Entrepreneur Justin Brewer, founder of Greenhub, has launched a Personal Clarity Pledge aimed at helping individuals and small business owners navigate rising costs and increasingly complex operational systems. The public commitment focuses on discipline, transparency, and practical action, coming at a time when small businesses face significant financial pressures.
Brewer, whose background includes being a former NCAA Division I athlete and founder in the payments industry, stated that the pledge is rooted in his career journey and values. "If you don't understand a system, you can't control it," Brewer said. "You don't get results by accident. You earn them through repetition and focus." He emphasized that most people underestimate what steady effort can achieve, noting that "big change usually comes from doing small things well, over and over."
The timing of this initiative is particularly relevant given current economic challenges. Small businesses constitute 97% of all businesses in Connecticut and employ nearly half the workforce, while operating costs in the Northeast are estimated to be 10–15% higher than the national average. Studies indicate that over 60% of small business owners do not regularly review service statements tied to payments or software, and subscription and processing-related costs have increased steadily over the past five years, often without clear explanation. "Complexity has become normal," Brewer observed. "But that doesn't mean it's healthy."
Brewer's Personal Clarity Pledge involves seven specific behavioral commitments: reviewing all personal and business expenses monthly rather than reactively; blocking weekly time to understand one system instead of ignoring it; starting every workday with a clear written priority list; maintaining physical discipline through regular training to support mental clarity; removing one unnecessary tool, subscription, or habit each month; asking direct questions when something doesn't make sense; and sharing lessons learned openly without hype or shortcuts. "This pledge is about accountability," Brewer explained. "Not perfection."
To support implementation, Brewer has created a do-it-yourself toolkit with ten actionable steps that require no services or spending. These include printing or downloading the last bank or card statement, highlighting anything that isn't understood, listing every automatic subscription payment, canceling one that no longer adds value, setting a 30-minute weekly review on the calendar, writing down three confusing systems and learning one using free resources like https://www.greenhub.com/resources, taking a daily walk to reset focus before decisions, replacing multitasking with one focused task block, and sharing one lesson with someone else.
A 30-day progress tracker provides a simple framework: week one focuses on reviewing expenses and identifying confusion points; week two on simplifying one system or habit; week three on building a weekly review routine; and week four on reflecting on what feels clearer and what still needs work. "Just begin, stay consistent, and keep learning," Brewer advised. "That's how momentum builds."
