Dale is a regular contributor to RESCU. You may have read his articles on stockmarket secrets and the golden rules of investment.
Dale told Rescu. that “our company has experienced a marked increase in the level of female investors in the past five years and proportionally they are the more successful investor.”
Dale continued on to say, “Women are as ambitious as men, but come from a more conservative place than men, as they tend to be more concerned with family and home. They are slower in the application on investing and trading of the markets, which is a distinct advantage as it allows them more time to develop their skills and gain experience. As they develop, they take on more, whereas men often invest or trade in things where they have yet to develop the knowledge, skills and experience.”
With the ability to trade and share market from home or anywhere in the world, more women have entered the market in greater numbers. Some are doing it to supplement their income, whilst others want to spend more time with their families rather than at work. While he said conventional roles were obviously changing some traditional elements saw women and men differ when it comes to their approach in the market. These key differences in their strategy, Dale argues, is why women are more successful in the market place.
“In essence men are the risk takers. The fact that they have been targeted as the bread winners of the family in the past has meant that men feel the need to plan for the future more so than women. While women are now entering the investment circuit for the seemingly untraditional family place, their conventional family ties of being at home means they take more caution with their money.”
Key investment rules
When thinking about investing, Dale believes there are three key factors to be taken into consideration.
“The first is to identify what you are trying to achieve; secondly is the risk factor taking into account your ability to be comfortable with the outcome and thirdly, whether you are knowledgeable and possess the skills to manage the risks. It is these key elements, that men and women tend to approach differently.
“Men tend to focus more on what they can make where women tend to think about what they can lose.”
A women’s general need for safety “to keep things simple,” is another reason why women tend to excel in the market, he believes.
“The risks they take are lower. In saying all that about one in ten men invests like a woman and one in ten women invest like the men.”
Women’s stockmarket strengths and weaknesses
“A woman generally will be open to learning and asking questions as they like to understand something before moving on,” says Dale. “Their natural tendency to avoid risk (thinking of home and family) allows them to more accurately assess risk and plan for it.”
And while this caution can lead to women’s success, it can also lead to women stifling their strengths in the market. “The negative side of this is that they hold themselves back by putting unfounded barriers in front of themselves” says Dale.
Dale Gillham is the director and founder of Wealth Within, an Australian-based company specialising in share market education and independent investment advice.
Dale is the author of the book ‘How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20% and Australia’s first and only accredited Diploma of Share Trading and Investment.