Cultural phenomenon as a tool to express your point of view
He’s doing it again.
His lips are curling upward, as he listens closely.
“If I pay for something in cash, it’s free.”
He's trying his hardest not to laugh at the absurdity.
“And if I buy a jacket today and return it tomorrow, I am actually making money.”
He begins to shake in delight.
“If I have money pre-loaded in my Starbucks app and I order a drink, the drink is then free.”
That’s when the full blown howl of a laugh comes out as she tries to explain girl math to her father.
It’s hard trying not to laugh (and relate as a woman) along with these videos as you scroll through Tik Tok. Girl math is the latest financial trend to hit the platform. Women are making videos talking about their relationship with money and how they justify their spending habits. This trend that was actually started by women, builds on the stereotypes that we associate with women and them being bad with numbers. It makes the whole conversation around girl math very nuanced. Is it sarcasm and talking about biases head-on, or plain humor for the sake of good content?
This article by the CBC explores how the Girl Math meme is changing conversations around women and money without taking sides. The journalist mentions that “Investment advisers and personal finance experts say as long as the explanations are treated as just for fun, girl math can actually encourage financial transparency and open up discussions about money.” It would have been interesting to know how many of those advisers and finance experts are women since we are talking about a gender bias. Women who are in the financial profession and are fighting against these stereotypes to get ahead in their careers, might think differently.
In our search to find different voices talking about this phenomenon we came across this article. The author, who is a financial specialist and a wealth advisor writes, “Seemingly lighthearted, the hashtag plays into a damaging stereotype that women are bad at math.” In a world where we want more women to be a part of the financial industry, this trend she says might do more harm than good. Although, this article by the CEO and cofounder of Ellevest has a positive outlook on the subject. She writes, “We morphed another patronizing money message (girl math . . . ugh) into a viral campaign against zero-fun budgets and financial shame holding us back. And we showed them: Pumpkin spice lattes were sipped with pride.”
We know that a Tik Tok meme might not be something that would be a point of conversation with your clients, however when a financial meme catches on, it’s important for an advisor to be aware, especially if it’s one that speaks to gender biasing.
Having a point of view about this trend and how it impacts the stereotypes that you probably had to overcome in your profession, is why it’s so important to weigh into the conversation. Writing about your perspective on a platform like LinkedIn elevates a meme to a more mainstream topic, and if you can welcome thoughts from your connections it broadens the discussion even further.
Cultural phenomenons like this one have a way of bringing people together, discussing, debating and meaningfully engaging with each other. These digital interactions on social media can often lead to longer in-person conversations at home, in the office or at events.
These moments are opportunities for you to capitalize on, leveraging them as an expert in your domain while also hearing from different perspectives to understand why these trends become so meaningful to people.
As you learn and discover these conversations, it provides you with the opportunity to teach. Because memes come and go, but your lessons are more powerful than any meme will ever be.