‘Get out on the dance floor’

You don’t have to be an investing superstar to find joy in your life, according to Amanda Holden, author of a new book, “How to Be a Rich Old Lady: Your Guide to Easy Investing, Building Wealth, and Creating the Wild, Beautiful Life You Want.”

“But you do need to get out on the dance floor,” she told me.

Holden, a financial coach and the founder of Invested Development, an investing education business, has taken a subject many women find boring, or daunting, or simply don’t want to think about, and spun it into a refreshing take on investing.

Her mantra: You don’t have to wait until your retirement account is maxed out, your debt is gone, or your emergency fund is fully stocked to start noticing the magic of life.

That said, it would be “great to get all your money stuff sorted.”

“This book is about investing — what you need to go from surviving to thriving,” Holden said. “Look at my process as if you’re learning about an intimidating topic from your big sister’s coolest friend.”

Read more: How to start investing: A 6-step guide

Here are edited excerpts of our recent conversation:

Kerry Hannon: Why is being a ‘Rich Old Lady’ a motivator to learn about investing?

Amanda Holden: We’re learning this skill, this new language of money, so that we can take care of our future selves. By keeping a slightly wrinklier version of the face that you have now in mind helps make this process of learning this otherwise technical material easier.

Use that older lady as your avatar for financial independence. Part of the practice of learning about finances is dreaming into the future, thinking of who this person is and how we want to show up for her and take care of her, because that’s what it’s all about.

You drill down on the importance of women having “financial independence.” How do you define that?

There are a couple of ways to view that. One definition is being financially independent from a partner. So not relying on a man or a partner for money. It can also mean being able to live independent of a paycheck. So, not relying on a paycheck to be able to live your life, and more specifically, being able to live off of your investments.

For now, here’s what you need to know about reaching financial independence: Start investing early, stick with it, and with time, you can create a life where working for money becomes optional. If you want to work? Great. I do.

Your goal is to have options—the power to choose the life you want. And this life is not going to happen without investing. Saving money in the bank is good to a point, but it won’t get your money growing the way you need it to become a rich old lady.

What are the three steps to start building your financial foundation?

Save an emergency fund to cover stripped-down expenses — to keep the lights on and keep food on the table for six months, specifically in the event you lose a job. Next, pay off credit cards and other high-interest debt. Then begin investing for retirement

Of course, to get started, you initially need to be sure that your income exceeds your expenses. That surplus is going to be your strongest financial tool.

You compare investing to getting up on the dance floor. Elaborate?

Investing can be really intimidating. Many of my students feel that even once they understand it and they’re getting it, actually making a move, say, opening an account and purchasing an investment, can feel scary because you feel like you’re doing it wrong.

I say, get your butt on the dance floor. This is not about busting out the perfect move. It’s about getting yourself out there and getting started, knowing that you may make a mistake. You may look silly. It’s all OK.

What is the biggest mistake women make when it comes to money and their financial future?

The hardest situation is when a woman is in her 50s or 60s or 70s has gone through a divorce, and, for the first time, they’re figuring out what is going on with their money, and they don’t know what to do.

So the biggest mistake is that we are still seeing the majority of women who are in heterosexual partnerships relinquish the duty of long-term financial planning to their husbands.

The truth is, women are feeling so overburdened by all of the responsibilities that they have. Most women are working and still do the majority of unpaid labor at home. When the opportunity comes to relinquish one of those duties, it can feel like a small mercy to have one thing taken off their plate. I tell them I understand that you need one less job, but it can’t be this one.

amanda — Author Amanda Holden (pictured) says learning about investing is all about getting out on the dance floor. (Photo courtesy of Amanda Holden)

Have a question about retirement? Personal finances? Anything career-related? Click here to drop Kerry Hannon a note.

I have found that women are actually excellent investors. Why is that?

Many studies show that women tend to earn a slightly higher rate of return than their male counterparts over time for a few reasons. One reason is they stay calm, cool, and collected during tough times. Women are actually significantly less likely to bail at exactly the wrong time. Women seem to just be a bit more natural at taking the long-term view and riding out rocky periods. Women are also less likely to get caught up in treating their investments like gambling. Women just don’t take as many unnecessary risks.

What’s your big takeaway here for women who want to be rich old ladies?

Investing and managing your financial life is within your capacity to learn. Once we get you there, we can get you set up in a way that does not require constant monitoring or fretting. And there are easy ways to invest that are just going to be such a source of power for you, not just in the future, but right now.

Kerry Hannon is a Senior Columnist at Yahoo Finance. She is a career and retirement strategist and the author of 14 books, including “Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future,” “In Control at 50+: How to Succeed in the New World of Work,” and “Never Too Old to Get Rich.” Follow her on Bluesky and X.

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