ABOUT ME
Hey, I’m J.P. Since 2014 I have been teaching personal development and financial education to
teenagers all over the world. I consider myself one of the lucky ones who gets to live every day
doing something they genuinely love to do.
I’ve taught over 60 Multi-day events, have done countless assemblies and virtual talks, and
have worked with thousands and thousands of teens around the globe. I’ve also spoken to
thousands of parents, teachers and caring adults about how I successfully teach kids about
money and success: so I can empower them to feel confident empowering the kids in their
lives to make positive financial and personal decisions.
How I got to this point is less than traditional.
I am a public high school kid from the northeast who wasn’t very good in school. I never
understood how school translated to the real world, which I then used as an excuse to achieve less than stellar grades (My first “If I only knew then what I know now”).
On the other hand, when it came to working, I thrived. I found myself as an executive for a national marketing company at only 20 years old- I ended up with over 10 years of management experience
before my 30th birthday. To me, whether it was that company or another, I was going to be the CEO of a company one day in the not so distant future; get a bunch of money in my bank account and at some point, live off that money for the rest of my life and “retire” like a king.
Then I learned what it was like to be laid-off. The economy changed and companies
downsized. All that “security” meant nothing. So once I realized there had to be a better way, I did the logical thing… booked a one way ticket to Costa Rica.
I moved to a place I had never been, with a language I didn’t speak (remember the less than stellar grades), with nobody I knew and with only $700.
At the time I had still planned to get into a company and work my way up to the top, but I was looking for something (some piece of the puzzle I hadn’t found yet) and I needed time to think. I also needed to do it in a different environment- I needed to step outside my comfort zone and become a better version of myself so I could find that piece of the puzzle I was missing.
And after a 6 month time period spending time with my thoughts- journaling and gaining a greater understanding of myself- I went back to the northeast. It was December at the time and after about a month of winter and after living in the tropics I continued right on to Southern
California with $1000 I saved from doing construction in the month or so I was home.