With her nearly decade of experience healing women to build long-term financial independence, Ellevest CEO Sallie Krawcheck has seen just how gendered expectations of women can hurt them financially. Whether it's allowing men to take the gendered role of household CEO or hesitating to invest, Krawcheck is eager to see women set themselves up for a better future.
One thing women can always do more of, Krawcheck believes, is talk about money. And one of the keys to a good conversation involves asking questions. So what is the one question above all others that women should be asking their financial advisors?
"The question we have heard women wanting to ask the most is 'What is the downside?'" Krawcheck says, without hesitation. She also takes the opportunity to bust a commonly-held belief that women don't invest because they are risk-averse.
"[It's] not that women are risk averse, as we often say they are, but very much that women are risk aware."
"In a reasonable down market, could I stand to lose? Am I still able to retire? Am I still able to have the family? Am I still able to buy a home?"
According to Krawcheck, these are really reasonable questions to ask about making a personal investment. Her mission at Ellevest is to help women sort through those very concerns.
"We look to answer those questions on our app[...] by showing reasonable downsides."
