Bengt Johnson’s passion for financial literacy began as a young man growing up in Annapolis, Maryland. The son of a Naval Academy professor, he learned early in life about making and managing money through books.
“I remember getting a book called Good Cents: Every Kid's Guide to Making Money,” shared Johnson. “It was written for kids and had about 100 different ideas about how to make money. So, I started my own business painting house numbers on the curb. Then, after reading Tom Sawyer and his story of getting all the neighbor kids to paint the fence for him, I got my brother and friends and we started painting together and splitting the money. The next thing I knew, I had my own little business going.”
After years of working in education, Johnson merged his passion for teaching and financial literacy into his role as financial educator with Wealth Wave. “This company is really focused on education first, and being a former teacher, I love the teaching part,” he said. “I also enjoy that a-ha moment for people… seeing the light bulb go on and the excitement of learning something that they can put to use to help themselves and their family.”
A large part of financial literacy is providing people with the resources to succeed. “As a nationwide firm, we want to educate 20 million families to be financially literate and I want to be a big part of that,” he explained. “This means not only reading about money and how it works, but taking action based on that knowledge. Taking action often means a lifestyle change, which takes time, but is worth it in the long term.”
The resources are full of inspiring examples from people like John D. Rockefeller, whose story is told in the How Money Works book series. “As a teenager, Rockefeller started working and saved up $50. His parents advised him that there was a farmer down the road and he could loan the farmer money to buy seed and supplies,” shared Johnson. “At the end of the year, the farmer paid him back the $50 plus $3.50 in interest. At that time, Rockefeller had just spent three days working in the fields digging potatoes and for his own labor, he got paid $1.12. This was the a-ha moment for Rockefeller. Three days of hard work earned $1.12 and on the other hand, he put some money to work and it earned $3.50. This same idea is open to any of us. You can put money to work through assets that are going to grow and pay you.”
In addition to providing resources for financial literacy, Johnson’s goal is to get to know each client’s situation and work with them to achieve their financial goals and dreams. “I want to do everything in the best interest of that person in front of me, so I want to get to know them first,” he explained. “The next step is helping people see where they are financially by being aware of what they have coming in, which are assets, and what is going out, liabilities.”
Once all the information is collected, Johnson sets up a personal financial website as a resource for clients to track the different aspects of their financial situation. “Now, they can see everything in one place - all their different accounts, investments, property, and goals, including their timeline for when they want to retire,” he said. “This helps us create a customized and comprehensive plan that is not just wealth management, but also protecting them and their assets through proper insurance.”
Johnson often hears that people wish they had these resources earlier in life. “It's never too late to start for yourself,” he encouraged, “but it's also nice to give your children the gift of financial education while they’re young, when you wish you’d had it for yourself.”
To begin your journey to financial literacy and request resources such as the books Change Your Literacy, Change Your Life and How Money Works, visit wealthwave.com/bengtjohnson. For additional information, email bengt.johnson@wealthwave.com or call (425) 366-7524. Wealth Wave is located at 13010 NE 20th Street Suite 100 in Bellevue.
“I also enjoy that a-ha moment… seeing the light bulb go on and the excitement of learning something that they can put to use to help themselves and their family.”
Bengt often hears that people wish they had these resources earlier in life. “It's never too late to start for yourself,” he encouraged, “but it's also nice to give your children the gift of financial education while they’re young, when you wish you’d had it yourself.”
