10 reasons why men need Sheconomics

Don't let our pinkness put you off - we have lots of bloke-friendly stuff going on. Here's why we think men need Sheconomics too:

·      1. Because research shows your investments would surge if you used your feminine side a tad more. No need to greet your latest dividend with a tearful acceptance speech, it's just about not being over-cocky, a risk-taker or one of the boys. More diverse portfolios, caution and not over-reacting to a volatile market explain why female investors outperform men consistently.

·     2  Because you could learn how to dress for success. Drop that favourite well-worn brown suit off at Oxfam and let someone with a tape measure get intimate with your inside leg. Seriously, people do judge you by what you wear. A lot. Men in bespoke suits are judged to be more successful, confident, trustworthy, flexible and higher earners than their off-the-peg counterparts.

·     3. Because you could suss out how to have cool, non-confrontational conversations about money. And you could have a better, happier home-life if you did so. There are tricks and strategies we can all learn that will make money-chat nicer. No issues. No arguments. Hugs optional.

·    4.  Because you could be a better Dad.  Without realising it parents play more roughly with boy babies than with girls. They let boys explore more than girls and use more emotion words with their daughters than with their sons. Swat up on the significant but subtle ways you can give your daughter the kind of start in life you are unconsciously giving your son. Get wind of some good Sheconomics strategies for raising kids.

·      5. Because you’ll do the right thing by her in the event of the unmentionable happening.

     When multi-million selling author Stieg Larsson died suddenly at 50 his estranged family, and not his life-long partner Eva, inherited his fortune. Eva's even having to fight a legal battle to stay in their apartment. No-one wants to think about death but not thinking of those you'll leave behind is dumb.

  

·     6. Because you overwork your logical left brain and neglect the poor old right. Ever thought about which side of your brain is managing your money? Intuition can be a useful tool, but seems to be the reverse of logic. The field of behavioural economics is obsessed by these concepts because humans are rarely rational decision-making machines. They fall victim to flawed logic, emotional reactions and cognitive biases.

·      7. Because you could realise some of the hidden forces behind financial success, and why it helps to be tall, left-handed and tidy. 

      Yes, we said tidy. No, we’re not nagging. It's just that taller people earn more than shorter people and left-handed people earn more than right-handed people. Things that are hard to change. But people with tidier homes do earn more than people with messy homes. Reason to not drop those socks on the floor?

·      8. Because if you’ve ever suffered death-by-dinner-party you’ll see how company boards make the same mistakes as very dull hosts. Mixing up the guests brings livelier conversations and new perspectives. About 10 years ago Norwegian boards were mostly made up of men with very similar views and backgrounds who went hunting and fishing together. This meant there was a huge risk of group-think in the boards’ decision-making processes, and a real lack of diverse perspectives.

     Adding just 3 women to boards has been shown to increase the company's bottom line by 40% and boost the country's economy.

·      9 . Because emotional intelligence is just as important as IQ. You’ve always known that IQ isn’t all it’s cracked up to be - there are better ways of selecting the right bunch of people to work with.

     Studies show the most effective groups listen to each other, share constructive criticism, have open minds, are not autocratic and use conversational turn-taking to good effect.

·      10. Because we can all learn something from the bagel man. You can tell how much people like their bosses and their work from how much dosh they drop in the honesty box. It could be a good metric for getting to know the health of your company and the happiness of your employees. Honest. 

 Final word from a lovely friend of Sheconomics, Alan Newman of the Finance IT Network:

• "There's probably some merit to the accusation that the financial services sector is 'male, pale and stale'. The insights from this book - co-authored by a Professor of Psychology and a Financial Coach (who left IFA boredom behind her) - should be compulsory reading for us blokes."