A first-of-its-kind content series has revealed how much of a woman’s financial fate is decided by her choices – and how much is shaped by gendered systems and structures.
Over recent weeks, Choose Her Own Adventure saw thousands of women voting in social media polls to guide a fictional character, Anna, from age 20-70 and through a lifetime of common crossroads.
Created by FW (Future Women) and supported by their partnership with La Trobe Financial, the Choose Her Own Adventure series saw money coaches giving their take on Anna’s every turn, including Women With Cents founder Natasha Janssens, Money School’s Lacey Filipech and Dawn Thomas of The Wealth Designers.
“Throughout this adventure, thanks to a cast of financial experts, we discovered how every choice shaped Anna’s (our) economic future,” said series creator and FW Deputy Managing Director, Jamila Rizvi. “We also learned practical tips to help us tweak and to re-calibrate toward a brighter, more bountiful result.”
Unpacking gender gaps in financial literacy, pay and superannuation, Choose Her Own Adventure explored how and why women are financially disadvantaged at every age and stage of their lives. According to several studies, as early as primary school.
“Girls tend to be more conservative [than boys] – and that flows through,” says Dawn Thomas, who featured in the series. “Men will be more open to things like investing in shares. Which is considered risky, [but] it’s not. Because if you look at long-term returns… they even out.”
Guided by the collective FW instagram community of 179,000+ professional women, Anna did choose to invest in the sharemarket and make consistent voluntary superannuation contributions from her 20s. She also opted to buy property following a divorce in her 50s, crafting a hopeful narrative as homelessness increasingly impacts women in this age group.
Rizvi said: “While we continue to lag in the financial literacy stakes, if we want to make the calls in our own lives, we need to keep learning.”
The learning will continue with a post-campaign online panel event on Wednesday May 28 at 12.30pm, hosted by Rizvi and featuring financial experts Janssens, Filipech and Thomas.
Choose Her Own Adventure is a content series by FW, supported by our partnership with La Trobe Financial. Discover how it all played out at futurewomen.com/choose-her-own-adventure.
Media opportunities
- Jamila Rizvi, gender equality advocate, author and FW deputy managing director (Melbourne, VIC)
- Georgie Dent, CEO of The Parenthood (Sydney, NSW)
- Antonietta Sestito, Senior Vice President, Chief People & Marketing Officer at La Trobe Financial (Melbourne, VIC)
- Natasha Janssens, founder of Women With Cents (Canberra, ACT)
- Lacey Filipich, founder of Money School (Perth, WA)
- Dawn Thomas, senior financial adviser at The Wealth Designers (Perth, WA)
Facts about women compared to men in Australia
- For every dollar on average men earn, women earn 88 cents. That’s $246.30 less than men each week.
- The median superannuation balance in June 2021 for those aged 60 to 64 was $158,806 for females and $211,996 for males, a 25% per cent difference.
- The 2021 Census revealed that the number of women experiencing homelessness increased 10.1% between 2016 and 2021, compared to a 1.6% increase for men.
For all interviews or further information, please contact
Melanie Dimmitt – FW Content Specialist
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