Indianapolis- Green Candy, in association with INside Indiana Business with Gerry Dick and WISH-TV’s 24- Hour News 8, will be hosting a Job Hunters Workshop on April 22nd at the Gene B. Glick Junior Achievement Education Center. The event is part of series of community events that Green Candy has been putting on in Central Indiana. Green Candy, a locally based Personal Finance website, has also hosted a comedy benefit and a 5k running race to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. 



“We are pleased that Green Candy is helping do great things for this community, all the while raising money and awareness for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society,” says Sara Glenn, manager of special events for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

The two-hour event will feature several prominent speakers. Some of the experts scheduled to appear are: Gerry Dick, President of Grow Indiana Ventures, who will discuss the climate of business in central Indiana. He will also discuss what industries are hiring in central Indiana. Peter Dunn, radio talk show host, WISH-TV Money Analyst, and founder of Green Candy, will discuss preparing your finances for a job change. Chuck Gose, a local networking and social media enthusiast, will be highlighting the importance and dangers of social media during a job search.

“Searching for a new career can be a tedious process, and we are glad that we can help bring some encouragement and tips to those that are looking for work,” says Gerry Dick, host of INside Indiana Business.

Peter Dunn, founder of Green Candy notes, “With unemployment hovering around 10%, we must make sure that we support those that are looking to enter or re-enter the workforce, this includes recent college graduates that are starting their job search for the first time.”

WISH-TV plans on highlighting the event as part of their continuing coverage of the unemployment challenges in Indiana. “We have long believed that the entire community is uplifted when the unemployed feel the support of their fellow Hoosiers,” says Jeff White, president and general manager of WISH-TV’s 24- Hour News 8.

The Do. Be. More. Job Hunters Workshop will be held from 9-11am on April 22nd. Cost for attendees is $10. All money will go directly to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Central Indiana. Seats are limited. For tickets and information go to www.GreenCandy.com or call 317-576-8550.

Count your Transactions – In lieu of budgeting, consider counting the number of times that you spend money over the course of one week.

Go to AnnualCreditReport.com – Starting out on the wrong side of debt and credit can mean decades of anguish. Get your credit report every year.

Embrace “I can’t afford it” – Your goal is not material accumulation. Your goal is not money. Your goal is financial awareness.

Give of your talents – You must appeal to your charitable calling early. Your willingness to think of others will benefit you financially. You will view your money life with scarcity. Giving to charity is not necessarily about giving money. Give your time and talent.

Start the Ween – The longer you depend on your parents, the worse things will be for both parties. Your goal post graduation is COLD TURKEY.

Measure your use of Social Media – One of the first thing your potential employer will look at is Facebook. Lock it down. You need to also build your LinkedIn page.

Grad School is not a holding area – Furthering your education is very important, but securing a graduate degree without a purpose is a major financial error that will span decades

A recent AP story details the plan of Toys R Us to readopt layaway for the holiday season. And I say HOORAYYYYYY. Too over-the-top? Sorry. Yeah.

Layaway is a tool used by retailers to keep customers buying during tough credit times. The practice started back in, you guessed it, the Great Depression. Customers make a down payment on an item, and then continue to make payments on the item prior to taking possession of it when it is paid in full. It is quite the alternative to taking possession of an item prior to actually owning it. Back in the day (1980s), layaway was a huge strategy for retailers such as Marshalls and TJ Maxx. But the strategy disappeared when retailers figured out that they could instead “sell” you a store credit card, give you the item now, and then charge you ridiculous amounts of interest. Not only that, but since the customer had possession of the item, they were much more likely to make the payment on a non-standard payment schedule (read: late). That is why layaway disappeared. Don’t get it twisted.

And this is why layaway has reappeared. Consumers aren’t qualifying for the revolving credit that stores offer, therefore stores are turning to their old friend, layaway. And as you might have guessed, layaway has returned with a newfound sense of benevolence. Hooray, big business is still allowing consumers to buy things they can’t afford (Google search: sarcasm). But I would take layaway any day, over delay of pay.

About Green Candy™

Green Candy™ (www.GreenCandy.com) is an online financial assessment tool that helps Gen Y-ers and Millennials get on the right financial track before the “debt hits the fan.” Introduced by radio personality, comedian and financial expert Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com), Green Candy’s ™ various “pods” allow users to assess their financial health and competency in common areas such as Debt, Budgeting, Investing, Charity, Risk Management and Major Purchases, as well as in areas unique to Gen Y. A subsequent series of targeted worksheets, podcasts, tip sheets, and action plans guides them to the financial promise land. Green Candy™: Get in control before the debt hits the fan.

About Pete the Planner

Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com) is expert financial planner Peter Dunn’s super-saving alter ego. Peter is an award-winning comedian and rising star in the financial world. Named one of “Indy’s Best and Brightest” in finance in 2007 and media in 2009 by KPMG, Peter was also declared one of NUVO magazine’s “30 under 30 to Watch in the Arts” for comedy. Peter is the author of What Your Dad Never Taught You About Budgeting (2006) and is the host of the popular radio show Skills Your Dad Never Taught You on News Talk 1430 (WXNT). He blogs regularly at www.petetheplanner.com/blog. Pete appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business as well as various CBS stations. His newest book, 60 Days to Change, is due out in November.

There has been a tremendous amount of buzz over our latest radio show. Well, here it is. You can judge for yourself whether or not this is a fair assessment of a controversial industry. We would love to hear your comments. Please post comments on this blog, or simply email me at pete @petetheplanner.com

Here is the Podcast. Enjoy

About Green Candy™

Green Candy™ (www.GreenCandy.com) is an online financial assessment tool that helps Gen Y-ers and Millennials get on the right financial track before the “debt hits the fan.” Introduced by radio personality, comedian and financial expert Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com), Green Candy’s ™ various “pods” allow users to assess their financial health and competency in common areas such as Debt, Budgeting, Investing, Charity, Risk Management and Major Purchases, as well as in areas unique to Gen Y. A subsequent series of targeted worksheets, podcasts, tip sheets, and action plans guides them to the financial promise land. Green Candy™: Get in control before the debt hits the fan.

About Pete the Planner

Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com) is expert financial planner Peter Dunn’s super-saving alter ego. Peter is an award-winning comedian and rising star in the financial world. Named one of “Indy’s Best and Brightest” in finance in 2007 and media in 2009 by KPMG, Peter was also declared one of NUVO magazine’s “30 under 30 to Watch in the Arts” for comedy. Peter is the author of What Your Dad Never Taught You About Budgeting (2006) and is the host of the popular radio show Skills Your Dad Never Taught You on News Talk 1430 (WXNT). He blogs regularly at www.petetheplanner.com/blog. Pete appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business as well as various CBS stations. His newest book, 60 Days to Change, is due out in November.

My neighborhood is having a community Garage Sale this weekend. I saw the sign on my drive to work. I never participate in these sorts of things because I’m generally freaked out by strangers milling around my garage. However, I decided that I would participate this weekend in the name of (financial) science. It’s Eat What You Earn Weekend. Okay, I made that up. But why not?

We are going to use the money we make in this impromptu Garage Sale to pay for dinner on Saturday night. If we make $20, then we eat cheap. If we make $150, then I’ll be calling a cab….kidding.

Do it.

About Green Candy™

Green Candy™ (www.GreenCandy.com) is an online financial assessment tool that helps Gen Y-ers and Millennials get on the right financial track before the “debt hits the fan.” Introduced by radio personality, comedian and financial expert Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com), Green Candy’s ™ various “pods” allow users to assess their financial health and competency in common areas such as Debt, Budgeting, Investing, Charity, Risk Management and Major Purchases, as well as in areas unique to Gen Y. A subsequent series of targeted worksheets, podcasts, tip sheets, and action plans guides them to the financial promise land. Green Candy™: Get in control before the debt hits the fan.

About Pete the Planner

Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com) is expert financial planner Peter Dunn’s super-saving alter ego. Peter is an award-winning comedian and rising star in the financial world. Named one of “Indy’s Best and Brightest” in finance in 2007 and media in 2009 by KPMG, Peter was also declared one of NUVO magazine’s “30 under 30 to Watch in the Arts” for comedy. Peter is the author of What Your Dad Never Taught You About Budgeting (2006) and is the host of the popular radio show Skills Your Dad Never Taught You on News Talk 1430 (WXNT). He blogs regularly at www.petetheplanner.com/blog. Pete appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business as well as various CBS stations. His newest book, 60 Days to Change, is due out in November.

I am obsessed with spending addictions this week. I don’t know why. I talked about it on my radio show, I talked about it on Your Time with Kim Iverson, and I talked about it on The Smiley Morning Show. Many people are compulsive spenders, but that doesn’t mean that they are addicted. I interviewed Harvard trained psychotherapist, Carleton Kendrick, on my radio show. He said that even though a spending addiction is not a physiological addiction, it’s still a serious issue.

I have compiled a list of symptoms that you should consider when trying to self-diagnose.

1. Do you lie to cover up your purchases? Lying about money is a serious problem, and can really damage your relationships.

2. Are your relationships struggling? This could be a sign of your halitosis, but then again it could be a side-effect of your terrible spending habits.

3. Do you just store the stuff you buy? Spending addiction is about the purchase, not about what you purchasing. Therefore, many times addicts will buy things that they don’t  even need. Thus, storage.

If you think you have a spending problem, you should really seek help.

About Green Candy™

Green Candy™ (www.GreenCandy.com) is an online financial assessment tool that helps Gen Y-ers and Millennials get on the right financial track before the “debt hits the fan.” Introduced by radio personality, comedian and financial expert Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com), Green Candy’s ™ various “pods” allow users to assess their financial health and competency in common areas such as Debt, Budgeting, Investing, Charity, Risk Management and Major Purchases, as well as in areas unique to Gen Y. A subsequent series of targeted worksheets, podcasts, tip sheets, and action plans guides them to the financial promise land. Green Candy™: Get in control before the debt hits the fan.

About Pete the Planner

Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com) is expert financial planner Peter Dunn’s super-saving alter ego. Peter is an award-winning comedian and rising star in the financial world. Named one of “Indy’s Best and Brightest” in finance in 2007 and media in 2009 by KPMG, Peter was also declared one of NUVO magazine’s “30 under 30 to Watch in the Arts” for comedy. Peter is the author of What Your Dad Never Taught You About Budgeting (2006) and is the host of the popular radio show Skills Your Dad Never Taught You on News Talk 1430 (WXNT). He blogs regularly at www.petetheplanner.com/blog. Pete appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business as well as various CBS stations. His newest book, 60 Days to Change, is due out in November.

Guest post by Jim Huller, president of Maximum Wealth Advisors

If you’re like a lot of people out there you have decreased your spending and accumulation of debt, while increasing the amount you have in savings.  A few years ago the national savings average dropped down to a negative percentage of income, meaning that the average person owed more than they had. Today out of necessity the average American has become more frugal, but it wasn’t that long ago that spending big was in vogue.

The mentality of “spend it if you got it”, led to those who didn’t to borrow it.  Now that the pendulum has swung back to thriftiness – the kind advocated by Green Candy.com – I turn today to the classic tale by Bastiat, with a modern twist, for the wisdom of saving.

Picture two friends, one a spendthrift (Purchasing Fanatic Pete) and the other a prudent man (Coupon Clipping Chip), each of whom will have an annual income of $50,000.  Pete has won the lottery, while Chip has inherited his money.

Pete is a big spender, and like Plies, he wants you to know it.  He believes if you don’t spend ALL of your money, you will add to unemployment.  Who knew spending could be so fun and patriotic at the same time?  Purchasing Fanatic Pete loves to go to all the clubs, where he can make it rain.  Of course, he has “his people” with him, and showers them with the latest gadgets from Circuit City and Sharper Image; he gives expensive gifts to his friends to “show some love” or “spread the wealth”.

To live large, Purchasing Fanatic Pete has to dip into his capital. But so what? If saving is a sin, dissaving must be a virtue; and in any case he is simply making up for the damage being done by the saving of his tightwad friend Coupon Clipping Chip.

Everyone knows and loves Pete.  Coupon Clipping Chip though, isn’t so well known. He rents videos from Netflix and drives a Toyota.  Whereas Pete spends all of his $50,000 (and then some), Chip lives modestly and only spends half of his $50,000, and banks the rest.  Since most people only see what’s in plain view, they assume Chip is adding less than half as much to employment as Pete and the other $25,000 is as useless as if it wasn’t there.

Of Chip’s $25,000 leftovers, his short-term savings goes into the bank, allowing the bank to lend it to businesses on short term for working capital.  With his long-term savings Chip invests his money in stocks, bonds, or real estate.  When Chip’s money is invested (directly or indirectly) it is used to buy or build capital goods—houses or office buildings or factories or ships or trucks or machines.  All of these projects puts as much money into circulation, and adds to employment, as much as Pete’s spending sprees do.

“Saving,” is another form of spending. The difference here is that the money is turned over to a corporation to spend on means to increase production, which is what leads to lasting employment. But most people don’t see this activity directly, and only notice the big tips our friend Pete hands out.

A dozen years roll by and Purchasing Fanatic Pete is bankrupt.  He returns his Hummer to GM (who also did a poor job of handling its business), but is unable to return his worthless trinkets to the stores he used to patronize – they’re gone now.  Pete muddles through town, saying “I used to be somebody”; he is viewed as a failure.  He turns to begging from Chip, and GM goes begging from the government.

Meanwhile Chip has continued his spending and savings regiment, and is not only providing more jobs than ever, (because of his income through investment has grown), but his investments have helped to provide better-paying and more productive jobs. His capital wealth and income are greater because of it.

Coupon Clipping Chip has added to the nation’s productive capacity and Purchasing Fanatic Pete has not.  Therein lies the problem with our current state of affairs: we’ve had too many Petes and not enough Chips.  Now that the party is over, what we need is a return to sensible economic policies – we need to encourage productivity and savings.  We also need to teach the next generation.

A new article in the Wall Street Journal suggests that college students are borrowing more money than ever before. Students are not only borrowing more money, but more students are borrowing in general. Per the Journal, this is having more severe implications than just the obvious burden of debt. Students are not buying homes or starting families as soon as they use to. This is causing ripples in the macro-economy.

In addition to the debt concerns, the article suggests that colleges and universities are misreading the situation as a whole.

Also, the rising levels of borrowing may ironically be contributing to the accelerating cost of college, say some college-finance experts. Loans can give colleges an artificial sense of a family’s ability to pay tuition. To some extent, that false sense of security gets built into the assumptions schools make when setting prices, say experts. The idea is that as prices rise, families borrow more and more, spurring prices to rise further, which in turn requires more borrowing.

Ohhhh SNAP!!! I was right. In a blog earlier this week, I suggested that IU is missing the boat with their “tuition credits” solution. Their system gives a “discount” to full time B or better students. This practice is short sited, and it will only serve to put the average student at a bigger disadvantage. 

You don’t have to agree with me, but if you don’t…take it up with the WSJ.

And I’m out.

Indiana University recently announced a plan to address the concerns over rising tuition. President Michael McRobbie discussed the new plan on September 1st, 2009. The plan calls for tuition “credits” to offset tuition increases for “good” students. Students that maintain full time status, hold a B average, and our considered in-state will receive about $300 in tuition cuts.

Recently, Indiana University, as well as Purdue University, have been under pressure by state lawmakers to adjust their increases in tuition. Please allow me to boil it down for you. The lawmakers suggested an acceptable range of tuition inflation. IU disagreed, and raised tuition significantly more than the lawmakers recommended. The lawmakers got mad, and held up building project approvals, and then IU created this plan to appease them. 

But let’s consider the very essence of the problem. Lawmakers felt that IU raised their tuition too much in the face of a daunting economy. It was felt that students (and families of students) would be asked to  sacrifice more economic resources in a time when economic resources are scarce. However, the real problem is this: well educated students will be flooding the job marketplace with giant amounts of debt and no jobs to be had. So whereas the “good” student will now be facing these prospects with less debt, the “bad” student will be facing these prospects with more than the already distinguished “good” student. 

Performance in college is much like performance in the mainstream economy. Some individuals rise to the top and flourish, while others sink to the bottom. This is where things get a little hairy. People will succeed and people will fail. And those that succeed create a better path for themselves along the way via incentives, and opportunities created by their hard work. As you may agree, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, that age-old process of incentivisation and achievement is beautiful. 

The problem is this: the “bad” students, those that create their own financial disadvantages via sloth, are going to be at an even bigger disadvantage when it comes to getting control of their financial lives. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that these students receive a hand-out. I’m simply suggesting that there are always going to be below average students (thus the average), therefore this new program simply puts these below-average students in a deeper hole in relation to their achieving peers. It will probably incentivize a few hundred students to push for that B average, but it more likely will put a bigger financial divide between the good and bad student. 

IU must realize that their incentive program, while noble, will actually put their average and below average student at a bigger economic disadvantage than ever before. They would have been better served to cut tuition across the board, and leave the dangling carrots to the corporate world.

About Green Candy™

Green Candy™ (www.GreenCandy.com) is an online financial assessment tool that helps Gen Y-ers and Millennials get on the right financial track before the “debt hits the fan.” Introduced by radio personality, comedian and financial expert Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com), Green Candy’s ™ various “pods” allow users to assess their financial health and competency in common areas such as Debt, Budgeting, Investing, Charity, Risk Management and Major Purchases, as well as in areas unique to Gen Y. A subsequent series of targeted worksheets, podcasts, tip sheets, and action plans guides them to the financial promise land. Green Candy™: Get in control before the debt hits the fan.

About Pete the Planner

Pete the Planner (www.PeteThePlanner.com) is expert financial planner Peter Dunn’s super-saving alter ego. Peter is an award-winning comedian and rising star in the financial world. Named one of “Indy’s Best and Brightest” in finance in 2007 and media in 2009 by KPMG, Peter was also declared one of NUVO magazine’s “30 under 30 to Watch in the Arts” for comedy. Peter is the author of What Your Dad Never Taught You About Budgeting (2006) and is the host of the popular radio show Skills Your Dad Never Taught You on News Talk 1430 (WXNT). He blogs regularly at www.petetheplanner.com/blog. Pete appears regularly on Fox News and Fox Business as well as various CBS stations. His newest book, 60 Days to Change, is due out in November.