Investment – that’s how we view buying that beautiful, expensive winter coat, or leather boots that we hope will last us a lifetime. The same could be said for taking out a loan to buy our dream house or investing in our education.
But when investment means buying shares in a company that is listed on the stock exchange, we as women often find ourselves cringing and clutching onto our money.
It’s not because we don’t want to make money – it’s simply the absolute fear of the unknown. There are barriers that may be telling us that we simply can’t afford to part with our hard-earned money, especially when we know the money could go a long way towards filling the holes in our pockets.
Multi-millionaire and author of The Wealth Chef, Ann Wilson, says women tend to put their own wellbeing behind everything else, which, she explains is a barrier to beginning investing.
“What I try to get across to women is that if we can look after our own wellbeing in the full sense – financially and emotionally – we’re actually in a far better place to support our families, our businesses and our careers,” she explains.
She says the second barrier holding women back from investing and creating wealth is the culture and perception that investing is intimidating or difficult.
“And it’s not difficult at all. With just a little bit of being financial savvy, understanding what investing actually is, and when we take away the jargon, we realise that all we’re doing is getting a slice of great businesses and then get them to work for us,” says Wilson.
She explains that as intimidating as it may seem, stock markets are the easiest asset groups for women to start investing in.
“You could start investing from as little as R300 a month, in a completely automated way and you get to have a slice of these great companies at which you don’t even have to pitch up for a day’s work,” says Wilson.
DIY investing
Women trying to save money often avoid investing their money because they think they will need to pay for the expensive services of a stockbroker to guide them.
But Wilson says do-it-yourself (DIY) online investing could be a low cost option that eliminates the middle man.
“It’s really about empowerment – that you can do it yourself. It’s not complicated, you do not need to pay a big fee to a stockbroker,” says Wilson.