tap into that emotion, we create an incentive to build wealth.  We ask them what difference or what contribution would they make if they had money to donate.  The conversation for philanthropy is what motivates them.  Building wealth will give them the opportunity to make a difference.  We quote Spiderman:  “With great power (wealth) comes great responsibiltiy”.  They really get it.   And then “saving to invest” makes sense.   And then,of course, making money with money (passive income)  is equally exciting.

The shortfall of most initiatives that want us to save is that there is not motivation.  If you talk to a young person about saving to retire, they have no concept of what that could mean.  In their world, they are never going to be that old.  And they’ll deal with tomorrow when it comes.  The immediate gratification issue is at play.  The best way we have found to shift that thinking is to have them realize that they can start making a difference NOW.   When we do the “Financial Freedom Plan,”  the first thing they do is save for investing, then Charity.   Spending is last on the list after we’ve managed the areas that are critical to our financial stability and to a world that works for everyone.

Create a wealth building mindset in kids while they are young and that will be their roadmap for the rest of their lives.

The benefit of letting your kids solve their own problems

As parents, we are making choices daily about how to best utilize our resources, including money, to fulfill the needs of the family.  Let’s begin to share that responsibility with the kids. When they are given the opportunity to make their own choices with money, they will bump up against a problem we’ve all experienced of not having enough money for all the things we want.

One of the best ways to teach kids how to solve this problem is to have them  solve the problem themselves.  The key is to not be too quick to step in and rescue them at the first sign of struggle.  This tends to stop their thinking and can send the message that we don’t have faith in their ability to come up with a solution.

It’s in the struggles and the disequilibrium where real learning takes place and they get to enjoy the sweet success of figuring it out by themselves.  It’s also where they learn that persistence pays off and where real problem-solvers are born.  When kids are given an opportunity to succeed at a difficult task, they begin to take on other more difficult tasks with confidence.

As uncomfortable as it can be to watch them struggle with a problem, rest assured that the lesson they learned is going to stick with them forever.

Are you interested in changing the financial future for the next generation?

The Money Academy is expanding to offer our programs in more schools throughout Austin.  We are looking for new Leaders to deliver our After School programs and Summer Camps.
Here’s what you need to know to get involved:

What Is The Money Academy?
The Money Academy provides programs where kids learn all about money. Can you imagine what your life would be like now if you had learned how money really works at the age of 9? In our flagship program, The Money Academy Summer Camp, kids start and run their own business—and keep the profit! Through real life trial and error experience, kids learn about accountability, teamwork, integrity, business development, business math and much, much more. Kids leave our program saying it was one of the best experiences that they have had.
If you are accepted into our leadership program, you will be trained in a powerful, cutting edge methodology that will alter your experience of working with kids and provide you with valuable experience with money.
Are You Looking For This?
The Money Academy Camp Leader works with approximately 20 young people or teens in developing, testing, and running a successful business during a week long camp. The camp leader sets the kids up with tools and training and then turns the business over entirely to the kids while remaining responsible for our kids’ safety and our relationship with our host.
Are We Looking for You?
The Money Academy Regional Director and Camp Leader is responsible, energetic, causative and inspired by the idea of empowering children. In addition, you…

• are a highly accountable and reliable professional.
•  have experience working with children and delivering some kind of curriculum.
• are willing to be trained in another methodology.
• are capable of effectively working with groups of people, operating effectively with a time line, and producing results.
•  can manage multiple objectives at one time while still focusing on the big picture.
•  are committed to making a difference with kids and open to being trained in a new and cutting edge methodology that may challenge your current understanding about leadership, children and learning.

What It Takes:
1) 1-year or more of experience leading or working with groups of children.
2) Experience managing events or leading from a curriculum.
3) Provide 3 glowing professional references.
4) Be available to lead 4-6 camps (8-5 Monday through Friday)   June through August each summer
5) Be available the Sunday afternoon before each camp for a planning meeting
6) Training is provided and includes:

• One day at our Annual Team Leadership Training
• 2.5 days observing at an ongoing camp
• TEA Approved On-line training programs (2-3 hours)

Future Business Opportunity
Money Academy will be expanding to offer our programs in new markets through franchising.  As a Camp Leader and Regional Representative, you will be in a unique position to continue conducting business in your market through a franchising license.  Building a business of your own, utilizing the expertise and curriculum of Money Academy will give you an opportunity to invest in your own future of financial security.

What does the financial future look like for college kids?

Time Magazine recently wrote of the rising college debt that kids are leaving college with.  On top of a heightened unemployment rate, we must prepare our kids to create their own jobs.  Entrepreneurship and small business creation is on the rise and will be what pulls us out of the recession.

It is of utmost importance to teach kids about how business and money work and give them the tools to create financial stability for themselves in the face of troubling economic times.

Here’s an excerpt from the Time article

College Graduates Face Record-High Debt In the Age of Record-High Unemployment

The news just keeps getting worse for college graduates. According to a report out today from the Project on Student Debt, college seniors who graduated with student loans in 2010 owed an average of $25,250—the highest level ever recorded and a 5% increase from the previous year.Those debt-carrying graduates also faced an impossibly tough job market, as unemployment for new college graduates hovered at 9.1%.  Add to that the fact that the average debt total doesn’t include for-profits institutions, which often saddle their students with much more debt than a traditional college, as too few provide the data to be included in the study — meaning that the state of student debt is likely much worse than we know. The debt figures add weight to the push to curb skyrocketing student debt.

Start preparing your kids to be Money Smart while they are young so they can navigate the economic challenges they will face upon college graduation.

Give kids real-life, real-money experience from a young age.  Support them in exploring money through doing business projects, selling their outgrown toys, doing chores for neighbors, or anything they can do to raise money.  Then, most importantly, help them start saving to invest a portion of their money.