Yesterday was one of those days. I had the opportunity to educate some very important people on what I do every day. I was asked to visit my little cousin’s kindergarten class and talk about loans and what it is to be a banker. Every day they are having a different professional come in to speak.
I tried to break lending down to 5 year old lingo -- toys, sharing, allowances, chores.
But even though I was there to "teach" I was able to take a very important detail away with me.
Here's a little sample of my morning:
Me: Good Morning Class
Class: Good Morning Mr. Jones
Me: Today I am here to talk to you all about banking . But don’t worry, I will make it fun for you all.
Class: Yeahhh!
Me: Does anyone know what a loan is or what it means to borrow money. (A little boy raises his hand)
Little Boy: A loan is when you are at home by yourself and your mommy and daddy are gone.
Me: Well yes….that is correct. ALONE is when you are at home by yourself. A "LOAN" is when you borrow money from the bank.
Ha, well how can I argue with that?
What did I take away from this? It is important to remember that when speaking with your clients, you must explain to them things in a way they will understand. It is crucial to know your audience and take out all the complicated jargon that comes 2nd nature to industry professionals.
It was a refreshing experience and a nice little break from the ups and downs of the work day. Hopefully I made some new clients or future bankers in the process. Thank you to AMES School and to my little cousin Aubrey for allowing me to speak to your class. J
