This week we interview Juliann Gumulak-Smith about this shocking insight into women investors. Are men or women better investors?

In the spirit of not being cancelled, threatened, or beaten up for having my own opinion... I'll let you decide.

Just kidding. My audience is smarter than that. 

This week we discuss women and investing, some tips on how people can learn to overcome some mental hurdles about investing and some basic skills you can easily learn.

How To Prevent Being Overwhelmed When Learning About Investing And The Stock Market

First things first. Learning about the stock market for many people makes them want to run to the hills. Just the words, stock market, makes many feel anxious. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand the stock market, you just need to learn a new set of skills. You are learning something new. It’s meant to feel a little uncomfortable. Think back to the first time you rode a bike, drove a car, took Calculus, or went off to college. All those experiences were uncomfortable at first too. The trick is to keep the uncomfortableness manageable so you keep moving forward, otherwise, you will be overwhelmed and quit.

Tip #1

Keep things to small, bite-sized educational moments. We are all so busy that if you set yourself up with a huge goal to reach in a short time, you are setting yourself up to fail. Think along the lines of 5-10 minutes a day to learn something new about investing and the stock market. These small, reachable goals keep you motivated, gives you a quick win, and keeps you moving forward. Think of it as creating momentum. Once and object is in motion, it stays in motion.

Tip #2

What do I learn first? I always like to begin with the language of investing. Remember when you had your first Biology class and there was a ton of new vocabulary to learn. Learning the language of investing is no different. Learn what the Dow Jones Industrial Average means, S&P 500, Russell 2,000, and the Nasdaq 100.  Once you know that, move onto terms like what is a growth fund, fixed income fund, dividend fund, Exchange-Traded Fund, and an index fund. It may feel overwhelming as you read this but again break it up and learn a word a day. The reason that we begin with language is so that you can start having meaningful conversations about money with your family, partner, and financial advisor. It’s all about gaining financial confidence. Have these conversations be interactive rather than just nodding your head.

Tip #3

What to study next? Where I like to take people next is learning about the different sectors of the stock market and general rules when certain sectors perform best under what economic conditions. In general, we have 11 different sectors of the stock market. They are technology, financials, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, materials, healthcare, communication services, real estate, utilities, energy, and industrials. Again, as a general rule, sectors such as energy, consumer discretionary, and technology perform best when the economy is expanding. Whereas, healthcare, consumer staples, and utilities perform better when the economy is contradicting. A great free resource to see what sectors are performing the best is the website ETF Screen. 

In additions, I also like people to know how you determine if you are in a bullish or bearish market. A simple rule of thumb is if you are trading above of below the 200-day simple moving average. This is not necessarily a buy or sell signal but rather background information. A free resource to obtain that information is at Stock Charts. On the main page, they have a search bar for SharpChart and you simply can type in the ticker symbol SPY (ETF fund for the S&P 500) and it will automatically have the 50 and 200 simple moving average come up.

Tip #4

Keep in mind that everyone invests differently. How you would like to invest will differ from your partner or your family. I like to use the example of HGTV’s remodeling shows. Often times, you will have one partner want to jump into the project and figure out things as they go. The other partner maybe wants to take a careful, step-by-step approach. Everyone takes action differently. There is a great assessment to take called the Kolbe A Index that can determine the way you prefer to take action. This is invaluable not only in to know that for investing but in every aspect of your life. It helps to put into focus the way you like to work and what areas you are strong in. For example, I’m a fact finder. I like to research everything before I make a decision. My partner, on the other hand, is a Quick-Start. He prefers to figure things out as they get into the project. We obviously have different approaches to when we buy a stock. We also have different approaches in how we interact with the world. There is no “right” way, just different ways. Knowing your Kolbe A Index brings an understanding about yourself and others.

Knowing the language of investing and the different sectors of the stock market creates a foundation which you can build on. From there, you decide where your educational journey will take you. You can turn to the areas that interest you the most and go down that path. Maybe you want to know more about what experts recommend for your asset allocation at your particular age. Or maybe you want to learn more about the fundamentals for a stock to help you decide if you will invest in their company or not. Perhaps you are a chart technician at heart and love looking at charts all day. The great thing is that there is always something new you can learn about investing and the stock market. 

Here’s to your educational journey!