Money Musings 💭 it’s time to change investing culture ⏰
Investing culture has historically been white and male-dominated. As my friend Berna says, it’s “hella pale, hella male and hella stale.”
Only half of all Americans invest, and women tend to invest 40% less than men, on average. These numbers are even lower for communities of color.
It’s time to change that.
How? There’s a lot to be done. But one very tangible way to bridge the investing gap and change the culture, is to get more women and BIPOC women investing.
We need to invest ourselves and have conversations with our friends and our communities about the importance of investing.
I recently joined (and am so excited to partner with) an investing app called Public.com. They’re making investing more inclusive, educational, and fun - so it’s a great place for newer (and first-time) investors!
On Public, you can invest in the companies you believe in and share ideas in a community of investors. 40% of these investors are women and 45% are people of color.
Talk about your trades, discuss trends in the market, and share ideas to expand your knowledge as an investor. We can all learn together.
Here are some other things I love about Public:
There are no commission fees for standard trades (it’s a free app!)
You can align your investments with your values by choosing investment themes you’re passionate about (i.e. Women in Charge and Combat Carbon)
You can invest in fractional shares of publicly-traded companies and ETFs (meaning you can start investing with as little as $1)
There are safety features that label investments that are potentially risky
The app helps you build long-term investing habits. 74% of the community is made up of long-term investors
Join me (and follow me) there! I’m giving you $10 to get started. #SPONSORED
*This is not investment advice. Valid for U.S. residents 18+ and subject to account approval. See Public.com/disclosures/.
PS Next week I’m teaching an ‘Earn More Money negotiations workshop where I’ll walk you through my negotiations process, step by step. And we’ll also talk about the racial and gender wealth gaps and what needs to happen to close them. You can get your ticket here.
MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
USE SINKING FUNDS TO SMOOTH OUT SPENDING. Larger, infrequent expenses like our best friend’s bachelorette party, the holiday season, or even our quarterly haircut can throw our finances out of whack. We can make our lives a lot less stressful by setting aside money (automatically) each week, each paycheck, or every month for these expenses.
Then, the money is waiting for us (and earning some interest!) when it’s time to use it. The key? Having specific accounts for each expense so each dollar we set aside has a purpose. Get a step by step guide to sinking funds here.
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
INEW VOTER SUPPRESSION LAWS. Across the United States 450 voter suppression laws have been introduced in 43 states. In Georgia, SB 202 was signed into legislation which criminalizes the provision of food and water to voters waiting in line (lines are notoriously long in heavily non-white precincts in GA), requires ID for absentee ballots, and limits the placement of ballot drop boxes. Stacey Abrams sums up the bill and what we can do in her IG video here.
While boycott and consumer activism have been used successfully to bring about change (and something we talk about a lot here!), she urges us to wait to boycott organizations as the boycotts will disproportionately affect BIPOC communities.
Instead, she’s urging corporations to:
Use their full clout to support For the People Act and The John Lewis Voting Rights Act
Address the lack of photo IDs in Georgia and around the United States (200,000 Georgians don’t have a photo ID)
Be honest about the realities of voter suppression
Over 100 corporations have taken action and spoken out. We’re all watching. Learn more about what we can do at StopJimCrow2.com.
More info:
Stacey Abrams: Corporate America must pick a side on voting rights, prevent a Georgia repeat (USA Today)