Peace Love Profits

Happy Father’s Day to the most important man in my life, my dad Joe Kernen. But I also need to give a shout out to some other very important fathers, the Founding Fathers of the United States of America.

You know, the incredibly brave, smart, forward-thinking group of guys who got together and came up with a brilliant plan for our great nation. They fought in the American Revolution, signed the Declaration of Independence, and established the United States Constitution. They made laws and government to protect and keep us safe, and declared our rights for Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Thanks to the Founding Fathers, and the generations of heroic fathers that have followed, we can all live our own American Dream.

Happy Father’s Day!

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

I think some poor fashionista may have gotten robbed.

This just doesn’t make fashion cents to me. This Saint Laurent creation is cute, with its baby doll style, peter pan collar and little black bow tie, but worth $68,000?? I don’t think so.

There is at least one fashionista who disagrees with me. It was on display in a New York City Saint Laurent boutique until it was sold last week!

Wear it in good health, I’m sure the proud owner will look like a million bucks in it….. almost:)

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

Last week, I was asked to tell the student body at my school why I do community service and why they should too. The idea here, I was told, was to make it sound appealing, and hopefully more students will do it next year with me.

I didn’t have to rack my brain too much. I’ve been doing some sort of volunteer work for as long as I can remember. I can think of dozens of reasons why I do community service or volunteer work, the biggest being that it helps others, and I can’t think of any reasons why I wouldn’t. So here are 5 reasons why a person should get involved with community service or volunteer work:

1. You would be great at it. You really would. A lot of people don’t get involved in volunteering because they say they aren’t qualified to do anything. They think they are lacking the skills. The great news is that you don’t need any qualifications other than being a person who wants to do community service. If you’re willing, you’re able. There are currently more than 64 million people in America doing volunteer work through organizations.

2. It’s fun and it’s free.The fun part is that you will do something that truly interests you. Maybe animals are your thing, then volunteer at an animal shelter, or cooking, then head to your local soup kitchen. It can be anything, even helping out your neighbors with errands that they can’t do on their own. Identify what you really like to do, and there’s a pretty good chance that some organization associated with your interests is going to want your help. And if practicing your cooking skills at a soup kitchen is what you want to do, or learning how to bathe a ferret at an animal shelter (yes, I’ve done this), you can get all the practice you want for free.

3. You become connected to your community.Volunteering in your community guarantees that you are going to meet tons of people that live close to you. People who share your passions and your interests. I don’t go to school in my town so my local volunteer work helps me stay connected to my community and my neighborhood.

4. You’ve got the time.You may think that you don’t because sports, school, friends, family, work and even the Internet take up a lot of time, but you really do have the time. My parents always say that busy people always have time to do more, and it’s true. Community service doesn’t need to take up all your time, and take a family member or a friend with you. You’ll have fun doing it together, and twice the amount of community service work will get done in the same amount of time.

5. People and organizations need your help. Last year,Americans volunteered about 8 billion hours, which has an economic value of about $171 billion. This is a huge cost-saver and in some cases, lifesaver, for organizations and people that rely on volunteers to get the job done. Just look at the recent events in Oklahoma, people across America are pulling together to help that area rebuild after the devastating tornadoes. Closer to home, it could even be your neighbor, who needs your help for some babysitting time so she can get out of the house and go on a job interview. Your help has a wide reaching impact, on her, her family and even the economy.

Volunteering can have an enormous impact on the volunteer also. Research shows that students who volunteer have improved Reading, Math, Science and History scores. Also, students who volunteer are 19% more likely to graduate from college than those that don’t.

Who knows if more students at my school will sign up to do community service next year, it may not be for everybody. But until you try you’ll never know. Why not give it a go.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

My mom bought a Powerball ticket last week and my dad said he wanted his $2 back. She said she’d happily pay him back with her winnings. My dad’s out the $2.

That’s the problem. My dad says nobody wins the lottery. He calls it a tax on the stupid. I wouldn’t go that far, but I see what he means. There are just so many people in the lottery that the chances of winning become incredibly small, like one in 175 million this time around.

Then there’s this. Would you really want to win the lottery (yes), but what about that long list of winners who end up losing everything - their happiness, family, even their lives - because of their lucky lottery ticket?

Arthur Brooks, free market guru and familiar name thrown around my house, explains it like this: 

If not money, then what do people really crave? The answer is earned success, the ability to create value with your life or in the lives of others. It does not come from a lottery check or an inheritance. It doesn’t even mean earning a lot of money, given all the blissfully happy social entrepreneurs I’ve met who are basically living on ramen noodles and tap water.

To earn your success is to define and pursue your happiness as you see fit. It’s the freedom to be an individual and to delineate your life’s “profit” however you want. For some, this profit is measured in money. But for many, profit is measured in making beautiful art, saving people’s souls, or pulling kids out of poverty.

Earned success is the real jackpot. Somebody may need to clue in who ever bought that winning ticket at the Publix supermarket in Zephyrhills, Florida on all this. If it’s just one lone winner, he or she is going to claim the largest jackpot in American history, a lump sum payment of $370 million.

Anyway, my dad says he already won the lottery when he married my mom and had my brother and me.

Peace Love Profits (& Powerballs),

Blake 

Tags: Blake Kernen, peaceloveprofits.com, Powerball, lottery, Arthur Brooks, Zephyrhill

I saw a post on Instagram over the weekend that made me laugh out loud. It said, “if Monday morning were a student, it would be that awkward girl who reminds theteacher about homework and loves horses.” For the record, that’s not me, I do have a thing for horses, but not homework.

That girl (whomever she is) and I do have something in common. We are gearing up for a great weekend. This Saturday, always the first Saturday in May, is the Kentucky Derby. The Run for the Roses. The first leg of the Triple Crown. For horse-racing fans, it’s a favorite. This marks the 139th year of the Kentucky Derby, where an elite group of three year-old Thoroughbreds run one mile and one quarter track. It takes a little over two minutes, but it’s been dubbed “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports.”

The Kentucky Derby ushers in an entire month of horse-racing mania for me and for millions of others. It’s followed by the Preakness Stakes later in May, and the Belmont Stakes in June. And if the horse lords have any say in the matter, a Triple Crown winner will be coronated at the end of it all.

But believe it or not, the horses may be the “mane” event, but they are not the whole story. There are the trainers, owners, and jockeys who all figure in this race front and center. And, one jockey in particular this year, has me doing a victory lap before the race has even started.

Her name is Rosie Napravnik. That’s right, I said “her.” Rosie is one of only a few successful female jockeys in history. And, she’s the only female to be running for the roses this year, although this isn’t even her first time doing so. Rosie rode Pants on Fire in the 2011 Derby and finished ninth, the best finish ever for a woman at the Derby.

Rosie comes to the Derby already riding high, having just come off a big victory at the 2012 Kentucky Oaks, the first female ever to win there. Since she started her professional career eight years ago, she’s racked up more than $48 million in winnings and this year, has been in the money sixty percent of the times she’s left the starting gate.

Horse-racing is one sport where men and women compete against each other, and from what I’ve heard, some studs aren’t ready for such a ride. Rosie recently said in an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes, “There are still owners and trainers that don’t want to ride a female. The only way I deal with that is… to try to beat that person in a race.” And, that she does.

Twenty-five year old Rosie is hoping to ride into the history books this weekend at Churchill Downs, and silence all those ‘neigh-sayers’ once and for all. I’ll be watching for the ginger-haired girl from Jersey (not me, the other one) as she and her horse, Mylute, make their Run for the Roses.

I wonder if Rosie was ever that awkward 7th grade girl, loving horses and her homework. This one can only hope so.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

A truly inspiring day at the office. Thanks to CNBC, my dad, and all of his colleagues. 

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

The third Thursday of April is Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, one of my favorite days of the year. I love going to work with my dad, 4am wake up call and all, it’s something my younger brother and I truly look forward to each year.

There’s a bunch of reasons why it’s a great day. For one, I think my dad works at a really cool place – a TV network. Also, it’s the one day of the year when I get to spend time with my dad’s colleagues and their kids. And, who doesn’t love to learn new things, meet new people, and miss school and not have to feel guilty about it. But, the best thing about going to Take Your Kids to Work Day is seeing my dad do something he truly loves to do.

My dad found “it” and he’s lucky he did, because finding “it” is truly important in life. “It” is figuring out what you really want to do in life, going for it, and doing it. It’s earned success, finding out what makes you happy, working at it, and achieving it. Earned success can be anything you want it to be – writing beautiful stories, being a musician, painting, being a doctor, helping others, bankers, lawyers – something that brings value to your life, and other people’s lives. For most people, earned success is one of the most gratifying and satisfying feelings in the world.

This weekend for science homework, I had to watch Steve Jobs’ 2005 Commencement address at Stanford University. It hit home for me. If you haven’t seen it, it’s on YouTube. Steve Jobs said, “You’ve got to find what you love.” Basically, just go for it, earn your success, live every day like it’s your last, love life. There’s going to be more than a few stumbles along the way, but “you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards“ and “you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”

Entrepreneurs and innovators already know this. For them, it’s really not all about how much money they make, or even how many times they fail before making any money. The average entrepreneur makes under $45,000 per year, and fails 3.8 times before succeeding. It’s their desire for earned success, doing something that they love, and the satisfaction and happiness that comes with it, that keeps them motivated.

Gloria Steinem and the Ms. Foundation for Women founded the Take Our Daughters to Work Program in 1993, and in 2003, boys were included. The idea is to expose children to different jobs and careers at an early age, with the hope that this could help them in the future find a career they are passionate about. Today, more than 37 million children and adults participate in the program.

You know what, you may not find your dream job when you go to work this week, but you’ll have a lot of fun looking for it in your parent’s desk drawer (maybe not the best idea). But, if you follow Steve Jobs’ advice, someday in the future, you’ll look back and be able to connect this dot to your dream job.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

In honor of Earth Day, I am re-posting a video clip of the work I do at the arboretum in my town. The arboretum is one of my favorite places. I value the work I do there and I think the arboretum values it also.

I didn’t know where the arboretum even came from, or even thought about where it came from, until my dad and I wrote our book. It’s all thanks to the hard work and ingenuity of a man named Stewart Hartshorn – a true capitalist, entrepreneur, and inventor.  (Just try to guess what he invented!)

He was businessman, and in the 1870’s, owned all of the land in my town. He saw value in it as “a harmonious community for people who appreciate nature.” He also saw it as a moneymaker, and it sure turned out to be one. You can read all about his inventions, patents, and business ventures in Chapter 3 of our book, Your Teacher Said What!?

Mr. Hartshorn’s daughter, Cora, left seventeen acres of land to my town when she died to be used as an “Arboretum, Wildflower and bird sanctuary.” Almost 150 years later, my entire community gets to enjoy the rewards of Mr. Hartshorn’s hard work. We also appreciate a new generation of capitalists, who currently contribute their time and their money to make sure the arboretum stays just how the Hartshorns hoped it would.

Hope you enjoy the video clip.  Happy Earth Day.

http://youtu.be/5mzEY3MdTsk

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

I did it, again. I ate the last Girl Scout cookie in my house. The 2013 Samoa season is officially over for me.  And, even though it happens just about the same time each year, I’m still never quite ready for it.  

When it comes to selling cookies, you could say Girl Scouts take the cake. They sell about 200 million boxes each year, which brings in more than $700 million dollars in revenue. (Dad, Girl Scout cookies are not made out of Girl Scouts, a joke he had to share with the CEO of Girl Scouts. I don’t think she loved it quite as much as he did). During the selling season, Girl Scout cookies become the best selling cookie in the country, stealing the top spot from the other favorite, the Oreo.

So there’s no doubt about it, Girl Scouts sell a ton of cookies each year, but that’s really not their most important product. Girl power is, and if you’re familiar at all with the Girl Scout program, you know there’s plenty of this to go around.

For the past 100 years, Girl Scouts have been inspiring and empowering girls to be the best they can be. It’s about building courage, confidence, and character. Girl Scouts make a promise to serve God, country, and to respect each other. We also strive to live by the Girl Scout Law, by being considerate, courageous, and trying to make the world a better place.  And guess what, it works.

Forbes Magazine calls Girl Scouts the “ultimate pipeline for women leaders, in their families, their communities, their organizations, and their country. “ And, there are numbers to back that up: 80& of women business owners were Girl Scouts, and two-thirds of the female members of Congress were also. 

For me, it may have been all those badges I wanted to earn and all those cookies I wanted to sell. I was an entrepreneur and I didn’t even know it. I had to set my goals high, figure out how to get it all done, and just go for it. I thought I was just spending time with friends, pretty much unaware that I was learning how to work in a group, cooperate with my peers, and help others. I guess that’s how the Girl Scouts is supposed to work, with people learning through life experiences, and having fun while they’re doing it. 

Yes, I am high on the Girl Scouts of America, or maybe it’s just a slight sugar rush from my last Samoa.  But whatever it is, I know more than 59 million women have spent some part of the life as a Girl Scout, and millions more will make their pledge this year to make the world a better place. That’s what I call a pretty powerful business plan.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

“The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.”

Margaret Thatcher

Did you know, one out of every 88 children in the United States will be diagnosed with autism?

Today is World Autism Awareness Day. Please wear blue today to show support for individuals around the world affected by autism. Let’s celebrate them today and everyday. Here are ten things that we now know about autism that we didn’t know a year ago.

Peace Love Profits, 

Blake

I considered myself a bright young thing long before Victoria’s Secret called me one.

The retailer didn’t actually call me one, but it markets a line of clothing called “Bright Young Things” geared towards teens. 

It’s colorful, cute, fun, funny (with words like wild written on the front and back). Sounds innocent enough, right? Wrong. Recently, a company executive made a couple of comments about the line appealing to teens who want to be more grown up, and some parents went, well, wild. (Maybe they’re wearing the underwear. LOL)

Moms and dads wrote letters and blogs, outraged that Victoria’s Secret is marketing “sexy” to young girls. I’m not sure I’m buying this, literally, for a couple of reasons.

First, I don’t buy my own clothes or underwear. Sure, I have some money, from jobs and birthday gifts, but I can safely say I’m not going to spend it on underwear. So, if anybody is buying it, that would be my parents. And, they aren’t going to do it. It’s a parent’s right and job, to just say “No” if they think something is just not appropriate for their kids. 

Secondly, I don’t want it anyway. Whether my underwear is cute, colorful, or funny, it’s not going to make me more cute, colorful, or funny. It’s not my clothes, it’s me. Victoria’s Secret can try to tell to me (if that’s even what they’re really doing) that some new underwear will help make me more this or that, but I already have a pretty good idea of who I am, and who I want to be, and I know underwear isn’t going to change that. 

And lastly, it’s a free country. A wonderful one. With our free market system, we are able to buy what we want, how much we want, and when we want it. (As teens, we are not quite that free yet, because our parents try to guide us to make responsible choices). I’m sure our Founding Fathers were not thinking of underwear when they declared Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness for all of us, but they were thinking of protecting our basic personal freedom, from the bottom up.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

March Madness. By all accounts, I shouldn’t be a fan. I don’t play basketball, I’m not old enough to be in college or even high school, and I’m a girl. But, I am obsessed.

What is it about March Madness that has me, and millions of others bouncing off the walls?  Maybe, it’s the thrill of competition where we don’t have to actually break a sweat. Or, the daunting, and yes, inevitable prospect of a bracket buster. Or, the pure excitement that comes with college kids, not that much older than me, putting it all out there for the win.  It’s all this and much, much more.

Sixty-eight teams battling it out for and the men’s National Collegiate Athletic Championship is giving fans across the country something huge to hope for and to cheer about. And, it’s also giving TV networks that carry the games, CBS and TBS, something big to bank on.

March Madness rakes in more than a billion dollars in TV advertising revenue. The championship is the biggest post-season sports money maker anywhere. Bigger than post-season football, pro-basketball, and baseball. No, it’s not the pros, who make millions to play, who are bringing in a billion post-season ad bucks, it’s these college kids. The ones who have to score the three-pointers on the court, and make the grade on their homework too.

They’ve got their fans. Almost everybody (even those celebrities) has a favorite team to root for. But, by far the biggest fans are the moms and dads who are living every lay-up, free throw and buzzer beater, just like they probably were with every first word and first step. 

The smiles, tears and stories are there.  Florida Gulf Coast’s shocking win over number two-seeded Georgetown. Wichita’s State’s win over number one Gonzaga. And, the life lessons are the take away. Don’t give up. Hard work pays off. Be a gracious loser. Be an even more gracious winner. Live in the moment. Just go for it.

My March just wouldn’t be the same without all this hoop-la. And I think it’s probably safe to say that many Americans across the country feel the same way. March Madness has a way of bringing people together, no matter your gender, religion, race, or politics. Whether your team wins or loses, you’re still a fan. Let’s call it bipartisan basketball.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake

Cyprus the Mediterranean island. Home to about one million Cypriots. I’m talking about it, and so is everybody else.

That’s because what’s going on there is nothing short of a Greek tragedy. 

Here’s how it went down. Remember Greece’s financial crisis last summer, when the country cut the value of its debt? Well, whoever was holding that debt, lost a lot of money, and guess who ended up being big-time losers… Cyprus banks.

So, help was called in. And, this weekend, Europe’s finance ministers came up with a Cyprus bank bail-out plan, but with a big twist.

They would provide relief, but Cyprus had to come up with some money too. And,  they’d get it from Cyprus bank accounts. Why not? There’s 68 billion euros on deposit, with about 40% of it belonging to rich Russians who keep it there for tax or other sordid, shady reasons (you figure it out). 

The government was just going to go on in and take about 10 percent of everybody’s bank account. That idea didn’t go over too well. People protested, banks closed, and a vote was taken.

While this happened, the rest of the world worried. Would people pull their money out of banks all over Europe, scared that the same thing could happen in their country? Would fear hit U.S. shores too, taking a toll on markets here at home?

Well, the good news for is that this bail-out plan didn’t pass Parliament, but the bad news is that Cyprus’ money problems are far from over. Maybe they need to call on the Greek Gods. 

Peace Love Profits & Pitas,

Blake

The Dow Jones Industrial Average continues its record run. Here’s an article that makes the case that it is a good time to buy into the bull run.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2013/03/05/should-you-buy-stocks-dow-record/1964633/?csp=usattumblr

Peace Love Profits,

Blake 

Forbes is out with its list of billionaires.  There are 1,426 billionaires in the entire world, and 23 of them are under the age of 40. 

A few can thank Facebook for their fortune. Dustin Moskovitz ($3.8B) and Mark Zuckerberg ($13.3B), both 28, are the youngest on the list. There’s also Facebook co-founder, 30 year old Eduardo Saverin ($2.2B), and Facebook’s first President Sean Parker ($2B), he’s also the founder of music-sharing website Napster.

A bit older and wealthier is Mexico’s telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helu, who tops the list with a net worth of $73B. He’s followed by Microsoft’s Bill Gates, and Amancio Ortego from Spanish retailer Zara. 

For the first time since 2000, Warren Buffett is not in the top 3, he’s have to settle for fourth.  (Maybe he’ll get a boost from selling bottles of Heinz ketchup with my dad’s picture:)  LOL). 

But here’s one of the best thing about billionaires:  Bill Gates is also the most generous person in the world according to Forbes, he’s already given away more than $28 billion to charity and has plans to give away most of his money to fight deadly diseases. Capitalism works.

Peace Love Profits,

Blake 

Lowe’s knows how to build its brand. The Lowe’s car crossed the finish line first in today’s Daytona 500. It’s the second Daytona win for Lowe’s #48 and its driver Jimmie Johnson.

It was my first time - the first time that I watched most of the Daytona 500. I get it now. NASCAR is exciting, nerve-wracking, colorful and just good fun. No wonder it has 75 million fans who spend more than $3 billion dollars every year on NASCAR related merchandise. It’s also the second most watched sports franchise right behind the NFL.

Lowe’s likes this and pays big-time to be part of it. Lowe’s is one of NASCAR’s biggest corporate sponsors, reportedly paying between $15 and $20 million dollars to sponsor Johnson’s team for the season. The less elite driving teams try to do it on $5 million per season.

So who knows whether or not this Daytona win will keep the company’s stock on the fast track. Lowe’s is following its victory lap with a earnings report expected on Monday.

Jimmie Johnson is doing all he can to keep Lowe’s riding high, urging fans to “Go to Lowe’s, buy some stuff, Spring’s coming. Go and buy a Chevrolet. Awesome day.”

Peace Love Profits & Pitstops,

Blake

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