Five smart steps for women to take back financial control
Canaccord Wealth’s Investment Director, Alice Wright, outlines some smart practical steps to become more confident in investing.
Investment Director
4 Feb 2026
|The majority of women are taking action with their finances but still lack confidence, which is crucial for long-term financial security. Alice Wright, Investment Director at Canaccord Wealth, explains that the confidence gap isn’t about the complexity of financial planning, it’s about mindset. Small, practical actions, taken consistently, can help women feel more in control and secure about their financial future.
Here, she shares her top five steps to take back control of your finances.
What is the financial confidence gap?
Women across the UK are taking a more active role in managing their money, but confidence isn’t keeping pace with action, according to new research that we conducted recently1.
Nearly three-quarters (72%) of women say they are taking steps to manage their finances, whether saving, investing, or seeking professional financial advice, but just 18% feel calm and in control of their finances.
The research highlights the emotional toll financial planning can take. One in four women regularly avoid financial planning, 42% spend more time worrying about financial admin than actually doing it and many overestimate how long tasks will take. Yet almost three-quarters (72%) agree that once they start, financial tasks are simpler than they imagined.
1. Map out your income and expenditure
The first step towards financial confidence is clarity.
Start by recording your income and outgoings or revisiting an existing budget. Do your regular expenses still reflect how you live today? Are there subscriptions or memberships you no longer use? Could surplus income be put to better use through saving or investing?
Gaining a clear overview of your day-to-day finances is often simpler than expected and it can highlight opportunities to improve financial security without changing your lifestyle.
2. Review what savings and investments you already have
If you have existing investments, make sure you understand them fully.
List what you own, where it’s held, how much it’s worth and what charges you’re paying. Are your investments still right for your circumstances? Could they be made more tax efficient. For example, by making full use of your ISA allowance? Do you need to set up a Stocks and Shares ISA if you only have a cash ISA?
Your life stage, priorities or attitude to risk may have changed since these investments were first made. Reviewing them ensures they’re still working as hard as you are.
3. Consider your family situation and life stage
Your family circumstances play a key role in how your finances should be structured.
If you’re married or in a civil partnership, reviewing how income and assets are held between you can unlock valuable tax and planning advantages. It’s also important to think about long-term security, particularly where there’s an age gap or different earning profiles.
Following a separation, ensuring finances are fully disentangled and clearly understood is equally important. Knowing exactly where you stand brings peace of mind and restores a sense of control.
4. Make sure you're protected against the unexpected
Planning for the unexpected is a vital part of financial confidence.
Take time to review any protection you have in place and whether through your employer or personally. Would you be able to maintain your lifestyle if you were unable to work? Are your policies still valid, relevant and appropriately sized?
Protection isn’t about thinking of the worst, it’s about being prepared. Having contingency plans in place can actually help reduce anxiety and provide reassurance for you and your family.
5. Plan for the future - regularly
Financial confidence grows when planning becomes a habit, not a one-off task.
Allowances reset annually, circumstances evolve, legislation and rules change and opportunities are found in different places. An annual financial review can help ensure your pensions, savings and investments stay tax efficient and aligned with your goals.
Whether it’s tidying up existing arrangements or considering new opportunities, a financial planner can help you stay focused, organised and confident about the road ahead.
Financial planning as self-care for women
The core challenge for many women is not the task itself, but the thought of the task at hand. Most financial actions - from checking pensions to updating a budget - can be completed in less time than it takes to scroll social media or run a short errand. But for many women, it’s the stress and anxiety that financial and wealth planning presents. It is really important for people to feel that they can grow their wealth with confidence and we’re not seeing enough of that.
By reframing financial planning as a powerful form of self-care and control, we can help turn anxiety into action. The choice to spend 10 to 30 minutes on a financial task is a smart decision to invest in one’s future. It’s time to celebrate this efficiency - and encourage women to turn thought into action.
1*Consumer research was conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Canaccord from 25th June 2025 to 3rd July 2025. A nationally representative sample of 2345 adults across the UK participated in the survey, including a sample of 500 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs).
If you'd benefit from a Wealth Planner to help you review your investments, goals and plans, please get in touch for a complimentary, no-obligation consultation.
Frequently asked questions about financial confidence for women
Many women are used to being confident decision-makers in other areas of life, but investing often feels less intuitive. This may be simply because they haven’t been exposed to investing - someone else may have handled the finances, or it wasn’t something they were encouraged to engage with or interested in. However, once the mechanics and risks of investing are explained clearly, it can feel more straightforward.
Women often take a more considered approach to risk, wanting to understand the detail before committing to an investment. A careful approach can be a real strength over the long term, but it works best when there’s a clear strategy in place so decisions don’t stay on hold indefinitely.
No, investing has a place as almost every stage in life, but it becomes especially important as your wealth grows. Investing can help secure your family’s future, protect your buying power, support your long-term independence and ensure your money is working in your interests rather than standing still.
Confident investing is about choosing an appropriate level of risk based on your goals, time horizon and wider financial position. A diversified portfolio, reviewed regularly, allows for growth while managing uncertainty and adapting to changes in your circumstances. This helps keep risk aligned with what you’re actually trying to achieve, rather than reacting to short-term market movements.
Having to take responsibility for the finances following divorce or bereavement can feel daunting, particularly if investments are involved. You don’t need to have all the answers straight away. A good wealth planner can help you understand what you have, explain your options clearly and support you at a pace that feels right.
A wealth planner provides clarity and structure when circumstances shift. They can help you take stock of existing arrangements, review investments and ensure your plans reflect your new priorities. Just as importantly, they offer reassurance and perspective, helping you move forward with confidence rather than feeling you need to manage everything alone.
