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 the S&P 5001 would be up 16%, and the Nasdaq would be up 44%?
Didn’t think so.
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.
Historically, if you had 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
Starting to invest is one of the best small wins you can give yourself today.
It’s important to note that this doesn’t mean that the stock market always goes up. Repeat after me: “All investing entails risk” and “past performance is no indicator of future performance.” And also: “Short-term volatility can sometimes be a bear.” (Remember March?)
But I think that many women have shied away from investing because it felt heavy and important and weighty. And, as a result, they may have missed out on life-changing amounts of money.
When, in fact, it’s a small win you can give yourself today. Right now. You can set up a recurring deposit into an investing account with Ellevest in 10 minutes. Five, if you type fast. With no investment minimum, so you can start where you are.4 And we manage your investments for you, based on the info on your life and your goals that you give us, so it’s not going to eat a lot of your time once you get started.
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.
2Data is through 2019. Source: Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook 2020, their calculation (PDF download from https://www.credit-suisse.com/about-us/en/reports-research/csri.html, 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.
4Account Requirements: The Ellevest investing service doesn’t require you to maintain a minimum account balance. However, there are portfolio-specific minimums (ranging from $1 to approximately $240). You may not receive the entire recommended portfolio until your account balance meets the respective portfolio minimum.
Rebalancing and Ongoing Management: Ellevest will not rebalance a portfolio until it meets the respective account balance minimum necessary to generate the required shares. This minimum is a function of portfolio allocation and the share price of individual holdings, which will vary.