Inspiring, Driven, and Highly Motivated are just three words I would use to describe children’s book author and 3x TEDx Speaker, Ty Allan Jackson. With his brainchild, Danny Dollar, Ty brings both knowledge and fun to teaching kids the joy of financial literacy. As a prominent force in his community, Ty tackles the problem of illiteracy that lives all across our country. One of his favorite quotes is “It’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken adults.”-Frederick Douglass. I tend to agree, and Ty Allan Jackson is making his mark doing just that.
FMM: Ty, it’s my great pleasure to interview you. Please introduce yourself to our readers.
TAJ: My name is Ty Allan Jackson. I’m a children’s book author, motivational and 3x TEDx speaker, literacy advocate and father of the three most amazing human beings I know. My business is Ty Allan Jackson, LLC. I travel across the country empowering children about the power and joy of reading. But my ultimate purpose is helping children find their purpose.
FMM: Two of your projects, Danny Dollar Academy and Read or Else promote literacy and financial knowledge in children. What inspired you to create these partnerships in the community?
TAJ: My book Danny Dollar Millionaire Extraordinaire was created after my son opened a lemonade stand and didn’t know what to do with his money. I went to the bookstore to find a children’s book about money and entrepreneurship but couldn’t find one, so I created one. Danny Dollar Academy is the result of Dr. Al-Bahrani, an Economics Professor from Northern Kentucky University getting a hold of my book and creating a curriculum around the principles of the book. In the five years thousands of elementary school students have learned the principles of finance and entrepreneurship through Danny Dollar Academy and now the Federal Reserve of Cleveland is overseeing the program. Pretty amazing!
Read Or Else came to life after my colleague Eddie Taylor and I worked in correctional facilities assisting incarcerated parents connect with their children via our F.U.L.L. (Families United through the Love of Literacy) Program. Read Or Else is about bringing awareness to illiteracy and how it is directly connected to most of the things that ail our society. Poverty, crime, unemployment, teen pregnancy and drug use, mass incarceration and more are directly connected to illiteracy. We put the slogan Read Or Else on tees and hoodies and with each purchase we send a book to a child in a Title 1 school or homeless shelter.
FMM: In your industry, what has been the hardest hurdle to overcome?
TAJ: As an independent author it was hard to get my books in major bookstores and retailers. Instead I work with organizations like The United Way, YMCA and The Boys and Girls Clubs to promote reading to the young people of their communities. Because of those connections I’ve sold over 100k books without having them in major retailers. There’s always more than one way to get your product and/or services into the hands of your customers.
FMM: What is the one piece of advice you’d like to give to young men going forward?
TAJ: Just one!? I could give so many but the first thing I would say is to learn how money works. Money is a tool and like any tool it can be used to build or destroy. For example, saving just a little bit money in the bank every week with compound interest will pay huge dividends when you’re older.
FMM: If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go and why?
TAJ: This is a great question. There are so many places I’d love to visit, and I absolutely love to travel. But if I had to pick one, I’d love to go to Paris. It seems like such a sexy city.
FMM: What would be your perfect date?
TAJ: Well that depends. A perfect first date should be simple. Meeting in a small local coffee shop where we can just talk and get to know one another. Maybe extend the date with a walk in the park. An extravagant first date can be too distracting. Expensive restaurants shows and the like take away from the main objective which is seeing if you really like this person. A perfect second date should be fun. Bowling, billiards, a trip to the museum. Something casual and fun. The third is where you step things up with a nice dinner and maybe a show. By then you’ll know if this person has the potential to be YOUR person.
FMM: What is next in the life of Ty Allan Jackson?
TAJ: Professionally I’m working on expanding my books into TV and perhaps movies. I also want to grow my catalog of books as well as my speaking engagements. I’m going to focus on merchandising my characters into toys, games etc. There really aren’t many name-brand, black literary characters in the world. I’m going to change that!
I’m also working on growing my Read Or Else brand. Bringing awareness and conquering illiteracy is vital to the growth and betterment of our society. We will do that by working with title one schools, youth organizations and homeless shelters and putting books into the hands of kids.
Personally, I’m looking to relocate. I’ve lived in the northeast my whole life and I’m done. I believe California is the place for me. I love the laid-back vibe and of course the weather.
FMM: How can our readers connect with you and your brand?
TAJ: You can find me on every social media platform @Ty Allan Jackson and my website is www.TyAllanJackson.com
Photos courtesy of Bill Wright
