Building Money Sense with BrickCent$

On April 6, Brandon Nissen, a Certified Financial Planner® and former financial advisor for Northwestern Mutual, launched a YouTube Channel. With BrickCent$, he hopes to increase the financial literacy of his viewers and teach people of all ages about money.

Since 1984, Nissen has been a LEGO® enthusiast. Although his passion for the building blocks has only grown, he has begun to see their potential as more than three-dimensional plastic puzzle pieces.

After serving as a financial planner for nine years, Nissen sold his business for health reasons. The idea to use LEGO bricks to teach people about money systems came to him a couple of years ago when he and his son, Oliver, bought someone's LEGO collection.

"As we were sorting pieces, it just hit me how financial systems work in an interlocking way similar to how LEGO bricks connect. Just as you start with one piece to construct a grand piano, we all start with nothing and begin stacking our money to build a financial identity-from broke to highly successful," Nissen explained.

Following that epiphany, Nissen mulled over the idea and eventually registered a YouTube Channel, conjured a name, designed a logo, and otherwise began assembling the pieces to bring his idea to life. While he aspires to use his YouTube Channel to cover the basics of money management, Nissen plans to meet people where they are and to teach financial concepts using relatable tools. Whether he modifies behavior or not, he wants to educate people in a way that will hopefully make a difference.

Combining his passion for LEGO construction and his experience with financial planning, Nissen will use storytelling to talk about everything from stocks, bonds, and savings to back-to-school shopping and buying a house.

"Any major purchase should begin with a plan. For instance, if you buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle, you have to consider issues like storage, repairs, and insurance," Nissen stated.

Excited for this opportunity and grateful to have learned so much about money over the years, Nissen looks forward to learning more and to sharing his knowledge with his viewers.

In future episodes, Nissen hopes to employ some of the highly collectible LEGO mini figures, many of which can be tied to a career-such as nursing or beekeeping. He plans to conduct conversations with individuals in these professions about education requirements, salaries, job descriptions and expectations, and how being in that profession impacts financial planning.

Until then, Nissen invites subscribers. Anyone interested in this topic can type BrickCent$ into the search menu on YouTube and find or subscribe to Nissen's Channel. "Sharing on social media is also appreciated," Nissen added.

In these early stages, Nissen plans to have a new video every two weeks, but his end goal is to produce one or two a week.

Given that LEGO has been growing imaginations since its inception and that the LEGO brick is the company's most important product, they would likely approve of Nissen's approach. After all, the LEGO® Group, which was founded in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen, gets its name from two abbreviated Danish words: Leg godt, which means "play well." Not only the company's ideal, the notion appeals to Nissen, as well. The motto he will introduce on the channel is "Plan Well so you can Play Well."

Chuckling, Nissen added: "Who knows? LEGO might decide that my platform is so worthwhile and effective that they hire me to teach financial planning to audiences in other countries."

On Wednesday, April 20, Nissen may have played a little too well. After receiving a shipment of LEGO blocks that he purchased in January, he and his son spent approximately four hours going through the shipment, sorting out big pieces, instructions, mini figures, and other bricks. All of the bending, twisting, and time spent hunched over resulted in an excruciating back ache.

"I played well and had a lot of fun, but I am certainly paying for it," Nissen reported.