The next-chapter keynote
A practical talk about the life behind the numbers, everyday habits and taking one useful next step.
- Planning range: 30–45 minutes
- Optional audience questions
- For conferences, teams and community events
Speaking · Industries & TeamsBuild the job.
Build the job.
Build the next chapter.
Plan a practical money and life session for construction crews, project teams or contractor groups with Eric Guillory, author of The Life Manual.
How booking worksThree simple steps.
Three simple steps.
No pressure.
Planning an assembly, staff training or community night? Start with a few details and Eric will take it from there.
- Tell Eric about your people
Who’s coming, roughly how many, date ideas and what you hope they take away.
- Talk it through
Eric follows up to discuss fit, format and the details of your event.
- No commitment yet
A request starts the conversation. It doesn’t confirm a booking or a fee.
Turn it up. Take the next step.Make the room
Make the room
count.
Schools, teams and community groups. Bring Eric’s practical money and life conversation to the people you want to encourage.
Promotional slideshow with illustrative scenes. The song is performed by a separate singer, not Eric.
Download the vertical video ↓Read the words
Give your people a reason to move.
From the classroom floor to the working crew,
Everybody needs a next step they can use.
Talk about money, talk about life,
Turn a good intention into something you write.
Bring Eric in, get the whole room thinking,
Less drifting, more doing, start building.
Book Eric to speak, make the next move count.
Put a plan in their hands, turn the volume up loud.
Schools, teams, communities too,
A practical conversation made for your crew.
Bring Eric in, let the next chapter begin!
Hire Eric to speak.
Tell him about your event.
Choose a starting formatThe right conversation.
The right conversation.
For your room.
Three ways to begin planning. Eric confirms the topic, length, delivery and fit for your audience.
The practical workshop
Examples, reflection and selected exercises that help participants connect a lesson to their own questions.
- Planning range: 60–90 minutes
- Private writing and guided discussion
- For classes, employee groups and learning programs
Book to conversation
A facilitated conversation around selected themes from The Life Manual, with room to reflect and ask questions.
- Planning range: 45–60 minutes
- Flexible discussion prompts
- For book clubs, libraries, teams and smaller groups
Something you can forward
Download the planner kit ↓Make the planning conversation easier.
Eric’s bio, format ideas, a planning brief and a practical room checklist—in one event-planner kit.
A completed project and a personal plan are different things
Construction people understand that a job needs a sequence. Materials, people and deadlines have to line up. Household money has a sequence too, but it is easy to give that plan less attention than the next project. A busy month can hide the fact that upcoming bills, time off and irregular costs are already waiting for the same dollars.
A construction-team money session can start there. Eric’s book connects hard work with direction, preparation and choices made repeatedly. The point is not to assume tradespeople lack knowledge or that one budget fits every crew member. It is to create room for a familiar question: what is this effort supposed to make possible beyond the next paycheck?
Choose the audience before choosing the example
An apprentice, an experienced employee, a project manager and a contractor owner may all work in construction while facing very different decisions. Tell Eric who will attend and how the event fits into their workday. A workforce-learning session can emphasize household routines; an owner group may want a broader conversation about business boundaries and life priorities.
Do not combine every audience just because the company can fit everyone in one room. If a mixed group is the right choice, identify the common lesson and leave room for different applications. Explain which parts are general education and which questions belong with payroll, an accountant, a lender or another professional. That clarity keeps the program useful without turning it into an improvised business consultation.
Put project cycles on a fictional household calendar
A fictional employee takes home $3,600 in a busier month and $2,900 in a slower one. Planned household commitments are $2,700 each month. The first month leaves $900 before additional goals and irregular costs; the second leaves $200. A discussion can compare what changes when the household treats the busier month as its permanent standard instead of recognizing the range.
Ask participants to identify missing information before suggesting an allocation. Is a vehicle repair coming? Does the household have another income source? Are some costs annual? Does the calendar include planned unpaid time? These questions demonstrate why a paycheck amount alone is not a complete plan. Use the example to practice looking ahead, not to prescribe a reserve or spending level for real employees.
Discuss overtime without building the whole life around it
Additional hours can create an opportunity, but a learning exercise should separate a recurring commitment from income that may change. A participant can compare two fictional plans: one that assigns all overtime to a new monthly payment and one that gives a temporary increase a temporary job. The useful question is what happens to the commitment when the extra hours are no longer available.
This is not an argument against working hard or enjoying the results. It is a way to make an assumption visible. Eric’s emphasis on responsibility and a longer view fits a discussion about what a stronger month can do for a future goal. Let attendees consider their own priorities privately rather than turning overtime or purchases into a character judgment.
Give predictable irregular costs a separate label
Some costs arrive infrequently without being true surprises. A vehicle registration, a known annual bill or a planned replacement can be placed on a calendar. An emergency is different because its timing or amount is uncertain. A construction audience can practice that distinction with a fictional list rather than sharing actual household expenses.
For example, a known $480 cost due in twelve months can be illustrated as a $40 monthly set-aside. That simple division does not settle how a real person should fund it. It shows how the timing changes when the obligation has a name in advance. Participants can then ask which known costs their fictional household forgot and which unexpected costs would still require a separate cushion.
Keep employer responsibilities out of the personal-budget exercise
Work equipment, reimbursements, compensation and company policies can raise questions that a general money speaker should not resolve from a stage. The host should identify how those questions will be routed before the event. A workbook scenario must not imply that employees are responsible for paying a particular business expense or that a company policy has been legally reviewed.
State the fictional facts clearly. If an example includes a personal vehicle or a household repair, explain that it belongs to the invented household. When a real work-policy issue appears, direct it to the appropriate company contact or qualified professional. A clean boundary protects both the educational purpose and the organizer’s ability to answer operational questions through the right channel.
Use a learning format that respects the jobday
A practical session needs a place where people can hear, sit safely and focus. A noisy active work area is a poor setting for private writing or a nuanced question. Discuss the available room, group size, shift coverage and timing with Eric. A short introduction can open a subject, while a workshop needs enough space to work through an example and explain the result.
If the event is part of a contractor association or workforce program, say what other sessions surround it. Avoid positioning the talk as safety certification, trade instruction or approved continuing education unless the responsible organization has separately verified that status. Eric’s role here is money and life learning connected to The Life Manual, with the delivery and scope confirmed in planning.
Make privacy practical rather than just a promise
Give participants a blank worksheet they can keep. Use fictional numbers on any shared screen. Do not ask a supervisor to collect debt balances, household income or written goals after the session. People can participate by identifying a missing assumption in the example, asking a general question or simply listening.
A host can collect useful feedback without asking how much money someone has. Ask whether the example was understandable, whether the room worked and what broad subject attendees would like explained next. If an individual wants advice about a specific account, legal obligation or tax decision, the group event should not pretend to replace that private professional conversation. Respect makes it easier to learn without performing confidence in front of coworkers.
Connect the lesson with something people can keep using
The Life Manual and workbook can help an attendee carry one question beyond the session. A crew member might choose a weekly money check-in; a contractor owner might write a separate list of personal and business questions. The free tools provide another way to test hypothetical timing or growth assumptions. A group can also use The Long Game to discuss how a cash cushion changes the response to an unexpected bill.
Ask Eric about copies if you want the book to be part of a program. Confirm quantities, availability, delivery and any combined speaking arrangement directly. Choose a single follow-up action rather than sending a pile of resources. A small task completed after the event is easier to understand than a broad promise that one talk will transform everyone’s finances.
Bring Eric a construction-specific brief
Send your company or association name, the audience’s roles, approximate attendance, location and a few date options. Explain whether the purpose is employee learning, an owner discussion, apprentice development or a conference session. Mention room conditions, available writing space and any schedule constraints. Then name one outcome you want people to leave with.
You can explore the wider industry directory, read the free chapter or review the planner kit before contacting Eric. Text 504-382-5584 with the basic idea, or use the speaking request. The inquiry does not confirm a date, fee, certification or book delivery. It gives Eric enough context to discuss a session that respects the work your people do and connects that effort with a useful personal next step. If the group includes people who move between project sites, describe how they receive staff information and whether a printed take-home resource would be more useful than another digital link. That small logistical detail can decide whether the lesson is easy to revisit or disappears when the workday changes. Plan the handoff with the same care you give the event itself.
Keep the momentumA useful plan.
A useful plan.
A better event.
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Privacy information →A few good questions
Let’s make it clear.
Don’t see your question? Text Eric: 504-382-5584
Is this a construction safety or trade certification course?
No. This page describes general money and life education. Any professional credit or certification claim would require separate verification by the responsible organization.
Can apprentices and experienced crew members attend?
Yes, discuss the mix with Eric so examples do not assume identical knowledge, wages or responsibilities.
Can the session cover overtime decisions?
A fictional scenario can explore the difference between changing income and recurring commitments. It will not prescribe a personal allocation for each worker.
Do participants need to bring pay stubs?
No. The group can use supplied fictional numbers and keep personal financial records private.
Can contractor owners request a different focus?
Explain whether the group needs an owner discussion about priorities and boundaries or an employee session about household routines.
Can Eric explain our equipment reimbursement policy?
Company policy and legal interpretation belong with the responsible employer contact or qualified professional, not an assumed speaking engagement.
What room works for a crew workshop?
Discuss a quiet, safe setting with seating, clear sound and writing space rather than an active noisy work area.
Can this fit a contractor association event?
Send the agenda, audience mix and available time so Eric can discuss format and fit.
Are books included for every attendee?
Book quantities, price, delivery and any session package are confirmed directly.
How can the learning continue afterward?
Choose one worksheet action, a book chapter, a calculator scenario or a planned group discussion rather than an overwhelming resource list.
Does Eric provide individual investment recommendations at the event?
The proposed session is general education. Personal investment, legal or tax questions require the appropriate professional.
How do we start planning?
Text 504-382-5584 or submit the audience, event purpose, location, attendance estimate and date options through the speaking form.
Keep the momentum
Your next useful step.
Keep learning
Financial Education for Industries and Teams
Bring practical money and life learning to your industry. Explore a session shaped around your team, then talk with Eric about the right fit.
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Workplace sessions
Choose a practical next step for yourself or your group.
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The Life Manual + workbook
Choose a practical next step for yourself or your group.
Explore the guide