The term “mumbo jumbo” originated in the 1700s to describe tribal men who dressed up in costumes to solve domestic disputes. Inevitably, the woman was to blame and was subjected to humiliation and disgrace. Today, “mumbo jumbo” is simply an expression that characterizes the view that what is being said is confusing or meaningless.
While speaking to a group of women investors recently, I asked them to share the one item they would most like to see changed in the investment world. One woman spoke up and said her advisors speak “mumbo jumbo,” to which the vast majority of participants agreed. Following the meeting, I researched the term and was surprised by the linkage between how women were treated over 300 years ago to how they feel they are …show more content…
Make education a fundamental tenet of your value proposition. Take time to ensure your clients understand your investment recommendations. Be open to questions and find easy-to-understand analogies when explaining complex ideas.
3. Focus on subsets of the female population, providing customized strategies for each demographic. For instance, a younger women should not be treated the same, as say, someone in her 80s.
Having been in the financial services industry for many years, women of all ages have shared stories with me about their experiences with their financial advisors. At the heart of each story was a feeling that their ideas and questions were ignored or discounted. It is these conversations that have inspired me to develop this article. And while I’ve written other pieces about the importance of Board participation by women – the need for parity among all people – it struck me that we haven’t yet taken the broader social issues and broken them down into actionable steps to address.
It is time for all advisors – both men and women – to learn how to communicate more effectively with a wider and a more diverse culture who needs our expertise now more than ever. If we do not step up now, the industry will not progress, nor will any of us as individuals, and we will remain stuck in the 300-year tradition of “mumbo
While speaking to a group of women investors recently, I asked them to share the one item they would most like to see changed in the investment world. One woman spoke up and said her advisors speak “mumbo jumbo,” to which the vast majority of participants agreed. Following the meeting, I researched the term and was surprised by the linkage between how women were treated over 300 years ago to how they feel they are …show more content…
Make education a fundamental tenet of your value proposition. Take time to ensure your clients understand your investment recommendations. Be open to questions and find easy-to-understand analogies when explaining complex ideas.
3. Focus on subsets of the female population, providing customized strategies for each demographic. For instance, a younger women should not be treated the same, as say, someone in her 80s.
Having been in the financial services industry for many years, women of all ages have shared stories with me about their experiences with their financial advisors. At the heart of each story was a feeling that their ideas and questions were ignored or discounted. It is these conversations that have inspired me to develop this article. And while I’ve written other pieces about the importance of Board participation by women – the need for parity among all people – it struck me that we haven’t yet taken the broader social issues and broken them down into actionable steps to address.
It is time for all advisors – both men and women – to learn how to communicate more effectively with a wider and a more diverse culture who needs our expertise now more than ever. If we do not step up now, the industry will not progress, nor will any of us as individuals, and we will remain stuck in the 300-year tradition of “mumbo