John Hope Bryant

CNN Highlights Operation HOPE, Banking on Our Future and the Power of Financial Literacy on Inner-City Decision Making

 

This video piece from CNN, which is scheduled to air this week, clearly shows the power of financial literacy and financial dignity in the lives of inner-city youth and their decision making. The piece also features new friend to HOPE Russell Simmons, who was a closing speaker at our recenty HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summit on November 14th-15th, 2012 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Check it out and let CNN know what you think.  Write them a letter and share the video through socal media with family and friends.  Let's start a new conversation with and for our youth.

This is a new silver rights empowerment movement for a new generation of future leaders.

Let's go.

 

John Hope Bryant is a thought leader, founder, chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE and Bryant Group Companies, Inc. Magazine/CEO READ bestselling business author of LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass), the only African-American bestselling business author in America, and is chairman of the Subcommittee for the Under-Served and Community Empowerment for the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability, for President Barack Obama.  Mr. Bryant is the co-founder of the Gallup-HOPE Index, the only national research poll on youth financial dignity and youth economic energy in the U.S. He is also a co-founder of Global Dignity with HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland. Global Dignity is affiliated with the Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum.  Mr. Bryant is a thought leader represented by the Bright Sight Group for public speaking. Mr. Bryant serves on the board of directors of Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (NYSE: ACRE), a specialty finance company that is managed by an affiliate of Ares Management LLC, a global alternative asset manager with approximately $59 billion in committed capital under management as of December 31, 2012. 

HOPE Business In A Box ~ An Initiative That Will Change America

 

And here is our official HOPE Business In A Box video for 2013. Enjoy.

Keep your eyes peeled for our America 2020 Campaign, our national campaign to save America, by Americans, everyday between now and 2020.

Let's go.

 

 

 

Presenting the Operation HOPE Business in a Box, Atlanta Pilot Program Competition

 

This short video says it all. It is the "magic" that we have been talking about. That I have been dreaming about, ever since I came up with the vision of and for HOPE Business In A Box this time last year on my my birthday.  My birthday is February 6th, 2013, and seeing this vision made real is the best birthday present that this "proud pappa" could have (smile).

Thank you to Mary Hagerty, president of the HOPE Youth Empowerment Group, the Atlanta team, led by Jay Bailey, Tara Dennis (youth agenda) and others there, along with everyone who helped to make this real.  

A special thank you to Ms. Natasha L. Foreman, MBA, dedicated HOPE Corps volunteer, small business owner and the HOPE Business In A Box coordinator in Atlanta, Georgia.  She worked tirelessly to see this through from concept to reality for these bright young kids (our leaders for the future) in Atlanta.  

2012 Gallup-HOPE Index Findings Show Gap Between Entrepreneurship Aspirations and Work Experience for American Youth

Education experts convene to discuss solutions to capitalize on economic energy of students

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "Silver rights" nonprofit Operation HOPE, a leader in financial dignity, joined with Gallup to announce findings from the 2012 Gallup-HOPE Index (GHI), a joint project to encourage entrepreneurial development among youth. The organizations also co-hosted a panel discussion on comprehensive solutions to encourage economic and entrepreneurial achievement for America's youth.

The GHI is an annual survey that measures engagement, hope and economic energy of fifth through 12^th grade students in the U.S. Through exploration of students' future aspirations and their access to the necessary education and experience needed to achieve these goals, the study can inform educational programs and resources to help students become meaningful participants in the nation's economy. Initiated in 2011, the GHI is part of Gallup's 100 year commitment with Operation HOPE to assess the attitudes and behaviors often ascribed to entrepreneurs and to provide government and business leaders with data about student sentiment nationwide.

Results from the 2012 GHI reveal that America's youth are optimistic about the future and many have entrepreneurial ambitions. The results, based on a nationally representative survey of 1,217 students, show that 43 percent of students plan to start their own businesses. The poll also found that students understand the value of education, with 93 percent agreeing that there is a relationship between level of education and earning potential. Fifty-nine percent said their school offers classes in how to start and run a business.

Gallup -HOPE Index 2012 Results Announced Today: U.S. Students' Entrepreneurial Aspirations Still Undeveloped

Children of business owners more entrepreneurially inclined

by Valerie J. Calderon and Shane Lopez

WASHINGTON D.C. -- Entrepreneurial aspirations among fifth- through 12^th-graders in the U.S. remained high and stable over the past year, according to the 2012 Gallup-HOPE Index. About four in 10 students (43%) say they plan to start their own business. Similarly, four in 10 students (42%) say they will invent something that changes the world.

Girls (46%) were slightly more likely to agree they plan to start their own business than boys (40%). Boys (45%) were slightly more likely than girls (40%) to say they will invent something that changes the world.

Read and download the complete report here at Gallup.

 

After We Inaugurate Our President, Welcome Our New Entrepreneurship Generation: Join Us for the Gallup-HOPE Index Forum, Washington, DC, 2013

For those interested in learning more about the Gallup-HOPE Index Forum, 2013, contact Jodi Brockington, deputy director of HOPE Forums.

 

 

Introducing the Gallup-HOPE Index Forum, 2013, Announcing the 2012 Gallup-HOPE Index National Poll Results

For information on the Gallup-HOPE Index Forum scheduled for January 22nd, 2013, in Washington, DC at the Gallup Building, contact Jodi Brockington here.

 

Gallup Business Journal: Bankers Should Be Role Models

How banks can combat financial illiteracy by teaching kids business and finance

by Jim Clifton and John Hope Bryant

Okay, bankers hate regulation. We get that. But the global economic crisis has given people some very real reasons to push for regulation. And understandably, bankers and their advocates have pushed back. We're not going to say either side is wrong, but we will say both sides are missing a very important point.

A prominent banker suggested that every bank adopt one or more local schools.

A particularly prominent banker -- a CEO of a major financial institution, no less -- caught the point right away. In a private conversation with one of us, he said that the one thing the banking industry should be required to do is sponsor mandatory financial literacy education.

This is why: The global economic crisis had many causes -- beyond greed and a few bad actors in the financial services sector -- and one of them was the entrenched financial illiteracy of the borrower. Borrowers who should have known better asked, "What's the monthly payment?" instead of "What's the interest rate?" That's dangerous, especially when so much of the economy depends on responsible and sustainable consumer spending.

Read the complete article here at Gallup Business Journal online.

Bankers Should Be Role Models.

John Hope Bryant Speaks on LOVE LEADERSHIP Before Youth and Gallup Leadership in Omaha, Nebraska

I was deeply honored to speak before 300 young leaders of and for the future in Omaha, Nebraska who are using Gallup's "Strength Finders" human science technology to move their lives in a positive direction. Given how often I speak before young people, I can tell you right now -- these youth were different!

One of the memories I hold most dear involves walking up to the venue with a team of Gallup executives, also friends, and a young lady from the school (a student there) steps forward and hands me two letters, enclosed in envelopes.  She calmly but firmly announces to me that one letter was destined for me, which I could open later, and one letter -- well, one letter was for the President of the United States.  She expected me to deliver it to him, and she didn't blink when she said it.

Needless to say, I did precisely as I was told (smile).  The next day, when I was in Washington, D.C., I made sure I delivered this letter from this young lady directly to the White House, insuring that it made it to the West Wing.  These youth -- this amazing group of leaders in the making, thanks to Gallup -- this is what gives me hope!

A special thank you to my friend Jane Miller, who runs Gallup in Omaha, Nebraska and is deeply involved with empowering youth throughout Greater Omaha, Nebraska, for inviting me to spend some time with her star-youth.

Baltimore Sun Op-Ed: Unleashing Invention In Our Schools

Unleashing invention in our schools

What if millions of kids were given the tools to become entrepreneurs?

October 03, 2012|By Jim Clifton and John Hope Bryant

Everyone knows that the United States is in a terrible business slump, and there's no shortage of opinions about it and solutions for it — but there hasn't been much in the way of notable improvement. So we have been looking deeply into the science of human nature to find an answer and a solution, and here is what we know: There are 6 million small businesses, about 100,000 midsized companies, and fewer than 1,000 really big businesses in the United States. In total, they generate right at 100 million real, full-time jobs and just over $15 trillion in sales and production. That is "America's Company," and it has stopped growing.

We found two reasons for it. One, business leaders aren't in a "growth" state of mind. No matter the size of the company, they have lost their will to dream it and build it. Second, the country is seriously short on start-ups. We need a minimum of 2 million start-up companies per year to keep our economy and jobs pumping, but we are running at a measly 400,000 a year. This is a game-over moment. Nothing fixes the United States' economic problems unless the number of start-ups booms to new highs.

We cannot buy, tax or legislate our way to a sudden, world-changing boom of start-ups. But we can mentor and intern our way to one. The future of our economy is to be found in our youth, because the spirit of free enterprise that builds companies, jobs and economies is most likely to be found there.

Read the complete Baltimore Sun Op-Ed here, and share with your communities.  Start the national discussion on the role of hope in the lives of our kids.