Translated by: Saskia O’Neill Checked by: Peter van de Ven
I was 14 years old
when I was at a bowling center
a slot machine emptied
and when I left the building,
a security guard came after me, so I ran away.
I ran out of the street and jumped on a fence.
When I was on top of it,
the weight of 3,000 coins in my school bag pulled me off.
When I came back, the security guard was over me
and said, “In the future, steal something you can carry.”
(Laughter)
I went to the youth detention
and when I was released and transferred to my mother,
was the first thing my uncle said: “Why did you get caught?”
I said, “That bag was way too heavy.”
He said, “You did not have to take everything.”
I said, “They were so small, do I know a lot?”
Ten minutes later we robbed another slot machine together.
We needed petrol.
That’s how my life looked like.
I grew up in Oakland, California,
with my mother and other immediate family members
addicted to the crack.
I lived with family, friends
and in homeless shelter.
My dinner was regularly served in soup kitchens.
My friend told me:
“Money rules the world and everything in it.
And here in the street money is king.
If you go after the money,
do you think the bad guy or the good guy.
Not much later, I committed my first crime
and that was the first time I heard that I had potential
and felt that someone believed in me.
Nobody had ever said that I could become a lawyer, doctor or engineer.
How could that ever have been?
I could not read, write or spell.
I was illiterate.
So I always thought that crime was my only option.
One day
I was talking to someone
and he told me about a robbery we could do.
And we did it.
I grew up in the strongest financial nation of the world,
the United States of America,
while I watched my mother stand in line at the blood bank
to sell her blood for $ 40 so she could buy food.
The puncture points are still clearly visible on her arm.
I did not know any community at all – I did not care about my community.
They did not care about me.
Everyone only thought about themselves;
the drug dealers, the burglars, the blood bank.
Everyone got blood money and I made sure I got mine, anyway.
I got mine.
Financial knowledge really ruled the world
and I was a child slave of the system, I ran after the bad guy.
When I was 17, I was arrested for robbery and murder
and I learned that money reigns even more in prison than out there,
so I wanted to participate.
When I once rushed the sport page to my cellmate gave to read,
it turned out that I had taken the economy page.
And that man said, “That boy, do you trade in stocks?”
I said, “What is that?”
He said, “That’s where white people keep all their money.”
(Laughter)
It was the first time that I saw a glimmer of hope –
a future.
He briefly explained what shares were,
but it was just a glimpse.
And what could I do with it?
I could not read, write, spell.
The ways in which I always concealed my illiteracy did not work here.
I was locked in a cage, a prey between predators,
and fought for my freedom.
I felt lost, tired and had wasted my chances.
So on my twentieth
I did the hardest thing I ever did.
I picked up a book
and it was the worst time of my life.
Learning to read,
to be rejected by my family,
my friends.
That was really heavy.
A fight.
But in the meantime
I received the most beautiful gifts ever:
self-esteem, knowledge, discipline.
I was so glad I could read that I read everything that was loose and stuck:
candy papers, clothing labels, street signs, everything.
I just read.
(Applause)
I read.
I was so happy that I could read and spell.
A friend said, “What are you eating there?”
I said, “CANDY, candy.”
(Laughter)
He said, “Give me something too.” I said, “NO, no.”
(Laughter)
It felt great.
I could read for the first time in my life.
That felt so great.
And when I was 22 and comfortable in my skin,
self-assured,
I remembered what that man had said.
So I picked up the newspaper and went to the economics page.
Looking for those rich white people.
(Laughter)
I went looking for that glimpse.
When my career progressed,
as a trainer in dealing with money and investing,
I quickly realized that I was responsible for my own actions.
Of course I grew up in a difficult environment,
but I chose crime myself
and I had to admit that.
I was responsible for that myself.
I compiled teaching materials
to teach inmates with money to go
via jobs for prisoners.
By organizing our lives well, we get transferable skills
for dealing with money, for when we go back into society,
like most people who do not commit crimes.
Then I discovered
that according to MarketWatch
more than 60% of the US population has less than $ 1,000 in savings.
According to Sports Illustrated, more than 60% of NBA and NFL players go bankrupt;
40% of the marriage problems arise from financial problems.
How is that possible?
(Laughter)
Do you really mean that people work their entire lives,
and buying cars, clothes, houses
and much more, while they barely survive?
How in the world can those people help prisoners reintegrate
if they make a mess of it themselves?
That is not good!
(Laughter)
I needed a better plan.
Because this was nothing.
So …
I thought.
I felt obliged to approach others now
and help them.
So I was caring for my community.
Wow, imagine: I cared about my community.
Financial illiteracy is a condition
that has paralyzed our minorities and lower classes,
from generation to generation,
and we should be angry about that.
Say it yourself:
how can that be 50% of the American population
can not deal with money in a country that is driven by financial prosperity?
Our access to legal services, our social status,
living conditions, transport and food
all depend on money and almost no one can cope with it.
That is too crazy!
It is an epidemic
and a greater danger to public safety than anything else.
The Californian body for criminal and prison affairs
indicates that more than 70% of detainees
is stuck for money-related crimes:
robberies, burglaries, fraud, theft, extortion
and much more.
Do not forget:
the average detainee enters the California prison system
without financial knowledge,
earns 30 cents per hour,
more than $ 800 a year,
has no expenses,
but saves nothing.
On his release he gets 200 dollars at the gate and he is told:
“Good luck, do your best, stay out of prison.”
Without any preparation or financial plan for a longer period of time:
what is he doing?
At the age of sixty? Looking for a nice job?
Or fall back into his old, criminal behavior?
Well taxpayers, say it.
Even though his choice is actually determined by his education.
How do we solve this problem?
I am co-founder of the program
‘Financial self-reliance, emotional knowledge’
or ‘FEEL’,
focused on how you can separate your emotional decisions
your financial decisions,
plus the four timeless rules of personal finance:
save the right way,
limit your living expenses,
leen effective,
and diversify your finances by making your money work for you
instead of the other way around.
Prisoners must learn these life lessons before they return to society.
No one can completely re-integrate without these social skills.
The idea that only business people can invest and deal with money
is ridiculous
and whoever says that is a liar.
(Applause)
A professional is someone who knows more about his field than others.
And no one knows better how much money you need, or have, or want, than you,
so the professional, that’s you.
Financial knowledge is not a skill, people.
It is a lifestyle.
Financial stability is a by-product of a good lifestyle.
A prisoner with good financial knowledge can become a taxpaying citizen.
A taxpaying citizen with that knowledge can stay that way.
This way we can build a bridge to the people we influence:
family, friends and the young people
who still believe that crime and money go hand in hand.
So forget the fear of all those big financial words
and all the other nonsense you’ve always heard.
Let us focus on the core of what people in our society
always has been hindered to organize their own lives better.
Let’s set up a simple, easy to use program,
focused on the real core
of financial self-reliance and emotional knowledge.
Are you here in the audience and do you think:
“It’s not about me and I do not believe it”,
then attend my course,
then I show you how much money it costs, every time you let your emotions decide.
Thank you, thank you.
(Applause)
I was 14 years old
when I was at a bowling center
a slot machine emptied
and when I left the building,
a security guard came after me, so I ran away.
I ran out of the street and jumped on a fence.
When I was on top of it,
the weight of 3,000 coins in my school bag pulled me off.
When I came back, the security guard was over me
and said, “In the future, steal something you can carry.”
(Laughter)
I went to the youth detention
and when I was released and transferred to my mother,
was the first thing my uncle said: “Why did you get caught?”
I said, “That bag was way too heavy.”
He said, “You did not have to take everything.”
I said, “They were so small, do I know a lot?”
Ten minutes later we robbed another slot machine together.
We needed petrol.
That’s how my life looked like.
I grew up in Oakland, California,
with my mother and other immediate family members
addicted to the crack.
I lived with family, friends
and in homeless shelter.
My dinner was regularly served in soup kitchens.
My friend told me:
“Money rules the world and everything in it.
And here in the street money is king.
If you go after the money,
do you think the bad guy or the good guy.
Not much later, I committed my first crime
and that was the first time I heard that I had potential
and felt that someone believed in me.
Nobody had ever said that I could become a lawyer, doctor or engineer.
How could that ever have been?
I could not read, write or spell.
I was illiterate.
So I always thought that crime was my only option.
One day
I was talking to someone
and he told me about a robbery we could do.
And we did it.
I grew up in the strongest financial nation of the world,
the United States of America,
while I watched my mother stand in line at the blood bank
to sell her blood for $ 40 so she could buy food.
The puncture points are still clearly visible on her arm.
I did not know any community at all – I did not care about my community.
They did not care about me.
Everyone only thought about themselves;
the drug dealers, the burglars, the blood bank.
Everyone got blood money and I made sure I got mine, anyway.
I got mine.
Financial knowledge really ruled the world
and I was a child slave of the system, I ran after the bad guy.
When I was 17, I was arrested for robbery and murder
and I learned that money reigns even more in prison than out there,
so I wanted to participate.
When I once rushed the sport page to my cellmate gave to read,
it turned out that I had taken the economy page.
And that man said, “That boy, do you trade in stocks?”
I said, “What is that?”
He said, “That’s where white people keep all their money.”
(Laughter)
It was the first time that I saw a glimmer of hope –
a future.
He briefly explained what shares were,
but it was just a glimpse.
And what could I do with it?
I could not read, write, spell.
The ways in which I always concealed my illiteracy did not work here.
I was locked in a cage, a prey between predators,
and fought for my freedom.
I felt lost, tired and had wasted my chances.
So on my twentieth
I did the hardest thing I ever did.
I picked up a book
and it was the worst time of my life.
Learning to read,
to be rejected by my family,
my friends.
That was really heavy.
A fight.
But in the meantime
I received the most beautiful gifts ever:
self-esteem, knowledge, discipline.
I was so glad I could read that I read everything that was loose and stuck:
candy papers, clothing labels, street signs, everything.
I just read.
(Applause)
I read.
I was so happy that I could read and spell.
A friend said, “What are you eating there?”
I said, “CANDY, candy.”
(Laughter)
He said, “Give me something too.” I said, “NO, no.”
(Laughter)
It felt great.
I could read for the first time in my life.
That felt so great.
And when I was 22 and comfortable in my skin,
self-assured,
I remembered what that man had said.
So I picked up the newspaper and went to the economics page.
Looking for those rich white people.
(Laughter)
I went looking for that glimpse.
When my career progressed,
as a trainer in dealing with money and investing,
I quickly realized that I was responsible for my own actions.
Of course I grew up in a difficult environment,
but I chose crime myself
and I had to admit that.
I was responsible for that myself.
I compiled teaching materials
to teach inmates with money to go
via jobs for prisoners.
By organizing our lives well, we get transferable skills
for dealing with money, for when we go back into society,
like most people who do not commit crimes.
Then I discovered
that according to MarketWatch
more than 60% of the US population has less than $ 1,000 in savings.
According to Sports Illustrated, more than 60% of NBA and NFL players go bankrupt;
40% of the marriage problems arise from financial problems.
How is that possible?
(Laughter)
Do you really mean that people work their entire lives,
and buying cars, clothes, houses
and much more, while they barely survive?
How in the world can those people help prisoners reintegrate
if they make a mess of it themselves?
That is not good!
(Laughter)
I needed a better plan.
Because this was nothing.
So …
I thought.
I felt obliged to approach others now
and help them.
So I was caring for my community.
Wow, imagine: I cared about my community.
Financial illiteracy is a condition
that has paralyzed our minorities and lower classes,
from generation to generation,
and we should be angry about that.
Say it yourself:
how can that be 50% of the American population
can not deal with money in a country that is driven by financial prosperity?
Our access to legal services, our social status,
living conditions, transport and food
all depend on money and almost no one can cope with it.
That is too crazy!
It is an epidemic
and a greater danger to public safety than anything else.
The Californian body for criminal and prison affairs
indicates that more than 70% of detainees
is stuck for money-related crimes:
robberies, burglaries, fraud, theft, extortion
and much more.
Do not forget:
the average detainee enters the California prison system
without financial knowledge,
earns 30 cents per hour,
more than $ 800 a year,
has no expenses,
but saves nothing.
On his release he gets 200 dollars at the gate and he is told:
“Good luck, do your best, stay out of prison.”
Without any preparation or financial plan for a longer period of time:
what is he doing?
At the age of sixty? Looking for a nice job?
Or fall back into his old, criminal behavior?
Well taxpayers, say it.
Even though his choice is actually determined by his education.
How do we solve this problem?
I am co-founder of the program
‘Financial self-reliance, emotional knowledge’
or ‘FEEL’,
focused on how you can separate your emotional decisions
your financial decisions,
plus the four timeless rules of personal finance:
save the right way,
limit your living expenses,
leen effective,
and diversify your finances by making your money work for you
instead of the other way around.
Prisoners must learn these life lessons before they return to society.
No one can completely re-integrate without these social skills.
The idea that only business people can invest and deal with money
is ridiculous
and whoever says that is a liar.
(Applause)
A professional is someone who knows more about his field than others.
And no one knows better how much money you need, or have, or want, than you,
so the professional, that’s you.
Financial knowledge is not a skill, people.
It is a lifestyle.
Financial stability is a by-product of a good lifestyle.
A prisoner with good financial knowledge can become a taxpaying citizen.
A taxpaying citizen with that knowledge can stay that way.
This way we can build a bridge to the people we influence:
family, friends and the young people
who still believe that crime and money go hand in hand.
So forget the fear of all those big financial words
and all the other nonsense you’ve always heard.
Let us focus on the core of what people in our society
always has been hindered to organize their own lives better.
Let’s set up a simple, easy to use program,
focused on the real core
of financial self-reliance and emotional knowledge.
Are you here in the audience and do you think:
“It’s not about me and I do not believe it”,
then attend my course,
then I show you how much money it costs, every time you let your emotions decide.
Thank you, thank you.
(Applause)
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