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Recently, I joined Bloomberg radio host Barry Ritholtz on the podcast Masters in Business to discuss the importance — and power — of financial literacy, not just for our low-to-moderate income neighbors but for all people on their path to success, particularly the marginalized. Airing over Memorial Day weekend, this episode led the charts as the #1 trending episode on all of Bloomberg Radio and remains among its highest-rated show to date. Below is a snippet of the conversation. Click here to listen to the entire episode. |
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BRYANT: So here’s what you see in a 580 credit score neighborhood, right? Check casher, next to a payday loan lender, next to a rent-to-own store, next to a title lender, next to a liquor store, next to a pawn shop. And by the way, Barry, it’s not just black and brown urban neighborhoods. It’s poor white rural. RITHOLTZ: Yes. BRYANT: See, you got me; you finished the sentence for me. RITHOLTZ: I’m very well aware that people seem to be, you know, whenever we look at entitlement spending and some people think there’s a racial component, the biggest consumer of government assistance are poor rural whites in America. BRYANT: And the number one group dying in America is a high school-educated white man, dying of essentially– RITHOLTZ: Of drug overdose, fentanyl, yes. BRYANT: Opioid addiction, depression. So what I’m doing is taking the emotion out of this conversation. I believe I love math because it doesn’t have an opinion. That’s a Melody Hobson quote. And if I can replace the emotion with a science, with a mathematical equation, with a credit score, okay, and that credit score changes, it’s dynamic, it changes every week. That keeps your attention. That keeps you, it’s an individual scorecard. I can’t, here’s what’s beautiful if you’re an underserved person or somebody who’s used to being, used to racism dogging you or sexism dogging you. I can’t get in your heart and change how you feel about me. I can get into my own head and change my credit score. It’s control of my own destiny. And the credit score is a trending indicator for all other things, hope, faith, belief, confidence, well-being, [and] trust. These things you need to access banking, financial services, market economy, investors. So I believe that we found a Burning Bush. You move, I’m going to say something on your podcast that I rarely say it to anybody. You move credit scores [by] 100 points in this country. You stabilize this country. RITHOLTZ: We’re talking unemployment, poverty, crime… BRYANT: Health. RITHOLTZ: Health and life expectancy. All tied to credit [scores]. BRYANT: Plus economic vitality, prosperity, business creation, and stable families. I’ve got five pillars of success in my newest book, “Up From Nothing” here are the five things you need to succeed. As much education as you can shove down your throat. Understanding financial literacy, how the economy works, the math of the matter, family structure and resiliency, self-esteem and confidence, and role models in the environment. If you have five of those things, you’re going to be immensely successful. With four of those things, you’re going to be very successful. With three of those things, you will pop your head over failure. And if you have less than three of those things, you’re stuck. Who has less than three of those five things? Poor whites, African Americans, and Native American Indians. |