For many students and young adults, the pursuit of long-term wealth seems complicated, requiring insider knowledge of stocks or complex systems. In reality, the foundation of riches is not found in complicated strategies or high incomes, but in simple behavioral discipline: the habit of consistently living below your means. The core of financial success is not about deprivation; it's about optimizing your resources to create a surplus. This surplus is the most powerful tool i

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with one of my favorite thinkers, Duke Economist and Political Science Professor Mike Munger , to dissect the "super complex" challenge of college decision-making. As President of Personal Finance Reimagined (PFR), I know this choice is massive. College is more expensive than ever, yet there are more lower-cost alternatives—from community colleges to taking a gap year—that deserve serious consideration. The question isn't just where

As President of PFR and a Personal Finance Professor at JMU, I've spent years observing one persistent barrier to success: fatalism. The belief that our outcomes—financial, professional, or personal—are fixed by forces beyond our control. This idea, rooted in the philosophy of Determinism, finds powerful support in modern science, particularly neuroscience. Scientists like Robert Sapolsky argue that every choice is merely the inevitable output of our determined neurobiology.

Welcome to the Financial Success Road, a comprehensive journey designed to help you achieve long-term wealth through a "get rich slow" scheme. In this video, your host, Jeff Hulett, outlines the two core components of his process: the Savings Waterfall and the Investment Barbell Strategy (IBS). You will learn how to generate income, create "prefabricated tradeoffs" using a budget, and defeat modern-day "sludge"—intentional frictions that separate you from your money—to feed y

For many students, the pursuit of long-term wealth seems complicated, requiring insider knowledge of stocks, complex budgeting software, or a massive salary. In reality, the foundation of riches is not found in complex products or high incomes, but in simple mathematics: the Geometry of Riches. This geometry is defined by the gap between what you earn and what you spend. The wider the gap—the more you consistently live below your means—the faster you will build lasting financ

Sound personal finance requires a discipline simple in concept yet challenging in practice: living beneath one’s means. This choice enables consistent saving and systematic investment, unlocking the breathtaking power of compound interest. Mathematically, the principle is certain: small, regular investments—especially those commenced early in life—increase at an increasing rate, transforming modest resources into massive, sustaining wealth over decades. Executing this strateg

For most of my professional life, I’ve been intimately involved with banking—as a banker, a consultant, or an architect of banking technology. I’ve been intimately familiar with the tools and data banks use to deliver their products, and I’ve been part of the data science revolution transforming the industry. But I also have a deep, personal appreciation for the challenges ordinary people face every day just trying to make the right financial decision. For many, financial s

Stop Blaming Taxes: The Real Reason You're Not Wealthy By Jeff Hulett, President of Personal Finance Reimagined Every time the Federal Reserve releases its wealth inequality survey, the headlines explode. Everyone points fingers: "It's the tax code!" "It's the system!" As a personal finance professor, I agree these factors matter, but they miss the fundamental, surprising truth about why the rich get richer and everyone else falls behind. The real failure isn't in government

In times of uncertainty -- great opportunity exists. This article is the opportunity bridge. The year 2025 brings a chilling dose of reality to American higher education. Between proposed government shutdowns forcing layoffs at the Department of Education and political leaders questioning the tax-exempt status of massive university endowments, there is profound uncertainty. For most families without significant savings—without a "money tree" planted in the backyard—the centr

I admit it—I missed something important. I’m frustrated with myself for not seeing it sooner. But if a banker and personal finance professor like me can fall for this, there’s a good chance others are unknowingly in the same situation. So I’m sharing my story. I live in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Like every state, Virginia has a government agency responsible for regulating insurance. In Virginia, it's called the State Corporation Commission’s Bureau of Insurance. Among oth