Jasmine Young With Southern Heritage Financial Group & The Financial Literacy Institute

Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Atlanta Business Radio. Brought to you by on pay. Atlanta’s New standard in payroll. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:25] Lee Kantor here another episode of Atlanta Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, Onpay. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on Atlanta Business Radio, we have Jasmine Young with the Financial Literacy Institute. Welcome.

Jasmine Young: [00:00:45] Thank you for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:47] Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about the Financial Literacy Institute, how you serving folks.

Jasmine Young: [00:00:53] Absolutely. So the Financial Literacy Institute is a 500 and 1C3 that I founded to basically provide educational courses, programs and resources to underprivileged and underrepresented communities to help them become more financially literate and to combat financial instability.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:13] So what was the genesis of the idea? What made you get involved with this?

Jasmine Young: [00:01:19] I actually started having a passion for financial literacy back in high school when one of my peers made a comment to me that she thought that I was fed with a silver spoon and didn’t think that parents grew up poor. So they actually created a life for my brother and I to where we didn’t have to live the life that they lived. And they gave us a very basic understanding of what it means to be a financially literate and responsible adult and want it to be the resource that my peers and their families needed. So that’s how it was born.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:49] So when you have this idea of improving financial literacy, the nuts and bolts of it, you have to decide who do I want to help first, right? Because there’s so many people in need. Did you decide to help, you know, young people, maybe older people, like how did you decide how to create kind of information for for the group that’s important to you?

Jasmine Young: [00:02:10] So we actually create courses for all ages simply because when you look at African Americans and the wealth gap, it’s been widening since the demise of Black Wall Street. So we decided that, you know, it’s important for us to create resources for all ages kids, adults, as well as teenagers, so that we can make sure that the information is being recycled. And it is being discussed with all ages. Because in the African American community, unfortunately, we don’t really talk about financial literacy. And a lot of times people learn about financial literacy through their mistakes. So that’s why we didn’t want to just deal with adults. We wanted to talk to kids as well because we want to get that information into them as early as possible so that we can continue a better cycle of being financially literate.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:01] So what’s an example of the way you serve kind of young people when it comes to financial literacy?

Jasmine Young: [00:03:07] So we actually go into the schools. We’ve done a couple of schools here in Atlanta where we actually put together courses about financial literacy. For example, we did a budgeting course and for the small kids, we actually teach them how to count money. We teach them how to save. We give them a choice of do you want to use your money to buy candy or would you rather save your money for college? And we start teaching them early concepts like that to kind of get them acclimated to what financial literacy is and how? Yes, money is important, but the bigger picture of that is being a financially responsible adult.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:44] Now, when you started doing this, when did you realize, hey, we have something here, this is going to really make a big impact?

Jasmine Young: [00:03:53] I would say, well, we started it during COVID and we started just sharing information on social media and just doing like $5 classes. And the classes were constantly booked. And that’s when we realized that, hey, you know, people really do care about this. Of course, everyone was at home during that time quarantining, so social media was kind of the outlet for a lot of people. And we realized that people were not just using social media as a way to release, but they were using it as a way to learn. And that’s how we figured out, you know what, this is going to be the way for us to get the information to the masses without them even having to leave their homes.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:32] So what you you bring up social media as a great way to share information that’s important like this. But social media also kind of can create some pressure and expectations for some people and impact how they spend their money and and how they invest their money. Can you talk a little bit about how social media may be negatively impact some folks?

Jasmine Young: [00:04:53] Absolutely. Absolutely. So what you just mentioned is actually a part of financial trauma. A lot of people do spend their money in ways because they’re trying to make up for their lack of things. So they see somebody on social media with a brand new car or a brand new outfit or a purse, and it pressures them into going to buy things that they really don’t have the money to spend. And that’s one of the negative connotations, not just of social media, but just of being financially literate and. Altogether. A lot of people don’t realize that financial literacy is 50% application and the other 50% is psychological. Like, why do you spend the spend your money the way you spend it? What are you spending it on and what’s the purpose of it? And I tell people all the time, the one way to become financially literate is to address that trauma. So social media actually weighs heavily on a lot of the spending decisions that most Americans make.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:51] Do they even realize that, though.

Jasmine Young: [00:05:53] They don’t realize it because they’ve done it for so long? Hence the reason why we call it financial trauma. A lot of people don’t realize that they’re operating out of that and not because of any other reason. So we like to point that trauma out to people, talk about that trauma, and then provide them ways to get out of that habit.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:16] So what’s an example of a way that somebody could cut down on some of their social media so they’re not kind of being hypnotized by some of these negative influences?

Jasmine Young: [00:06:28] I always tell people to monitor who it is you’re getting this information from because a lot of a lot of these pages on social media, a lot of people give out financial advice and they’re not necessarily financial advisors or CPAs. So a lot of the information is sensationalized. So I always tell people to, you know, limit those those types of accounts that you’re following where people are giving you sensationalized information and they’re not really giving you the entire story. So just limiting those those sensationalized social media accounts can help as well. And then also surround yourself with people who are working through their financial trauma. So if you’re you know, you’re used to going out with people who like to spend money, it’s Friday. They just got paid. They want to go to the mall. You may want to change your group of friends to people who don’t necessarily do that every weekend. So it’s the little things that we really don’t pay attention to that can have a big effect on how we actually spend our money and how it affects our financial wellness as a whole.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:35] And your background is one of a CPA, right? That is.

Jasmine Young: [00:07:39] Correct. I am a CPA.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:40] So you’ve seen this stuff firsthand. You’ve seen what works and what doesn’t work firsthand.

Jasmine Young: [00:07:46] Absolutely.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:48] Now, and some of the you mentioned a lot of education is part of your work, but you create events as well.

Jasmine Young: [00:07:54] We do do events. So our events basically stem from the programs that we put together to provide people with things that we do in the community outside of the courses to get them even interested in financial literacy. It’s such a saturated topic, um, a sensationalized topic as well. So we want to make sure that people actually see what it is we’re doing and get interested in that versus just being on the bandwagon of, Oh, they’re talking about financial literacy.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:30] Now in your work, do you have a niche that you serve, or are you pretty much a CPA for any any type of client?

Jasmine Young: [00:08:38] So we actually provide service to the professional services. So of course, your doctors, your lawyers, we do the logistics industry and the sports entertainment and film industry.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:50] Now, how did you decide upon those groups to serve? Because a lot of people think, Oh, I’m a CPA, I’ll serve everybody because everybody needs my work. But you decided to create niches. Why was that important?

Jasmine Young: [00:09:04] I think it’s important. Well, number one, because the accounting industry is so large, no one can serve everybody. So it was important to find an area, um, that I was comfortable in that I was familiar with and that I was interested in, um, in order to provide those services. So the logistics industry, I actually grew up in that industry as a kid because my, my uncles and cousins were all truck drivers. So I was very familiar with how the industry worked with professional services. Um, of course I’m a CPA. Being a professional service, I know what types of accounting solutions a professional service person may need. So that made it easier to go that route. And then with the sports and entertainment industry, because I realized that financial literacy is lacking in that specific industry, That is what made me choose that industry as well.

Lee Kantor: [00:09:59] And you bring up an interesting point. People think that people in sports and entertainment who make lots and lots of money already figured a lot of this out, but a lot of them haven’t figured it out and have some bad, bad habits. Right. That can really hurt them. There’s a large percentage of professional athletes that have filed bankruptcy.

Jasmine Young: [00:10:20] Absolutely. Absolutely. And that’s the very reason why we chose it, because if you don’t realize it, a lot of those people are acting out of financial trauma as well. They buy a lot of things to fit in with other celebrities and people in the industry, and they don’t realize that they’re shooting themselves in the foot by their spending habits as well. And sometimes, unfortunately, they do get to a point where they have to file bankruptcy or they lose everything that they have. And that’s one of the reasons why pick the pick that industry is because I wanted to be able to help those people keep their money.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:55] Now, as part of some of these financial literacy, where does kind of real estate and owning a home fit in or does it.

Jasmine Young: [00:11:04] It does. So so real estate is actually a part of asset management and asset protection. And what people don’t realize is buying real estate is actually a way that you can kind of become your own bank. For example, right now in the housing market, uh, homes are appreciating in value, which means that it’s creating equity. So your home is able to build money that you could be able to access versus going to a bank and getting another loan. So, um, I always tell people anything that causes you to generate revenue, accumulate revenue, something that appreciates and value is part of financial literacy. So of course, buying real estate, whether it’s your home or if you’re investing in properties, those things help create wealth as well because those things continue to create, generate money over time. So it definitely falls into the financial literacy aspect.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:01] Now when you’re recommending things like buying a home or investing in real estate, when a person says, Well, that sounds great, but I don’t have any money, I’m kind of living paycheck to paycheck. Are there some strategies you can share to help that person, or is it, you know, is that just they’re going to be left behind?

Jasmine Young: [00:12:20] So the first thing we always recommend for someone who’s who wants to buy a home is start start with the basics of financial literacy, which is budgeting. We go and look at your budget and see how much money you’re making, how much disposable income you have. That way we can see if you can start saving for a down payment for a home or if there are ways that you are using your money that’s not helping you get closer to becoming a homeowner. We start to do those things, um, in the budgeting process to help get you on track. And then of course, we look at your your credit as well to see, you know, what could you possibly afford? Do you have the credit score to afford you a home? Of course, there’s first time homebuyer programs out there that we also look into. So there’s a way for everyone. Now, of course, everyone won’t be able to afford the same size home or the same price home, if you will, but home ownership can be for everybody.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:17] So and it doesn’t require just, you know, never spending a dollar. It just requires kind of understanding. Right. But you have to understand where the money is coming and going from. So you can make choices because every choice has a trade off, right? You can I can buy, you know, go out to dinner every night or I can save for a down payment for a house. You know, I can make that choice.

Jasmine Young: [00:13:42] That is correct.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:44] And when you’re working with folks, are you just kind of telling them this information or is there a way to kind of help them when they get, you know, frustrated or they have questions or they need kind of a little more guidance and coaching?

Jasmine Young: [00:13:59] Yeah. So we actually coach them through the entire process. We review their bank statements to see what they’re spending money on. We then provide them a budget based off of what we’ve seen in that analysis, and then we do check ins with them on a consistent basis to see how they’re measuring up to the budgets we we created and just provide them advice and just an advisor along the way to help them get through it. Like I said, we can get financial literacy is 50% application, but the other 50% is psychological and that’s something that no one can can fix for you. But you you have to have the discipline and the will to want to meet the goal that you’re trying to meet.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:42] In today’s world where there are so many online subscriptions, there’s people that are spending hundreds of dollars a month just on things they’re probably not even using anymore that they signed up for months ago.

Jasmine Young: [00:14:54] Absolutely. And that’s one of the go to’s that we always see when we’re doing a financial analysis is how many subscriptions do they have? And then we total those up and show them to them. And and you’re right, people are spending hundreds of dollars a month on subscriptions that they don’t even use.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:10] Yeah, well, it’s so important to have information and good information so you can make informed decisions because you’ve got to, especially young people have to take advantage of the power of compounding. I mean, that is that is the magic. And the sooner you get going and it doesn’t matter the amount when you start just get in the habit of saving that will pay dividends. Your future. You will appreciate your present you if you can get that right.

Jasmine Young: [00:15:35] Absolutely. I definitely agree.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:37] Well, if somebody wants to connect with you and learn more about what you got going on, what’s the website, what’s the best way to do it?

Jasmine Young: [00:15:44] Absolutely. So you can go to fly inc.org. That’s the T for the Financial Literacy Institute. So t f l i inc.org.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:56] Well, thank you so much for sharing your story. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Jasmine Young: [00:16:01] Thank you so much for having me. Appreciate it.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:03] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see y’all next time on Atlanta Business Radio.