Empowering women: we’re holding
your seat at the investments table
By Hunter Deems – Feb 3, 2023
Mansplaining: when a man tries to explain something, typically to a woman, in a way that comes off as condescending, patronizing or chauvinistic.
You read that right: it’s a word in the Oxford dictionary.
Men have always dominated the industries that provide advice to consumers about products and services that everyone, including women, need to understand better. Think car salesman, real estate agent, a local butcher, banker. There’s a very good chance you’ve experienced your banker mansplaining to you how to balance your checkbook even though you already knew how.
This arrangement has been deeply ingrained in societies due to past generations where the man went to work, made the money, handled the money, and the woman stayed home to care for the children and the household. It’s safe to say that for many if not most, those days are long gone.
The World Bank notes that women currently make up 50% of the workforce worldwide, compared to only 33% in 1950. Family dynamics are shifting at lightning speed.
Many women are now the primary breadwinners, whose partners stay home to care for the household. Other women are choosing to remain single and pursue their careers, travels, and passions without a partner. Still other couples may both work and contribute to finances but simply want to invest individually in industries or companies that reflect their specific passions.
Whatever the circumstances, this means more and more women need to take the wheel when it comes to their finances, specifically when it comes to investments and their financial futures.
According to Fidelity’s 2021 Women and Investing Study, womens’ portfolios outperform mens’ by 40 basis points, or 0.4%. This positive margin can translate into tens of thousands of dollars of a return on their investment over time.
Source: Fidelity Investments
Women are natural investors but struggle to find good advice
This trend is likely due to all of the wonderful traits about us women that we already know about: we’re thoughtful, disciplined, and generally more open to advice and collaboration. A lot of us are also curious about the secrets of making money on our investments. If men can do it, why can’t we?
Unfortunately, a lot of us find ourselves uncertain about where to turn or whom to trust when it comes to investing. This is largely because so many investment firms have gained the (well-earned) reputation of being saturated with men who are more focused on selling a product and collecting their commission checks than on doing what’s best for their clients. This type of “advisor” is not likely to take the time to listen to your interests and goals and how you want your money to work for you.
So what do a lot of women do? Some do nothing. Some frantically search Google for advice and try to figure it out themselves. This often leads to confusion and getting lost in what is the right investment choice for them, and then they’re back to square one: nothing is invested, time is wasted, and more than likely confusion and frustration reign. But as women, we get it – sometimes doing nothing or putting our trust in the Google search bar feels less painful than being mansplained.
Other women may turn to acquaintances or social media platforms. These are usually people who are not the most financially savvy and lack a financial foundation to give solid advice. Women who end up taking that advice at face value may find themselves stuck in a long-term product with unreasonable fees and no way to get out, meaning their hard-earned cash is lost.
Make sure to have a good guide on your investment journey
Some women even end up with a (literal) bag full of gold that sits in their house because a friend of a friend told them it was the safest option and they would make X amount of money from it in the future.
If any of these above situations resonate with you, either personally or maybe you listened to female friends vent their frustration about their negative investment experiences while trying to enjoy happy hour, well, we get it. Wherever you may be in your financial journey, we as female investors all had to start somewhere.
And guess what? We’re here to be your first stepping stone or to help make sure you’re on the right track to reach your goals. Tenzing Pacific has female advisors who are passionate about helping people achieve true financial freedom. Our goal is to listen to you and understand your goals rather than just have you sign a dotted line and make a deposit.
Oh, and our male colleagues, well they’re pretty alright too. They have our stamp of approval for actively listening and giving proper advice.
