The way that women interact with their finances on all levels has changed significantly in the wake of the pandemic, with more women – particularly younger women – taking the reins when it comes to their money.
When U.S. Bank released its inaugural Women and Wealth Insights Study in 2020, it was right as the COVID-19 pandemic was starting – leading to lockdowns, school closures and other impacts that disproportionately affected women.
That study showed that women were less confident and less engaged with managing money than men, generally started investing later than men, and tended to associate negative emotions with financial planning. But, when that survey was conducted two years later, many of those gaps – across generations – began shrinking.
We started seeing more women associate positive words – like pride and excitement – with financial planning. We’ve seen more women and men say they are more confident with their finances, with Gen Z and Millennials leading older generations in this aspect and many others.
This includes younger women, who are more confident that they’ll be able to afford retirement, have more money in savings and are overwhelmingly in charge of many financial decisions when compared to older women.
Getting to that level of confidence takes a village. It’s family members and friends talking about their experiences and strategies for savings. It’s professionals in finance sharing knowledge. It’s community organizations, many right here in Milwaukee, coming together to provide access to resources and information. It’s actively engaging with and evaluating your financial plans.
It’s curiosity.
Curiosity to learn, to find solutions and to build a healthier financial future for tomorrow.
That’s something that I talk about with my team at U.S. Bank: the power of leading with curiosity. It’s how we can help those we serve solve for the financial challenges of today and find a path toward a brighter financial future.
It’s how we, as leaders and professionals grow, in our careers and empower those around us to do the same. It’s how we take the reins of our own goals and personal financial lives.
So, lead with curiosity. You never know what success you might find.
U.S. Bank
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