You’re Smart About Money, But Investment Confidence Feels Out of Reach
When I first meet with many of my young female clients, more times than not, they tell me that “they do not know where to start” or “this was not taught to them in school.” Honestly, I get it. If I was not in this career field, dedicated so much time to understanding investments, and/or continued to expand my knowledge, I might be in the same boat as my clients. I always tell my clients, I do not expect you to go teach a class on wealth management or investments, but I do want you to understand where your money is, what it is doing for you, and how it is impacting your goals.
As a young woman, you’ve mastered budgeting, built your emergency fund, and consistently save money each month. You know investing is crucial for building wealth, yet something holds you back. You’re not alone—despite 71% of women now owning investments in the stock market¹, only 33% of women feel confident handling their own investments².
This confidence gap isn’t about your intelligence or capability. Research consistently shows that when women do invest, they often outperform men. Wells Fargo’s 2025 Women and Investing report showed investing returns for female investors were higher than men’s, with women achieving higher returns while taking on less risk³.
The Stakes Are Higher Than You Think
The cost of waiting isn’t just about missing gains—it’s about your entire financial future. Over a third of women above age 36 said that “waiting too long to start investing for retirement” was their biggest financial regret⁴. With women typically living five years longer than men and the median retirement savings for American women at $50,000 compared to men’s $157,000⁵, the investment confidence gap becomes a wealth gap.
Consider this: if you invest $200 monthly starting at age 25 with a 7% average annual return, you’ll have approximately $525,000 by age 65. Wait until 35 to start, and that number drops to $245,000—a difference of $280,000 simply due to ten years of hesitation.
Your Investment Confidence Roadmap
Step 1: Recognize Your Natural Investment Strengths
Before focusing on what you don’t know, acknowledge what you already bring to investing:
Patience and Discipline: Women investors consistently demonstrate these crucial qualities. All women investors point to their patience and discipline as strengths, and research shows women trade less frequently than men, leading to better long-term results.
Research-Oriented Approach: Half of the women surveyed reported working with a financial advisor compared with just under 37% of the men⁶. This willingness to seek guidance and thoroughly research decisions is actually a competitive advantage.
Risk-Awareness: While sometimes labeled as “too conservative,” your natural caution helps avoid speculative investments that can derail portfolios.
Step 2: Start Small and Build Momentum
The $50 Solution: You don’t need thousands to begin. Even $50 per month is enough to get started with most brokerages and is enough to get you in the habit of investing for your future⁷.
Take Advantage of Employer Benefits: If your company offers a 401(k) match, this is free money that immediately doubles your investment. It’s the closest thing to a guaranteed return you’ll find.
Step 3: Education Without Overwhelm
Focus on Fundamentals First: You don’t need to understand options trading or the stock market to be successful. Master the basics: diversification, dollar-cost averaging, and the power of compound interest.
Learn Your Learning Style: More than half of Gen Z (60%) use the internet to find financial information whether that’s a TikTok breakdown of credit scores or a deep dive into investing on YouTube⁸. Find educational content that matches how you prefer to learn. HBKS offers webinars as well and you can join our email list here if you aren’t on it already.
Join Communities: Nearly twice as many Millennial women investors say they participated in an investment club or community when they first started investing than prior generations⁹. Consider joining online investing communities or finding local investment clubs.
Step 4: The Confidence-Building Timeline
Month 1-3: Open accounts and start with small, automatic investments. Focus on learning basic terminology and concepts.
Month 4-6: Increase investment amounts as you become comfortable. Begin researching individual stocks or funds that interest you.
Month 7-12: Expand your knowledge into more advanced topics. Consider increasing your investment percentage as your confidence grows.
The Generational Advantage
The data shows young women are already leading this change. Millennial women start to invest at 27 years of age, on average, jumping into the markets nearly a decade earlier than the Baby Boomers before them¹⁰. Even more encouraging, almost one-third (31%) of Millennial women investors say they feel very confident in their investing strategy¹¹.
Common Roadblocks and How to Navigate Them
“I don’t know enough”: Remember that 23% of women claim they don’t know how investing works, compared to only 16% of men12, yet women consistently outperform men when they do invest. Knowledge comes with experience.
“It’s too risky”: While 45% of women viewed the stock market as too risky for them13, the biggest risk is actually not investing at all. Inflation erodes the purchasing power of money sitting in savings accounts.
“I don’t have enough money”: $40k is the point where women in 2024 started investing for the first time at levels above the national average14, but you can start with much less. The key is starting, not the amount.
Your Next Steps Start Today
Building investment confidence isn’t about becoming a financial expert overnight—it’s about taking the first step and building from there. The young women who are successfully investing today started exactly where you are: knowing they should invest but feeling uncertain about how to begin.
This Week:
- Calculate how much you can comfortably invest monthly
- Set up automatic transfers to a separate “investment fund” savings account
This Month:
- Open your first investment account
- Make your first investment
- Subscribe to one educational resource (podcast, newsletter, or YouTube channel)
This Quarter:
- Increase your monthly investment amount by 25%
- Join an investment community or find an accountability partner
- Review and adjust your investment strategy based on what you’ve learned
The Future is Female—And Financially Empowered
The investment confidence gap is closing, and young women like you are leading the charge. Women’s assets are increasing at an 8.1% annual growth rate, compared to men’s at 2.7%15. As women accumulate more wealth, your collective influence over financial markets expands.
You have the intelligence, the discipline, and the tools to succeed as an investor. What you need now is the confidence to begin. Your financial future is too important to leave to chance, and you’re more prepared than you think.
The best time to start investing was yesterday. The second-best time is today.
Ready to take control of your financial future? At HBKS Wealth Advisors, we specialize in helping young women build investment confidence and create personalized strategies for long-term wealth building. Contact us today to schedule your complimentary consultation and discover how we can help you bridge the confidence gap.
Sources
¹ Fidelity Investments. (2024). “New Research from Fidelity® Shows 71% of Women Own Investments in the Stock Market.” Retrieved from https://newsroom.fidelity.com/pressreleases/new-research-from-fidelity–shows-71–of-women-own-investments-in-the-stock-market/s/db3a5765-9b69-4e51-a315-66ecc51e0066
² Female Invest. (2024). “The Gender Investing Gap is Real and the Statistics are Here to Prove it.” Retrieved from https://www.femaleinvest.com/en-gb/magazine/gender-investing-gap
³ Hatch Invest. (2025). “The confidence gap: The biggest investing mistake women make.” Retrieved from https://www.hatchinvest.nz/articles/the-biggest-mistake-women-make-when-investing
⁴ Moneywise. (2024). “Women and Investing in 2024: Latest Statistics.” Retrieved from https://moneywise.com/investing/investing-for-women
⁵ Hatch Invest. (2025). “The confidence gap: The biggest investing mistake women make.” Retrieved from https://www.hatchinvest.nz/articles/the-biggest-mistake-women-make-when-investing
⁶ The Motley Fool. (2025). “Women and Investing Statistics for 2025.” Retrieved from https://www.fool.com/research/women-in-investing-statistics/
⁷ Moneywise. (2024). “Women and Investing in 2024: Latest Statistics.” Retrieved from https://moneywise.com/investing/investing-for-women
⁸ GWI. (2025). “Financial literacy across generations: How Gen Z…” Retrieved from https://www.gwi.com/blog/financial-literacy-by-generations
⁹ Business Wire. (2025). “Millennial Women Lean Into Investing: They Start Earlier, Invest Across More Asset Classes and Carry Greater Confidence Than Previous Generations.” Retrieved from https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250611383082/en/
¹⁰ Equities.com. (2025). “Millennial women are investing earlier, and with greater confidence, than their elders.” Retrieved from https://www.equities.com/impact-investing/millennial-women-are-investing-earlier-and-with-greater-confidence-than-their-elders/
¹¹ Business Wire. (2025). “Millennial Women Lean Into Investing: They Start Earlier, Invest Across More Asset Classes and Carry Greater Confidence Than Previous Generations.” Retrieved from https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250611383082/en/
12 Female Invest. (2024). “The Gender Investing Gap is Real and the Statistics are Here to Prove it.” Retrieved from https://www.femaleinvest.com/en-gb/magazine/gender-investing-gap
13 Female Invest. (2024). “The Gender Investing Gap is Real and the Statistics are Here to Prove it.” Retrieved from https://www.femaleinvest.com/en-gb/magazine/gender-investing-gap
14 Moneybox. (2025). “Women and Investing in 2025: Confidence, Growth, the Future.” Retrieved from https://www.moneyboxapp.com/women-and-investing-in-2025
15 Mintos. (2025). “Women & Investing: 10 Must-Know Statistics on the Gender Investment Gap.” Retrieved from https://www.mintos.com/blog/gender-investment-gap/
Important Disclosures
The information and examples included in this document are for general, educational, and informational purposes only. It does not contain any financial or investment advice and does not address any individual facts and circumstances. As such, it cannot be relied on as providing any financial or investment advice. If you would like financial or investment advice regarding your specific facts and circumstances, please contact a qualified financial advisor.
Any investment involves some degree of risk, and different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, including loss of principal. It should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment, strategy, or allocation (including those recommended by HBKS Wealth Advisors) will be profitable or equal the corresponding indicated or intended results or performance level(s). Past performance of any security, indices, strategy, or allocation may not be indicative of future results.
The historical and current information as to rules, laws, guidelines, or benefits contained in this document is a summary of information obtained from or prepared by other sources. It has not been independently verified but was obtained from sources believed to be reliable. HBKS Wealth Advisors does not guarantee the accuracy of this information and does not assume liability for any errors in information obtained from or prepared by these other sources.
HBKS Wealth Advisors is not a legal or accounting firm, and does not render legal, accounting or tax advice. You should contact an attorney or CPA if you wish to receive legal, accounting or tax advice.
