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different, and it is applicable in such a way that people do find it easier to understand. It is not quite as challenging as graphing logarithmic equations. It’s a lot different. MW: There are many people who say women generally are more likely to have math anxiety than men. Is that something you’ve seen? Parker: There are great articles and podcasts and TED talks about the same concepts, of how we’re raising our girls to be perfect and raising our boys to be brave. And there was one example at a girls’ coding camp, where they have to learn to do coding and the girls specifically would type up all this stuff and then if they couldn’t figure it out they’d erase it all and call the teacher over. The teacher would press undo and show all of this work and that they were really close, but because the girls couldn’t make it work they wanted to tell the teacher to show them from the beginning. They didn’t want to show this not perfect work. It is just a good example that demonstrates that girls are being raised to be perfect and not in the same way as boys, who may say (like in that example) that they don’t care and at least they’ll get partial credit. The only way to learn is by making mistakes, but that gets lost on girls when they feel they have to be perfect. MW: Does that concept translate to adult couples in financial planning? Parker: It is more apparent for women when they are single individuals. They’re more comfortable saying “I don’t get it” or it’s more evident. They’re not as afraid to ask for help. It’s when they’re with their spouses it is easier to be quiet or let them talk and pretend you understand things because your partner is helping you, but it is still relevant. I always work with most clients together and I will ask them both “do you understand this?” or make sure they’re both on the same page. MW: How would you say your background as a math teacher benefits you and your clients? Parker: One of the biggest ways is in my ability to explain things. It’s funny, I majored in math and decided to be a high school math teacher, but when I was in high school, I struggled with math. I had good grades and I didn’t have math anxiety, but I wasn’t some freaky Einstein genius kid who got it all. It made sense when I didn’t get something right and because I liked it so much I worked hard to understand it. I was good at explaining things to my friends. But my own struggle made me good at explaining it. A lot of math teachers are geniuses who understand it, and that makes it hard to explain it to students who are struggling. That ability translates nicely to doing financial plans. I can see what is probably going to confuse them and where they’ll get lost. MW: Are there any math-related topics that clients typically have a hard time understanding? Parker: It varies, but one big thing we talk about is inflation and compound interest. The need to factor in inflation because a dollar today is not going to be a dollar 10 years from now, and that it is a slow climb. People are amazed at how different the numbers look when I factor in 2.5% inflation. MW: Is there any way to overcome math anxiety? Parker: It is important that there be no stigma about it. There’s this expectation people have of themselves that they should know more about finance because it applies to their life. I am a financial adviser and I don’t know how to fix my car, so I bring it to be serviced by professionals. I don’t feel stupid because I didn’t focus on that and I know nothing about it. It can be scary if you don’t know who you’re going to and unfortunately there are some bad people out there, but if you do your homework to find the people to help you, you don’t need to feel ashamed or embarrassed. That’s the whole reason you find a professional to begin with — someone who is trained. That’s their job.
RockTheStreetWallStreet.com | Moving Girls Forward in the Field of Finance
