JAX Exchange - Spring 2026 - Magazine - Page 36

T H E FO U N DAT I O N O F
FINANCIAL FREEDOM
Two Jacquelyn members, decades of experience, and one shared
conviction: the basics are everything.
The best coaches in any sport will tell you the same
thing: master the fundamentals before anything else.
Two Jacquelyn members have spent their careers saying
the exact same thing about money.
plan," Simpson says. King echoes the approach. "You
don't have to rush into it. A little bit at a time. Just do
some reading, studying, research." Start small, build the
habit, and scale from there.
Wornel Simpson and Jay King arrived at their work
in 昀椀nancial literacy from di昀昀erent places and are now
focused on using their knowledge to help people gain
昀椀nancial freedom. Simpson spent more than 40 years
as a 昀椀nancial advisor working with individuals and
families from every walk of life. He also spent years
coaching student-athletes, “The parallels between sports
and money are undeniable,” Simpson said.
That philosophy shapes Wornel
Simpson's book, Being Brilliant
on the Basics, a guide built
not around advanced strategies
but around the foundational
understanding that most people
never receive. “Being Brilliant
on the Basics matters even
more than advanced investment
strategies,” he says. “It’s the foundation of 昀椀nancial
freedom.”
Jay King, Founder and President of the Greater
Sacramento Financial Literacy Group and President
of the California Black Chamber of Commerce,
came to the work in a unique way: by recognizing
what he didn't know. Re昀氀ecting on his early investment
strategies, he says simply, "I happened to be in the right
place at the right time, but with the wrong knowledge."
He now shares his knowledge with this group and
beyond, helping others 昀椀nd 昀椀nancial freedom.
During our interviews, both men reached for a
sports analogy when asked to explain why the basics
matter most. "Footwork, conditioning, teamwork,
communication, and repetition of the fundamentals are
the same building blocks you 昀椀nd in a solid 昀椀nancial
Jay King’s Greater Sacramento Financial Literacy
Group operates from the same premise, bringing
together more than 1,000 members across the
country who meet virtually twice a month to learn,
ask questions, and invest alongside one another in
everything from stocks to startups.
For both men, the conversations have always been
bigger than money. Simpson puts it directly: “It’s about
people. It’s about relationships. It’s about trust. Wealth
is connected to community, whether we acknowledge
it or not.” King frames it on a national scale. “Financial
Olya, Gabrielle. “How Much Money Do Americans Have in Their Bank Accounts in 2025?” 昀椀nance.yahoo.com, January 12, 2025, https://昀椀nance.yahoo.com/news/much-money-americansbank-accounts-120105182.html. 4 March 2026. 2“Some 40% Of People Earning More Than $300,000 Are Living Paycheck To Paycheck, New Goldman Sachs Study Says” 昀椀nance.yahoo.com,
October 18, 2025, https://昀椀nance.yahoo.com/news/40-people-earning-more-300-223237023.html. 4 March 2026.
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SPRING 2026

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