Men and women are not equal. Especially in money. Let’s review:
• Women are paid less in the workplace.
• Women work less because we take care of parents, relatives and children.
• Women are single parents more often.
• Women live longer than men (though men will say that is because they live with us).
• Women take more sick days than men for personal; or health reasons which impacts earning and future promotions.
• Women make the bulk of financial purchasing decisions in the home.
• Women, in my experience, also invest differently. There are exceptions to the following statements, but these are my observations over 13 years and hundreds of female clients.
• Women study more and want to be educated about our choices. In my experience, this takes twice as long for female compared to male clients. This is true regardless if we are comparing spouses or single clients, either male or female.
• Women don't like to invest in things we don’t understand. Men may take a leap of faith, but women are much more cautious. They are also more likely to read and research outside of the meetings. Once educated, though, women stick to their decisions, even risky ones, as long as they feel there has been transparency in the decision making process.
• Women prefer predictable and slow over erratic and fast. As the evolutionary “gatherers,” this is understandable and predictable.
• Women tend to be ignored by the financial services industry that caters to the male in the relationship. I have seen this often when I have done joint work with male colleagues or at conferences, where the men ignored female attendees.
What can we take from this? What is the silver lining? How can we take this information and create a powerful tool for betterment? Let’s give it a try:
• Women are informed investors and typically make better investors.
• Women need the services of the financial professional because of our biological and socioeconomic issues.
• Women control the economic health of their households and their communities as they make the bulk of the purchasing decisions.
• Women are powerful and in need of service. Find us. Cater to us. Respect us and we will strengthen the community.
Women and Money