Fan of financial literacy? Become a coach too

Are you a fan of financial literacy? Do you think you'd make a good coach for someone seeking to get their finances in order?

Clarifi, a local nonprofit credit counseling agency, is seeking volunteers to work as "financial coaches" for a seminar this fall. And no, you don't need a financial background.

In October, "we are doing a specialized boot camp for a company called PIDC, Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp.," said Maureen Keown, vice president of community engagement with Clarifi, based at 1608 Walnut St. The session will specialize in helping PIDC's clients, who are small business owners, and Clarifi is looking for volunteer coaches, she said.

Boot camp participants complete the six-month program and, as part of the nonprofit's package, are then paired with ­financial coaches (ahem, that's you) for ongoing counseling and education services, including setting goals such as home ownership, reduced debt, improved credit, and higher savings.

Personal financial coaches will act as cheerleaders, motivators, and accountability partners as Clarifi's clients try to reduce debt and control spending. Coaches support boot camp participants in executing their action plans and developing goals that guide monthly, in-person meetings over the six-month engagement.

Keown said coaches need only to be "an enthusiastic and reliable person, interested in working one on one to help one of Clarifi's boot camp participants take meaningful steps toward improving their financial outlook." So, a positive, can-do outlook and a commitment to meet one hour each month for six months with their boot camp partner.

Clarifi will provide training (two hours total) for coaches in the Clarifi Center City offices; the next training sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 25, (1 to 3 p.m.); Thursday, Sept. 27, (1 to 3 p.m.); and Saturday, Sept. 29 (9 to 11 a.m.).

Financial coaches are matched with a client at the boot camp launch on Monday, Oct. 15, at 5:30 p.m.

"After that, you just need to check in with the client once a month for six months. You can meet for coffee, check in by phone, whatever works with your schedule," she added.

Clari­fi matches boot campers and their coaches based upon Myers-Briggs personality assessments and location to ensure each pair is compatible and successful. It's an unpaid position, thus the word volunteer.

For more information, call Clarifi's Antoinette Minor at 215-320-1484 or visit the nonprofit's website (clarifi.org).

JPMorgan Chase & Co. chief executive officer Jamie Dimon said earlier this month that investors should prepare for the benchmark 10-year bond yield to hit 5 percent or higher, up from 3 percent currently.

"I think rates should be 4 percent today," Dimon told the Aspen Institute's 25th annual Summer Celebration Gala. "You better be prepared to deal with rates 5 percent or higher — it's a higher probability than most people think."

While Dimon "has a very good window into the U.S. economy, he has a more optimistic view" than most, said Mark Heppenstall, chief investment officer at Penn Mutual Asset Management, registered investment advisory under Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Horsham.

"That 5 percent wouldn't be my forecast. We think we migrate over 18 months to 3.5 percent to 4 percent" on the 10-year Treasury, he said.

Heppenstall said he does "worry that trade tensions and the trade war, with more tariffs by the Trump administration and China, have repercussions that could flow through to interest rates and into higher prices. Globalization has been keeping inflation down around 2 percent annually," he said.