Jerry Penner, Speaker
and
Financial Coach
Who is Jerry Penner?
Demo Reel Speaker
Topics Books and Spreadsheets Where
I'll
Be
Endorsements
Contact
Who is Jerry Penner?
Hi, I'm Jerry! I went from broke to
retired in 16 years and now I teach
others how to do what I did.
At the age of 40 I had been divorced for 9 years, had a mortgage, and a
job that just barely covered expenses. I had no retirement savings.
My retirement plan was the "Silver
Bullet" retirement plan. I realized there had to be a better way. I
knew I couldn't count on my parents, my government, or my employer to
take care of me.
I started researching investment
and retirement strategies including real estate, stocks, bonds, mutual
funds, gold and silver, cryptocurrencies, and small business. I read
books, took courses, practiced, and found things that worked and things
that didn't.
During my journey I would sometimes tell people what I was doing and
they were skeptical, saying, "Come talk to me when you have results.".
At 56 I exited the rat race on my
own terms. I think that's results enough, don't you?
Some of my favourite influences
are:
+ Gail Vaz-Oxlade of "Til Debt Do Us Part" fame,
+ Tony Robbins' book "Unshakeable",
+ Greg Habstritt's book "The RRSP Secret",
+ Tim Ferriss' book "The 4 Hour Work Week",
+ Pete Adeny's blog "Mr Money Mustache",
+ The financial and business writers at the Globe and Mail, and
+ Robert Kiyosaki's books and training.
I know where the gopher holes are in the path to a comfortable
retirement. I've stepped in a number of
them. I can tell you where they are so you don't make the same mistakes.
I'm not a registered financial anything; I don't have any expensive
letters after my name. My expertise comes from hard-won personal
experience, not
theory or sales brochures.
I have nothing to sell you. I take the fake complexity out of
retirement planning. I show you how to take your retirement out of the
hands of a salesman and empower you to build it yourself.
My desire is to
share what I've learned to save you time, money, and help you
retire early
and well.
Books and Spreadsheets
Click the book cover below to get to "The Nine #1 Things You need to Know to Retire Richer Faster" on my Etsy shop:
While the book is aimed at a Canadian audience, the concepts translate well to other countries.
On the path to early retirement I stepped in a lot of gopher holes to find out what worked and what didn't. I have something most accredited financial planners don't have: real-world experience. I am now prepared to share what I learned so you don't have to find the same gopher holes yourself.
I've told people about my journey as I was progressing through it. The most common response I got was, “Let me know when you have results.”. Well, I retired at 56, 16 years after starting my 20-year plan. I think that counts as results, don't you?
In retirement 've been asked, “So what is the #1 thing I need to know to retire richer, faster?”. I gave it much thought. There are nine:
1) Not everyone has the discipline of delayed gratification. You can beat this by remembering Why you want something.
2) You are not evil for wanting to become richer than you are. Wealth amplifies a person's character.
3) The middle class think about capital gains. The wealthy think about cash flow and dividends.
4) Create an annual financial summary. This is the "You Are Here" pin in the mall map of your financial landscape.
5) Transfer the annual financial summary numbers to a monthly budget. This shows you where adjustment is necessary.
6) Got running credit card or car loan debt? Pay it off. Balances on credit cards kill income before it has a chance to work for you.
7) How much money do you actually need to retire and never run out of money? A simple calculation is to take your current annual gross salary and divide it by the average percentage of the dividends and cash-flowing assets in your portfolio.
8) Stack cash in your TFSA first, then your employer's RRSP up to the match only, then put the rest in a margin account. What assets should you be buying in these? I buy only good-paying dividend stocks. Of all the stocks in the TSX universe, less than 1% pass my screening criteria.
9) Financial freedom isn't an end goal, it's a door to endless possibilities. When your dividend income exceeds your expenses, you are in a unique position to be able to make the world a better place on your own terms. You were not built to construct someone else's empire!
Click the book cover below to get to "111 Gigs to Start Under $1,000"
on my Etsy shop:
This book is for those people.
Some people don't know what is possible, how much it will cost to set up, if it can be done with a disability (or a baby under one arm), or a limited amount of time, or what the threats to success are.
For each gig I've included:
+ Setup costs
+ Expected income
+ Body requirements
+ Disability-friendliness
+ Part time or occasional
+ Gotchas describing the negatives for a particular gig
Not every gig is for everyone. This book should at least give you some ideas on things to try to get some more cash rolling in so you can retire richer, faster.
My Super-Secret Budget Calculator spreadsheet is here.
My Super-Secret Running Bank Balance Sheet is here.
Demo Reel
Click the button below to see my demo reel on YouTube.
Want to see all my Money Ed videos? Click the button below for my YouTube playlist.
Speaker Topics
Keynote:
Supercharge Your Retirement Plan: 4 Secret Hacks to Get You Richer,
Faster
Abstract:
In personal finance the working class is addicted to advice from broke people. Accepting advice from broke people is costing folks the ability to have their money outlive them, the ability to be generous, and the ability to leave a legacy that makes the world a better place.
Retiring early and well requires thinking like a rich person. If you've never been exposed to rich people on a personal basis you're not likely to plan your retirement like them. For the next hour Jerry will be your new rich best friend. The hacks Jerry describes, if implemented, can help bring peace of mind to your financial future.
+ How rich people think differently about investing
+ When to choose a TFSA, RRSP, or Margin account and why it matters
+ Why good-paying dividend stocks beat mutual funds and whole-market ETFs
+ How to automate your investment strategy so you can focus on what matters to you
Target Audience:
Workshop:
Hack Your Life: Automate the Boring Stuff So You Can Focus on What
Really Matters
Abstract:
Many folks feel overwhelmed by the chaos of modern life, stuck in a cycle of making the same decisions over and over—without realizing that most of life can be optimized. We’re bombarded with messages telling us what to want and how to get it, leaving us confused, stressed, and burned out. But what if you could cut through the noise, identify what really matters, and automate the rest?
In this 45-minute workshop Jerry applies techniques from his career as a Software Tester—like Spidey Senses, the Scientific Method, and Exploratory Testing—to help you detect inefficiencies, fine-tune decisions, and create a smoother, more intentional life. Through real-world examples (including how to get through a grocery store checkout faster 90% of the time), you’ll learn to recognize when Something Is Wrong and how to systematically solve it.
By the end of your time with Jerry,
you’ll know how to:
+ Recognize the “hackable” parts of your life and apply a proven
process to optimize them.
+ Tune into your body’s first-response signals when Something Is Wrong and
uncover the real problem.
+ Develop and use your Personal
Top 10 Priority List to make consistent, value-driven
decisions.
+ Apply practical, non-intuitive life hacks that reduce stress, prevent
burnout, and free up your mental space.
Learning
Objectives:
+ Understand how to explore, define, and automate life priorities.
+ Learn to communicate and uphold boundaries that protect what matters
most.
+ Develop a systems-thinking approach to solving everyday challenges.
Business
Benefits for HR:
+ Reduce employee stress and decision fatigue, leading to better focus
and performance.
+ Promote work-life balance, decreasing the likelihood of burnout.
+ Empower employees to make smarter, faster decisions that align with
their priorities.
Target Audience:
+ Working professionals aged 18-50 who want to regain control of their
time, decisions, and mental space.
Full Day Seminar:
Money Ed: How to Go From Broke to Secure to Comfortable to Rich
If
you want to
learn golf, get tips from a golf pro. If you want to learn how to be a
plumber or electrician, you take an apprenticeship under a more
experienced tradesperson. If you want to learn how to go from broke to
secure to comfortable to rich, you need to learn from someone who has
done that. In this full-day seminar Jerry will be your new rich
best friend. By the end you will understand what your broke friends and
relatives don't: how the rich think and how to take action to improve
your financial life.
Topics covered:
+ What is Your Why? (with homework)
+ Money Definitions
+ Thinking Rich
+ The Redlining Test
<Break>
+ What is a Financial Statement? (with homework)
<Break>
+ Build a Budget Calculator (with homework)
<Break>
+ My Budget Won't Balance!
+ How to Pay Off Credit Cards
+ What Is My Credit Score?
+ What is My Retirement Number?
<Break>
+ How do I Analyze Dividend Stocks in 6 Minutes or Less? (with homework)
+ How Do I Automate My Retirement Plan?
Learning Objectives:
By the end of
your time with Jerry you will know:
+ Where
you are in the mall map of your financial landscape
+ Where you want to go
+ Why you want to go there
+ How to get there and how long it will take
Target Audience:
Where I'll Be
As
I am booked, items will show here. Check back to see if I'll be at your
event!
Endorsements
Rose Pike, Teacher:
"I was a single mother to 2 children
and I had to give half my teacher pension to my ex husband when we
divorced. I had recently come into a significant amount of money from
the sale of a property owned by my parents and I wanted to make the
best financial decision for that money. After watching Jerry's Money Ed
videos I contacted him and gave him my story. He gave me the (dirty)
facts about what mutual funds are really all about and how I could
invest in companies and get dividends (within my TFSA) to help pay for
property tax, car repairs, etc. or just leave it alone and let it grow.
I am happy to report I am well on my way to financial stability and I
can sleep better knowing I can actually do it myself! I really
appreciate Jerry's calm, supportive way of speaking to me. He never
judged and he has a great sense of humour that really put me at ease. I
highly recommend Jerry to anyone that wants to keep more of their money
and save for their future, regardless of income."