Why don’t women take control of their own finances? That Is the question being asked by stock market training company ILTB (Invest Like The Best ). “We run regular workshops and seminars around the country”, says Susan Hayes, support and development manager, ILTB, “we get a lot of interest from both men and women, but only about 10 per cent of the people at our seminars are women.”
However there has been a striking increase in the number of Irish women entrepreneurs. A recent Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM ) report showed that last year the figure for women running businesses had increased to 5.9 per cent from 4.2 per cent in 2006. GEM said this percentage was much higher than the average in the EU and OECD countries.
It seems that women are now very comfortable moving into the business market but have yet to find that comfort level in the stock market. Susan Hayes feels that ILTB have the answer, “We understand that people can feel uncomfortable in the unfamiliar environment of finance and that’s the whole reasoning behind the free workshops. Anyone can attend, no previous knowledge is needed. The workshops give a good introduction to investment and how the financial markets work. Having listened to the basics, attendees can then make an informed choice about booking on to a full day seminar.”
Susan Hayes got the stock market bug at an early age. She was studying in NUI Galway when ILTB came in to make a presentation to students. By her own admission she was hooked that night. “The penny suddenly dropped for me,” she says, “The presenter simplified the whole process of investment and I realised I could take control of my own finances with confidence.” She then began working part time with ILTB while studying until she had completed her degree.
“I did get a bit of slagging,” she admits, “Everyone else would turn up to lectures in jeans and a t-shirt while I was sitting there primly in my little business suit because I’d have to rush off to a meeting immediately afterwards. I knew it was worth it though, I’d found what I wanted to do with my life; I just love it.”
Of course not everyone will want to actually work in the financial sector, but most people would like to feel confident about making decisions on their investments. The next ILTB workshop is in the Marriott Hotel, Galway on Tuesday October 6 at 7pm. Anyone who is interested in attending can reserve a place on www.iltb.ie, call Susan at 086 1003948 or simply go along on the evening.
