The $30 Trillion Headline Misses the Point
By 2030, women will control more than $30 trillion in the U.S.
That number gets thrown around a lot. But the question isn’t how much wealth women will control. It’s whether they’ll feel confident managing it and whether financial professionals will offer meaningful value to these women during the transition.
Behind the Numbers, There’s Fear
Cary Carbonaro, CFP®, calls it the "bag lady fear." A deep-seated anxiety that no matter how much a woman earns, she could still lose everything.
Even women with seven-figure incomes say things like:
I make money. I just don’t know what to do with it.
I know I should feel secure, but I don’t.
I’m afraid of being a burden…or being alone.
These aren’t hypotheticals. These are real conversations Cary hears every day.
The Shift That’s Already Happening
Cary is “The Money Queen,” a bestselling author, a CFP Board leader, and a wealth advisor who’s spent her career making financial planning feel human.
She’s not just managing money. She’s helping people heal their relationship with it.
On our latest episode of Knowing Me Knowing You, she shared the one thing every woman client wants to know:
Am I okay?
Not: Is my portfolio optimized?
Not: Did I beat the market?
Just: Am I safe, supported, and seen?
The Advisor’s New Role: Connector, Coach, Advocate
I was shocked when Cary shared that she shares her own portfolio and tax returns with clients.
When we presented together at a conference last year, I asked the audience of financial planners and advisors whether they ever shared this information with clients. Not one single hand shot up.
Cary goes even further. She tells them what she’s worried about. She invites them to her wedding. That level of transparency and relationship building creates lasting trust.
She also gives referrals to therapists, yoga studios, hormone specialists. She offers whatever her clients need to feel whole. And when they feel overwhelmed, she brings them back to one simple truth: they’re not alone.
This is what trust looks like.
Discovery Tools Are Still Playing Catch-Up
Too many firms still rely on templated risk profiles and onboarding checklists. That doesn’t cut it.
If you want to build loyalty, convert prospects, and grow share of wallet, you need to understand your clients as people.
That starts with better questions. Delivered better.
What Knomee Makes Possible
At Knomee, we help firms
Turn discovery into conversion
Adapt to life transitions in real time
Maintain continuity across advisor changes
Personalize engagement based on values, not just variables
Our behavioral finance platform captures insights traditional tools miss. We help you hear the client behind the account.
Make Financial Planning Feel Human Again
The future of financial advice is personal. It’s transparent. It’s emotionally intelligent.
And it’s already here.
🎧 Listen to Cary’s full episode on Knowing Me Knowing You to hear how she’s helping clients overcome fear, build confidence, and redefine what success really means.
This is the moment to evolve. Let’s make it count.
