By now, most of you have heard about my first book, PopEnomics: 12 Relatable (and Not Boring) Pop Culture Insights for Retirement Success. The Amazon website describes the book as follows:
Ready to Rock Your Retirement? Pop Culture Meets Money Wisdom in One Must-Read Guide
Where Retirement Planning Meets Rock Anthems and Movie Classics
You’ve worked hard, built a life, and saved up, but now that retirement is on the horizon, the questions start piling up. Do I have enough? Am I on the right track? How long will my retirement savings last? In PopEnomics, veteran financial planner Jesse W. Hurst, CFP®, AIF®, pulls back the curtain on retirement planning with a refreshing twist: pop culture. From classic rock songs to unforgettable film scenes, Jesse breaks down complex financial concepts into entertaining, relatable stories that actually make sense—and might even make you laugh or sing along.
The book launches today and is currently available to order at the following link:
PopEnomics: 12 Relatable (and Not Boring) Pop Culture Insights for Retirement Success
Source: Amazon.com
As exciting as it has been to see the last 18 months writing and editing finally culminating with an actual release date, I have also been reflecting on the people and experiences that encouraged me to write, from my first blogs to the book. I want to start by taking you back to Stow High School in the early 1980s. During my senior year, I took a class called Advanced Composition. It was taught by Judy Hackman. As I have shared with you in the past, I was blessed to have many outstanding high school teachers in math, science, history, and English.
Mrs. Hackman was one of my favorite teachers. She encouraged us to write about topics of interest, knowing that we would be more motivated to write if the subject matter resonated with us. She asked us to write a term paper about a historical event. At the time, the Irish rock band U2 was gaining notoriety during the early days of MTV. One of their popular songs was Sunday Bloody Sunday, which was based on historical events that had occurred in Northern Ireland. I asked Mrs. Hackman if I could write about that song and the events that inspired it. True to her nature, she said if that was what interested me, she was more than happy to let me write about it.
Source: Wikipedia
U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday" was written in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, a massacre that occurred on January 30, 1972, in Derry, Northern Ireland. British soldiers fired on unarmed civil rights protesters, killing 14 people. The song, however, is not just about that specific incident but also serves as a broader commentary on the violence and conflict in Northern Ireland during "The Troubles”. While the song's lyrics acknowledge the violence and suffering, Bono has emphasized that it's not a song of rebellion but rather a plea for peace and an end to the cycle of violence. The song concludes with a powerful message calling for an end to the fighting and urging listeners to find a way to move beyond the violence.
It is the opening track from their 1983 album War and was released as the album's third single. The band used footage from a June 5, 1983, live performance filmed for the 1984 concert film U2 Live at Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky to promote the song. The video displays Bono's use of a white flag during performances of the song. The video highlights the intensity and emotion felt by many audience members during U2's concerts, set in the rainy, torch-lit setting of Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheatre. In 2004, Rolling Stone cited the performance as one "50 Moments that Changed the History of Rock and Roll" and noted that "the sight of Bono singing the anti-violence anthem 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' while waving a white flag through crimson mist (created by a combination of wet weather, hot lights and the illumination of those peaks) became the defining image of U2's warrior-rock spirit and—shown in heavy rotation on MTV—broke the band nationwide." A YouTube link to that famous performance is included below.
Sunday Bloody Sunday (Live From Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Colorado, USA / 1983 / Remastered 2021)
I got a perfect score on that paper, and this inspired me to write about other things I was interested in. Of course, that was Mrs. Hackman's goal all along. This is just one of the many reasons why she was a fantastic teacher. Throughout my senior year, I wrote term papers about health and fitness, great moments in sports history, and yes, she even allowed me to write another music-related paper based on the release of Pete Townsend's latest solo album.
As I was sharing this story with my wife Rachel, she looked at me and said, “You know, this was the birth of PopEnomics.” I had not thought about it in those terms, but she was absolutely right, as she usually is.
One last story about the influence Judy Hackman had on my life and work. In 1997, my future business partners and I were planning to open our own financial planning and investment services firm focused on helping corporate executives in northeast Ohio make a successful transition from work life to retirement life. As we were in the midst of the hype and potential panic around Y2K and the turn of the Millennium, we were considering calling our company “New Millennium Financial” or the “Millennium Group”.
I happened to run into Mrs. Hackman at the local grocery store around that time and shared the news with her. Despite her statement about our new business venture, she plainly looked at me and said, “Jesse Hurst, I thought I taught you better than that. You cannot use a noun like Millennium to describe a group, which is also a noun. You have to use the adjective form of the word millennial.” I went back and told my business partners what Mrs. Hackman had shared with me, and thus, the name Millennial Group was born.
When she retired from Stow High School, I wrote her a letter telling her how much her encouragement meant to me. I also went in and helped her clean out her classroom for the last time. She went on to teach at Walsh High School for a few years before being diagnosed with cancer and passing away shortly thereafter. This was a sad day for students of both schools. I am still thankful to Judy Hackman every day for the influence she had on my life and my writing.
With the success of my blog posts and the release of my upcoming book, I wanted to pay homage to a few of the people who helped me get to this place. I hope this story of Mrs. Hackman reminds you of great teachers who influenced you or your children. It is important to recognize their positive contributions to our lives and thank them if it is still possible. I hope you get this opportunity as we continue moving life forward.
© 2025 Jesse Hurst
Senior Wealth Manager
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