Joline Godfrey knows that kids are targets. Every day, whatever the hour, they’re the focus of intense consumer come-ons, sales pitches, pressure-tactics to spend – and always want more. In 1992, Godfrey set out to do something about it.
Fifteen years later, her California-based company, Independent Means , Inc., is one of the nation’s largest providers of financial education programs and products designed to teach economic self-defense.
With workshops and summer programs; coaching for parents and other adult mentors; and products for children, families, financial institutions, schools and youth organizations, Independent Means demonstrates to young consumers that financial stability is more important than “what I wear” and “what I possess.”
A social worker from Maine, Godfrey is also the author of several books on the subject, including No More Frogs to Kiss: 99 Ways to Give Economic Power to Girls (Collins, 1995, $13.95) and Raising Financially Fit Kids (TenSpeed, 2003, $19.95).
Goal 1: Know Your Strengths, Fix Your Weaknesses
“Independent Means is not my first company, so I was pretty self-aware when I started it, and I try to use my strengths thoughtfully,” says Godfrey, whose first company, Odysseum, was a spin-off of the Polaroid Corporation, where she was an executive for 10 years.
She advises that bolstering and bridging any personal shortcomings with key staff and well-considered decisions spells success for entrepreneurs.
Author: Alice Rhein
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