Sallie’s Opinion

The Small Win That Could Change Your Life

At Ellevest, we’re all about the power of small wins.

That is, those quick victories that can go unnoticed. They’re valuable in themselves, both because they are achievable and because they give you a feeling of momentum. These small wins can then add up to big changes over time.

In that vein, I’ll share with you my vote for one of the best small wins you could have historically given yourself. It’s really small — I’m talking “done in 10 minutes.” It’s also potentially really big. But it isn’t really talked about.

I’ll give you a hint:

If you had known what 2020 held, would you — or, honestly, would anybody on the planet — have guessed that S&P 500¹ would be up 16%, and the Nasdaq would be up 44%?

A few more hints:

•	The stock market has historically trended upward: Since the 1920s, it has gone up by an average of 9.7% annually.
•	If you had historically invested for the long term, you would have had a 99.8% chance of positive return over any given 15-year period since the 1920s.
•	The power of compounding returns is so great that if you had invested $1,000 in the stock market in 1900 and just left it there and let it grow, in 2020 you would have had $58,191,000.²

Holy wealth creation, Batman.³

An illustration of a woman and child holding hands as they ascend an escalator.

5 ways to be a financial feminist in 2021

The “she-cession” of 2020 will have a ripple effect into 2021, for sure. We don’t know what’s next ... but we do know we’re going to keep fighting, together. Here are five things we can do as financial feminists in the coming year — and every year.

READ IT

A tweet by Andrea Junker talking about how people faulting Janet Yellen for earning $7.2 million and AOC for having been a waitress.

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“Women need to talk about money. And not feel ashamed of it. Don’t ever feel ashamed of a woman making money. There are women all over this world who don't have an opportunity, or the education, or the ability to make money. And the more women who make more money, will give more money away, will take care of their societies, will take care of their communities, will do more with that money.”

– Reese Witherspoon, to her daughter Ava 🙌

What we’ve been watching

•	The good news: The number of the 100 top-grossing films of the year that were directed by women reached an all-time high in 2020. Even better: That’s the second year in a row of breaking records. The not-so-good news: That number is only 16% of the total.
•	Photography is still dominated by white men. With Black Women Photographers, Polly Irungu created a searchable database, a platform to elevate the work of Black women, and a community for members to celebrate each other., and she’s doing all that holiday labor mostly by herself, and without payment.
•	In 2009, Linda Falcone asked, “Where are the women artists of the Renaissance?” And she started looking. Now, we have some pretty fascinating answers.
•	So all the conversation about countries led by women are handling the pandemic better has some research to back it up: Women are better leaders during a crisis.
•	Congrats to San Antonio Spurs coach Becky Hammon, who became the first woman to coach in a regular NBA season game last week.

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This week’s newsletter was brought to you while learning about scientific theories of ancient women warriors. Forward it to all the warriors you know.

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**The “Two Months Free” promotional offer is offered to those who sign up for an Ellevest Membership service (Ellevest Essential, Ellevest Plus or Ellevest Executive) on or before 11:59 PM EST on January 31, 2021 (the “Promotional Period”). Clients who enroll before the end of the Promotional Period will pay no Ellevest membership fee for the first two months of their membership period, starting on the date the membership agreement is acknowledged. After two months from this date, the applicable fees for the Ellevest Membership service selected will be reinstated.

Ellevest reserves the right to refuse to award you the Promotional offer if it determines, in its sole discretion, that the promotion was claimed under wrongful or fraudulent circumstances, that your participation is against the spirit of the program, that making payment would constitute a violation of your Ellevest Membership Terms and Conditions Agreement or applicable federal or state law, or that incomplete or inaccurate information was provided. Ellevest reserves the right to end or modify any promotion at any time.

¹Short for the “Standard & Poor’s 500 Index,” a measurement that tracks the performance of the 500 US companies with the largest total value. So in other words, the values of the 500 biggest companies in the country went up by a (weighted) average of 16% in 2020.

²Source: Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook 2020, their calculation (PDF download, Figure 12).

³I’m punchy. And my son is obsessed with Batman. For a long time, he made us call him Batman. Even though his name is Johnathan, which doesn’t sound anything like Batman.

Ellevest reserves the right to refuse to award you the Promotional offer if it determines, in its sole discretion, that the promotion was claimed under wrongful or fraudulent circumstances, that your participation is against the spirit of the program, that making payment would constitute a violation of your Ellevest Membership Terms and Conditions Agreement or applicable federal or state law, or that incomplete or inaccurate information was provided. Ellevest reserves the right to end or modify any promotion at any time.

All opinions and views expressed by Ellevest are current as of the date of this writing, for informational purposes only, and do not constitute or imply an endorsement of any third party’s products or services.

Information was obtained from third-party sources, which we believe to be reliable but not guaranteed for accuracy or completeness.

The information provided should not be relied upon as investment advice or recommendations, does not constitute a solicitation to buy or sell securities and should not be considered specific legal, investment or tax advice.

The information provided does not take into account the specific objectives, financial situation, or particular needs of any specific person.

Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and there is no assurance that the investment will provide positive performance over any period of time.

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Funds held in your Ellevest investment accounts are not FDIC insured, not guaranteed by Coastal, and may lose value. Ellevest does not guarantee investment performance.

Ellevest Membership fees are as follows: Ellevest Essential is $1 per month, Ellevest Plus is $5 per month, and Ellevest Executive is $9. Other fees as described in Ellevest’s Wrap Fee Program Brochure and the Ellevest Membership Terms and Conditions Agreement will continue to apply.

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Opinionated: The 10-Minute Small Win That Matters

The Small Win That Could Change Your Life

5 ways to be a financial feminist in 2021

Your first small win: Ellevest

What we’ve been watching

Win free coaching in January with Ellevest’s Member Bingo.

This week’s newsletter was brought to you while learning about scientific theories of ancient women warriors. Forward it to all the warriors you know.

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