Women make up over half of the workplace, own more than half of the country’s personal wealth and yet, across the generations, women tend to doubt their ability to manage their financial resources. Approximately 85 per cent of women manage the household checkbook, but the majority feels insecure with their financial future.
And yet we know when women apply themselves to managing well, they indeed do well. As an example, women hedge fund managers’ growth performance was approximately 80 per cent better than their male counterparts.[1]
Women are instinctively wired to manage.
1 – Her Brain – A woman’s brain thinks big picture. We readily analyze situations looking at all the factors and options so that we can make a thoughtful decision. Cautiousness works to our advantage when we begin to consider investment alternatives. We research more and apply more often than our male counterparts.
2 – Her Befriending –The Tend and Befriend Research Study shows under stress we tend to press into wise counsel and relationships. We talk, seek out others perspectives and rely upon wise counsel. For women, getting equipped with the right wise counsel is imperative. Women Doing Well provides a guide to choosing the right advisor at: info@womendoingwell.org
3 – Woman’s Intuition – It’s those famous last words; “I wish I’d listened to my wife!” A woman’s intuition is actually more than just a feeling. Scientifically speaking, each of the 5 senses for women is highly attuned such that women notice even seemingly insignificant nuances. When things just don’t add up, we know it. A great best practice for couples, is to ask one another, “What are you seeing that I might not be seeing?” when it comes to managing resources.
For women, managing well isn’t just about making the most money
God created us to be natural nurturers and equipped us with a heart for doing good. We naturally look for win/win situations. For women, managing well isn’t just about making the most money. Instead, we define winning, not as a zero sum game, but rather, how can we do well and help others do well also.
So managing our finances isn’t a matter of can we do it, but if we have the confidence to do so. Since 90 per cent of women will manage on their own at some point in life; there’s no time like the present to use our instinctive gift of managing well.
[1]Hedge Fund Research published a report showing that from January 2000 through May 31, 2009, women hedge-fund managers outperformed their male counterparts, delivering average annualized returns of 9%, vs. 5.82% for the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index.