The Importance Of Financial Literacy With Expert Li Zhang
CPA Financial Literacy expert Li Zhang highlights the significance of financial literacy, especially for women.
Since childhood most women have been confronted with stereotypes such as “Women don’t understand math,” and told that they deal differently with numbers than men do; historically, the financial industry has been male-dominated.
Li Zhang Mba, Pmp And Director, Social Impact & Financial Literacy Leader | Photo Courtesy Of Cpa Canada
Li Zhang, a financial literacy expert who runs several programs on behalf of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA), recalls how she first became interested in financial literacy education. Zhang, who has performed a variety of roles over her lengthy career, said that it was almost 15 years ago that she surveyed accountants and asked how important financial literacy was for Canadians and whether or not they saw the lack of it as a problem.
Ninety per cent of them said that financial literacy was a part of their daily work life and that the education component should absolutely be a part of the profession. Seventy per cent of the surveyed accountants also said that they volunteered and supported the communities where they worked and lived to educate people about financial literacy at no cost.
Since then, the program has effectively educated about 1 million Canadians. CPA is constantly updating and incorporating new content. They have 35 to 60 different topics that are taught in many settings, including schools and workplaces.
Commenting on how mainstream media presents women as if they have no understanding of numbers or money, she stresses the pressing need for women to be financially literate. She also notes that financial systems are built by men for men, and that women tend to get lost.
She adds, “Confidence, not competence, is what holds women back from making financial decisions. We don’t have to know everything to take action — we just have to start.”
The first step for women is to overcome their anxieties and build confidence in action,” she says, adding that women don’t have to know everything to make financial decisions but only to build a safe relationship with their money, a lifelong journey of constant learning and navigating decisions according to distinct situations.
INTERVIEW BY MARC CASTALDO
