GUESS WHAT?
MEN AND WOMEN REALLY
ARE DIFFERENT!
As that famous book of a couple of years ago noted, 'men are from Mars, and women are from Venus.' Evidently, that holds true even financially. We've heard about the differences in men and women as they interact in relationships, how they communicate and what they think about, and now, due to the peppy stock market, it's not surprising that we're hearing more about the differences in men and women as they invest.
According to the experts, women are more likely to seek professional financial advice than men are, while men tend to be more financially aggressive than women. According to CNN, there's a new book out on the subject called Sex, Money and Power, written by Linda Barbanel, a psychotherapist. Ms. Barbanel says, "Women are the great researchers-men would rather get a tip on the golf course than look it up."
Obviously, these are generalizations. Plenty of men do their homework, and there are plenty of women (including some of my clients) who prefer to invest quite aggressively.
Ms. Barbanel says that, "A decade ago, this wasn't necessarily the case. Today, women are attending financial seminars, and getting more and more involved in their own retirements. On the other hand, men are more prone to take high flyers, while the women seem to gravitate towards more conservative mutual funds."
This is not the only study on the subject; in fact, a report by Dr. Tahira Hira, a professor of Personal Finance and Consumer Economics, at Iowa State University, asserts that men are more likely to take an adventure with international or emerging markets. In a recent report entitled "A Study of Financial beliefs and Behaviors," Dr Hira also found that women are more willing to learn about financial planning. She says, "Men take a tip here and there, and just go with it, using a little trial and error."
Another interesting discovery is that men tend to reallocate their retirement mix more often than women. In this rapidly changing world, reviewing your financial goals and plans more often than annually is an even better idea. Interestingly enough, men and women seem to be about equally optimistic about their future financial situations.
I think all of this is a good trend. For years in this space, on the radio and on the speakers' circuit, I have implored people to become more involved in their own financial futures-most everyone now agrees that the government isn't going to carry the load for us. Social Security was never intended to be a person's complete retirement package, and for women interested in their "equal share," they also take on the "equal share" of present and future financial responsibilities.
* * *
Speaking of finances and current market activities, we hear so much about the Old Economy vs. the New Economy, Jim Cramer of theStreet.com, wrote an excellent piece recently on that topic. I quoted it (with credit) a couple of Saturdays ago on the radio show, and I'd like to share it with you now. It's entitled, "What Portfolio Managers Really Want." Here's what Mr. Cramer says; "Portfolio managers want the S&P without those slow-growing cereal companies. They want the S&P without those boring plain paper, newsprint and tissue paper stocks; they want the S&P without the bank, brokerage, savings and loan and insurance stocks that get hurt so badly from an increase in short-term rates. They want an S&P that doesn't have exposure to the defense budget or the problems at Boeing, they want an S&P that doesn't have those drug stocks that the government keeps picking on, or those managed health care, nursing home, or acute health care companies that the regulators keep smashing. They want an S&P sans those building material, automotive and housing stocks that are sensitive to the Fed Chairman's great vigilance. They want an S&P without exposure to coppers, steels, irons, aluminums, and other materials that do poorly when the Fed hikes rates dramatically. They want an S&P that has no exposure to the transports and the chemicals which are hurt by higher oil and gas costs, but they also want an S&P that has no exposure to oil and gas stocks themselves, because the price of crude oil is probably unsustainable. In other words, they want the NASDAQ."
So says Jim Cramer of theStreet.com, and in our present reality it couldn't be said better. You may not like it, but now, and for the past couple of years, it's all been about growth and technology; it is, as we have said, the Old Economy vs. the New Economy, and clearly, the New Economy is winning, big-time.
(Tom Butenhoff is a First Vice President with J. E.
Liss & Company in Milwaukee. The views are his and not necessarily
those of Liss Financial Services or the Job Connection/Hiring
Network.)