RISE25 - September 2024

Revolutionizing Adulthood The Realworld App Can Be Your Ultimate Companion

Technology has come a long way in recent decades. The software and smart devices kids have access to now are light-years ahead of what many of us had growing up. Nowadays, if you have a pressing question, you can ask Siri or Alexa, or look it up yourself on any number of connected devices. But even with modern conveniences, we still missed out on many practical lessons while growing up, whether we have a college education or not. That is where the Realworld app, created by Genevieve Bellaire, comes in handy: It’s the tool we wish we had growing up because it answers many questions young adults have. Genevieve’s Reprieve Even after earning her bachelor’s degree from Princeton and her MBA and law degree from Georgetown, Bellaire entered adulthood with glaring gaps in her knowledge. Despite her impressive education, Bellaire experienced challenges managing her finances, health care, and living arrangements. Although well-studied, she was not well- prepared for life — and she wasn’t alone. When she talked to friends about these difficulties, they could all relate. Everyone felt they did not know enough about filing taxes,

managing a 401(k), building credit, how insurance works, or many other critical facets of adult life. Bellaire saw a gap in the market for people like her, which inspired her to create Realworld, an app aimed at simplifying adulthood.

Designing Demonstrations Realworld provides resources that make it easier to

understand major “adulting” topics not covered in formal education — things like balancing a budget, filling out employment paperwork, setting up a credit card, etc. When setting out to create the app, Genevieve interviewed more than 1,000 people — from recent college graduates to business owners — to understand the problem areas and then identify and create “playbooks” for dealing with them. Playbooks contain step-by-step lessons that guide users through the topics and their myriad intracacies. The app now has nearly 100 instructional playbooks to prepare its users for many tasks. The app can help provide a refresher or identify other facets of adult life you may want or need to know about. Community of Peers Since Realworld is a platform meant for the next generation, it is focused on building a community. After all, learning is easiest when you have other people to bounce ideas off of. The users, along with the team of researchers, writers, designers, and educators working on the app, all benefit from its lessons. During COVID-19, Bellaire changed its pricing model and made the app free. Since then, the app has grown exponentially, amassing over 1.7 million users as of 2023. More people than ever have access to the resources they need to face adulthood head-on. The Realworld: Simplify Adulthood app is available now for free on Apple’s App Store. Bellaire told Forbes magazine that the app’s objective is to empower young adults, especially recent graduates and minorities, with its resources. “This is the reason we made the decision to make the platform free. We want to be part of leveling the playing field for everyone and provide our members the opportunity to set themselves up for success,” she said.

2 · rise25.com | support@rise25.com · Rise25: Helping B2B Businesses Build Profitable Connections

Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator