For most families, the "college decision" is the single largest financial gamble they will ever take. We hand a 17-year-old a pen and ask them to sign off on a high-stakes, high-risk investment before they’ve even had their first full-time job. At Personal Finance Reimagined (PFR), we believe it’s time to move past the "degree-at-any-cost" mentality and start talking about ROI. I recently sat down with Dave Urso, Vice President of Academic Affairs at Blue Ridge Community Coll

In this special Negotiation Month edition of Personal Finance Reimagined , Jeff Hulett sits down with longtime colleague and friend Edmund Green to unpack what makes a negotiator successful—not through tactics and tricks, but through authenticity, empathy, and trust. Edmund, founder and CEO of Parlinum Consulting and former Managing Director at KPMG, offers a masterclass in negotiation strategy rooted in relationship-building, client advocacy, and unflinching honesty. Trust a

Some people feel uncomfortable with negotiating. This is unfortunate. Good negotiation leads to better outcomes for all. A good negotiation is a form of good communication, where all parties express their key preferences. This creates a better platform for productive, long-term relationships. Focusing on your BATNA is the foundation of good negotiation and a productive, long-term relationship. About the author:    Jeff Hulett leads Personal Finance Reimagined ,  a decision-ma

I show you how to make your work performance review a 2-way street — that benefits you as much as your employer. Most importantly, it helps you make a confident job decision - whether you commit to stay or move into job change mode. About the author:    Jeff Hulett leads Personal Finance Reimagined ,  a decision-making and financial education platform. He teaches personal finance at James Madison University and provides personal finance seminars. Check out his book  -- Making

I enjoyed the March 2026 SDP conference and the chance to meet so many people navigating the intersection of high-quality decision-making and AI. Meeting others committed to finding a clear path forward felt incredibly fortunate. Our presentation focused on how we use AI in the classroom. We view personal finance as an internal decision problem rather than an information acquisition problem. Because information is no longer scarce, we use Generative AI as a "Decision Architec

Traditional economic models long operated under the shadow of "robo-rationality." Highly influential economists, led by figures like Paul Samuelson, built their theories on the assumption that a single "best" rational decision always exists. They believed that while individuals might stray, all people eventually converge toward this mathematical ideal. This assumption made the theoretical math work elegantly, but it was not grounded in the reality of human decision-making. Mo

Brad Cohen is a seasoned real estate investor and business owner. He regularly mentors students in my Behavioral Personal Finance class at James Madison University. Brad shares his experience and wisdom with a spirited, grounded authority. One of my favorite nuggets from his sessions is this: “The key to building wealth isn't timing the market; it’s time in the market.” To the uninitiated, this sounds like a sales pitch designed to nudge a hesitant buyer into a contract. At P

Human biology designed the brain for a world that no longer exists. For millennia, survival depended on linear thinking. If a predator charged from fifty yards away, the mind calculated a direct, straight-line path to safety. This "attack or escape" wiring remains deeply embedded in our DNA. While this instinct helps humans navigate physical obstacles, it often hinders the pursuit of modern financial goals. The challenge of building wealth rarely stems from a lack of informat

Are you getting ready to graduate? Here is a suggested prompt to help you with your new life! We are regular users of AI in the classroom. We follow the Pedagogical Mirror educational approach. We help students create a "2-for-1" brain to wow employers and prepare for launch! But before we get to the prompt, here are some ideas and resources: Mindset: The best way to think of budgeting is as prefabricating a set of expense tradeoffs.  Mechanically making the budget is not

As a financial educator, advisor, and entrepreneurial incubator, I spend my days deep in the mechanics of investment strategies, capital structures, and market analysis. But despite the substantial technical nature of this work, I have found that the hardest part of my job isn’t teaching people how to build a model—it’s helping them navigate the internal terrain of their relationship with money and risk. Our biggest hurdles aren't usually found in a lack of data, but in our i

In classrooms across the country today, a quiet revolution is gaining momentum. As recently highlighted in the Wall Street Journal , state legislatures are rapidly mandating financial literacy as a high school graduation requirement. This surge in legislation is born from a noble recognition: wealth inequality is reaching historic highs, and families are clamoring for their children to be better equipped for a modern economy. However, we are approaching a dangerous intersecti

Our Investment Barbell Strategy (IBS) is the cornerstone for helping our students and clients get rich. An IBS foundation is guiding the all-important "Relationship With Risk." We are all born with a risk relationship geared toward keeping us alive. These are our evolutionary biology and natural selection-based brain activations. However, these slow-changing human instincts are mostly counterproductive when it comes to implementing a high-value investment strategy. We tea

As a professor, I often hear my colleagues lament the state of financial literacy in the U.S. They point to declining mathematical literacy and the rising complexity of modern markets. There is certainly truth to their concerns. However, our research and experience suggest the "literacy gap" is far less about a lack of information—it is a lack of a decision-making system. The knee-jerk education standard when facing a literacy gap is to provide more information. We are taught

Imagine you’re in a high-stakes job interview. The hiring manager isn't just looking at your resume; they are looking at your human capital. From an economist’s perspective, you’ve walked into that room carrying a metaphorical “tool bag.” Inside that bag are your skills, your experiences, and your unique abilities. You open it up and effectively tell the employer: “For some compensation, I’ll give you access to this bag.” The employer evaluates the market price for those tool

I am PASSIONATE about achieving College ROI! College ROI is achieved when the value you get out of college - the income and/or happiness opportunities achieved - is worth MORE than the costs of college. The one thing we know for sure is that traditional residential colleges can be VERY expensive and there are other ways to achieve college benefits without spending a ton. One approach to achieving the optimal college ROI is to leverage the United States' incredible Community

Every worthwhile journey includes uncertainty, fear, and some sacrifice—especially when the destination matters. That’s true of building wealth, too. The good news is that for most people there is a clear, realistic path to building meaningful wealth by retirement—without extreme deprivation or a joyless life. The principle is simple: spend a bit less than you earn and invest the difference, and the earlier you start, the more time compounding has to work. In a society of unp

Here is the presentation for the SCEV / SCT meeting in February 2026: Personal Finance Reimagined February 2026 for SCHEV and SCT My name is Jeff Hulett – I help students achieve long-term, life-changing wealth! I am a Personal Finance professor at James Madison University.  I am a Behavioral Economist and data scientist.  I am an experienced banker who has spent decades leading consumer financial products organizations like Citibank, Wells Fargo, and Capital One.  The one gl

In our last 2 VidCasts, we walked through the 7-point car buying process and building decision confidence. In today’s vidcast, I highlight several best practices to help supercharge your car buying experience. These best practices will add to your decision confidence.   Car buying is surprisingly complex, Auto buying has many criteria and deciding what is important to you.   Plus there are 1,000s of potential alternatives and financing questions.   Then, negotiating with the

Now we jump into part 2 of the 7-step car-buying process.    In part 1, we discussed helpful resources including c hoice architecture tools like: Definitive Choice and our Auto buying workflow We also went through lenders, lender s, and car data aggregators, plus my book and other content.   As a recommendation, we suggest you first go through the entire process without exploring the details. The important first step to car-buying success is building a mental map of the ent

In today’s presentation , we will introduce part 1 of the car decision process and building confidence.  Naturally … Today’s presentation will soon be followed by part 2. Car buying is surprisingly complex, auto buying has many criteria and deciding what is important to you.   Plus there are 1,000s of potential alternatives and financing questions.   Then, negotiating with the salesperson adds even more spice.   Car buying is one of many important life decisions b enefiting