Older Women Are the Best Money Mentors

Older Women Are the Best Money Mentors

By Charlotte Cowles

 I am 100 percent certain that Janna, a slightly older colleague at my first staff job, has no recollection of doling out financial wisdom that I still think about today.

 About ten years ago, we were lurching upwards in our building’s hot, rickety elevator when she made an off-handed comment about how our employer, despite its general stinginess, had a pretty good 401(K) matching policy. “It’s free money,” she said. “You signed up for it, right?”

For the record, my dad had told me the exact same thing, and so had the lady in HR when she handed me my new-hire paperwork, but it was Janna’s words that actually penetrated my thick skull.

“Yeah,” I lied, and then raced home to dig out the enrollment forms. Every time I’ve started a new job since then, I’ve thought of that conversation and followed Janna’s advice.

***

 Why did I listen to Janna and not anyone else? Think about all of the perfectly good financial tips that bombard us every day but never really sink in.

None of us suffer from a lack of information about what we’re supposed to do with our money — we just don’t absorb it. How do we decide what to take seriously, and what to file under “things I should probably do but won’t”?

 I would argue that it’s all about the source. I listened to Janna because I could relate to her but also looked up to her. She was 25 to my 22, an associate editor in the same department where I was an assistant.

  She drank martinis and was full of ideas in meetings. She talked back to our crabby manager and showed me where she kept spare tampons in case I ever needed one. She was a step ahead of me in almost every way, but still close enough that her life seemed within reach.

 The majority of women want more and better financial guidance, but they just aren’t sure where to get it.

 Data consistently shows that the majority of women want more and better financial guidance, but they just aren’t sure where to get it.

For many of us, hiring a financial advisor seems too formal or intimidating (not to mention expensive), while talking to a parent, family member, or friend often isn’t much use (they may not understand your industry or specific financial challenges).

 This leaves a big, Janna-shaped hole in people’s lives, which is why I believe that finding someone whose advice you trust — ideally, someone a little bit older and wiser who you’re already friends with — is one of the best financial moves you can make.

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https://www.thecut.com/2018/12/how-to-find-a-money-mentor.html