Underappreciated Career Advice

Some underappreciated career advice: Do what you can to get on the up escalator.

I don’t mean that literally. I just mean that it is much easier to grow 10% if your industry is growing 10%. You just have to be average.?

And it’s harder — much harder — than you think to grow 10% if your industry is shrinking 10%. You have to be better — much better — than the average.?

Don’t believe me? Ask anyone in traditional media, which has been shrinking for years, shedding massive numbers of jobs along the way.

Or ask anyone in tech, which has had secular tailwinds.?

That doesn’t mean there aren’t booms and busts in growth industries (as seen in the banking industry, which tends to grow because the economy tends to grow, but can have massive cyclical swings up and down).?

But underlying growth and secular trends matter. A lot.?

And if you can find growth opportunities before others see them — before that growth is pretty obvious and simply an extrapolation of the recent past — all the better.

We have one such growth opportunity to share. And it’s one that very few people see coming.?

It’s the Great Wealth Transfer — a massive shift in who owns money in the United States. Right now, half of all wealth is held by Baby Boomers. Over the next 20 years, it will be inherited. Some sources have this amount of money at $84 trillion. Others say even more.?

Maybe you’ve heard of it. But do you know who will benefit from it most? If you’re like many, you may say Millennials. You may say Gen Z.??

But — if you’re like 83% of men — what you did not say was “women.”

By 2030, American women will manage at least $30 trillion, more than the GDP of the United States. We’ve never seen this kind of change in our lives, or in our grandmothers’ lives.?

In fact, numbers for the Great Wealth Transfer are so large that women will have the opportunity to reshape broad swaths of society.?

So what most people do not see coming is this newfound phase of economic power, the “Feminization of Wealth.” You can read more about it here.

Bottom line, though: The Feminization of Wealth will result in more confident women. (Our new research shows that getting or expecting a windfall significantly increases women’s financial confidence, which will certainly increase her confidence at work.)

Other bottom line: As my friend Cindy Gallop has said, “you can make a sh*t-ton of money by taking women seriously.” Beyoncé, Barbie, and Taylor agree.?

And it’s not just media companies that can benefit. You may have heard that Ellevest — built by women, for women — reached a new milestone this Women’s History Month: $2 billion in assets under management. This is on top of our being named by InvestmentNews as one of the fastest-growing registered investment advisors (RIAs) in the country.?

But this news is about so much more than the $2 billion. It’s about tens of thousands of women having that confidence to invest toward their dream retirements, their first homes, their next big vacay, or the ability to leave a situation that’s no longer working. It’s also about our clients using their wealth to make a positive difference for women — and by extension, everyone.?

Anyone who still thinks women are a “niche” market, think again.?

And, importantly, to getting on that up escalator. *clinks glass*

There’s never been a better time to invest in your financial goals.

• Join our $2 billion milestone celebration and get two months free with code BILLION when you sign up for Ellevest’s digital investing platform today.

• If you have $500k+ to invest, connect with our all-women team to explore how Ellevest can be a part of your financial journey.

• Book a complimentary call with an Ellevest financial planner to get personalized recommendations on your best next steps.
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