The financial landscape has shifted dramatically. Welcome to Money Techniques, where we’re delving into everything you need to know about personal finance.
When Haley Kowalewski began her full-time career as a manager for Apple, she was met with a group of female coworkers grappling with retirement planning. No one knew where to start. “I couldn’t believe no one knew anything,” she tells PS. “Even my boss was like, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing.'”
Kowalewski embarked on a journey to secure her financial future, spurred by her coworkers’ lack of financial literacy. Now, she runs Femme Financial Coaching, an educational platform helping people learn how to budget, save for retirement, and understand the investment market. Of her combined 346,000 Instagram and TikTok followers, 95% are women.
Kowalewski’s initiative was unique when it launched three years ago, but now, it’s one of many. Some popular financial literacy accounts targeted exclusively to women include @_sheinvests, @hotgirlfinance, and @fearless.women.investing. In the past two decades, financial wellness books with titles geared towards women, like “Rich AF,” “Money Is Queen,” and “Women Just Wanna Have Money,” have flooded the market. Companies like Ellevest, Financielle, and Your Juno position themselves as financial wellness providers for women, using taglines like “Get your sh*t together!” and “The ultimate toolkit for your financial glow-up!”
These platforms are a stark departure from the male-dominated, suit-and-tie face of finance we once knew. Moreover, they aim to close the gender gap by educating women on saving and investing, as women’s average retirement savings are 50% lower than men’s. But does gender-specific financial education have merit? Some experts argue that while Kowalewski and other finance educators see value in creating content tailored to women, this messaging may perpetuate existing stereotypes.
“It’s evident to me that discussions about finance must include a conversation about all the systemic barriers women face in managing their finances,” says Tori Dunlap, founder of Her First $100K and author of “Financial Feminist.” Dunlap believes that financial education should be tailored to one’s identity. “It seems obvious to me that discussions about finance must include a conversation about all the systemic barriers women face in managing their money,” she says. “Women feel they can engage with Her First $100K and ask questions without fear of judgment because it’s a very jargon-heavy, non-intimidating topic.”
In Dunlap’s experience, personal financial advice has historically differed depending on the target audience. Advice aimed at men often focuses on growth—buy real estate, start a business, invest—while for women, it’s about cutting back—stop buying coffee, skip the manicures, and deprive yourself to the point of no enjoyment. “The advice for men is always, ‘Here are five hot stocks right now,'” Dunlap says. “For women, it’s, ‘Here are five meals you can make for under five dollars.'”
Kowalewski agrees, noting that historically, men and women have had distinct roles in managing household finances. “Men went out to earn, while women safeguarded the family’s existing assets,” she says. “Fathers sat down with their sons and shared knowledge about the stock market.” Who controlled the money in your household when you were growing up?
In her practice, Kowalewski witnesses the repercussions of these gendered conversations. “Women come to my one-on-ones and break down,” she says. “Many of them tell me I’m their first point of contact regarding money.” According to research from The Motley Fool, women often lack confidence and are more risk-averse than men when it comes to investing in the stock market because they weren’t taught wealth-building skills growing up. However, this lack of confidence can actually lead to better returns for women, says Dr. Ylva Baeckström, a senior lecturer in finance at King’s College London. “Women investors typically outperform men because they make long-term investments, whereas men make impulsive, unproductive investments,” she says.
Dr. Baeckström also suggests that women tend to feel more confident and invest more when advised by a female financial advisor. A fellow woman’s expertise in personal finance can help demystify the subject. Larissa Machiels, a 25-year-old sustainability consultant from London, sees the appeal. “I often find myself in meetings where all my male colleagues are discussing investments, and I feel clueless. There’s an accessibility issue that I think these platforms could help me address, and that’s what piqued my interest. I can tell you they’re a very welcoming place to learn the basics of investing. I don’t want to feel embarrassed to raise my hand or ask a silly question there.”
Dr. D. Bernice Ledbetter, founding director of the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School, sees the opportunities women can offer each other through online financial education. However, she has reservations. She cautions against influencers who blend their budgeting advice with their latest diet or makeup routines. “I think some of these influencers run the risk of being perceived as superficial,” she says. According to Ledbetter, while some pages offer engaging content without being patronizing toward women, hard-hitting financial advice, such as choosing the right investment account or applying for a mortgage, can sometimes get lost in the mix. Some financial platforms, she says, focus more on building self-confidence and improving life management skills. “The finance piece becomes a garnish—that can be misleading.”
Dr. Baeckström concurs. “As a woman, I find it quite patronizing,” she says of financial advice specifically targeted at women. “It suggests that you couldn’t grasp a finance book written for men if you tried reading it.”
Dr. Baeckström believes that achieving equity in financial education shouldn’t mean adding a girls’ club next to the boys’, but rather reimagining how we discuss finance altogether. She argues that the language used is very alpha, rather than catering to the broader market, because the industry was designed for alpha males. “Alpha females are currently the only women at the top. We need to reinvent the language to make it accessible to everyone by having a diverse group of people at the table.”
However, Kowalewski and Dunlap are firm believers that women need more female role models to learn how to budget, save, and invest. They see the impact of women gaining financial independence firsthand. According to Kowalewski, “Women reinvest back into the community when they have money,” citing research from Bank of America. “Donating tops the list when you ask women what they would do if they were wealthy. For men, it’s all about ‘buying a lot of stuff.'”
Ultimately, the prospect of more women achieving financial well-being drives Kowalewski and Dunlap’s passion for educating women. “The world becomes a better place when women have more money,” says Dunlap. “The world begins to change if I can increase the amount of money women can earn.”
Lifestyle and entertainment columnist and freelancer Samantha Fink writes for POPSUGAR. Her work can also be found in Cosmopolitan, Business Insider, Yahoo!,
The WholeNote, and The Bookseller. Samantha holds degrees in English and psychology from Queen’s University and a master’s degree in journalism from City, University of London.