Why do I love Britney Spears?

Why do I love Britney Spears?🎤

I should start by saying, I have 4 daughters 👩‍👩‍👧‍👧. Therefore, how can I NOT love Britney Spears and her music 🎶 ? However, I’m not here to talk about her music, most of which I find, if not exactly ‘appropriate’ – it at least has a good beat 🎵 to dance to. Today, I’m going to talk a bit more about what we’ve all seen in the press right now, her request to end her conservatorship.

What is a conservatorship?

Let’s discuss what conservatorship means, and when it is appropriate. In the US, once we are adults (18 for most states, 21 in a select few), we can typically be responsible for our own affairs and accounts. Obviously, while you have adult children either at home or in college 👩🏾‍🎓, many parents offer financial and other support while they study and launch themselves. But eventually, all parents should be guiding their children to take more responsibility for their own financial needs.

In my own family, our girls have worked 👩‍👩‍👧‍👧 since they have been young teens. We have been teaching them how to use debit cards responsibly, as well as credit cards (hint – only use it for a few small purchases, such as gas, each month, and set it up to auto pay from your checking account, so you’re never stuck with late charges or other fees). This way, the girls 🏃‍♀️can slowly build their own credit score. When they have access to retirement plans via work, I help them immediately sign up, choose their investment portfolio, and establish beneficiaries for their accounts (usually their sisters – although whether they choose all 3 or just 1 or 2 depends on their dynamics for the day)🤣.

In Britney Spear’s case, while she was an adult, her father apparently thought her incapable of managing her own financial affairs, and thus petitioned for conservatorship. This means that someone, in this case, himself, would handle her finances and make decisions for her. The conservator can also manage other aspects of the conservatee’s daily life.💭

We see this often in seniors 👵🏽 – where they can no longer handle their own affairs, and have not already developed their own estate plan, including an appropriate Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy, and so a conservatorship is requested to help them. In fact, according to AARP, approximately 85% of the 1.3 million US adults under conservatorships are older than 65👴🏽.

We can, however, also see conservatorships used for younger people who may have difficulties rendering financial decisions too complex 🤷🏻‍♂️ to handle on their own.  Indeed, Britneyy may have, at least initially, fallen into this category.

In typical conservatorships, there would be checks and balances ⚖️ among advisors involved in managing affairs, coupled with clear lines of communication, and regular check-ins 📆 with the conservatee to determine if the conservatorship is still in her best interest and should remain in place. We don’t know everything that happened behind the scenes in Britney’s case. However, given that the Trust Company involved immediately requested to be removed, I believe that regular communication was not occurring, and they realized that and decided to tap out of what could potentially escalate into a larger problem. 

Further, I wonder why it took so long for Britney to realize the conservatorship may not have been in her best interest? If it started in 2008, why did it take over 10 years for her to request a change? I believe that the lack of female 👩🏻‍💻advisors (financial and otherwise) had an impact on her lack of knowledge. And I would say, this lack of female advisors affects not only Britney, but many women – for more information, see the recent article in the Journal of Financial Planning titled, “The Importance of Building a Larger Cadre of Female CFP® Professionals”. There are simply not enough female financial advisors, and investment firms have not done enough to support the entry of women, as well as their retention and capacity to serve more clients, especially women.

Female financial education and empowerment.

Firms should also spend more time educating and empowering 💪🏽 women to strive for their own financial success and independence🏆. This does not mean educating the corner office guy to complement a female spouse on her necklace (which I’ve witnessed way too often), however, it means truly acknowledging women’s intellect 🧠, prowess🤾🏼‍♀️, and desire 🏃‍♀️ to learn and control our own financial destiny💫.

Why estate planning is important.

As a Certified Financial Planner ®, I consult my clients to review their estate plan📑 every few years. And, in fact, to help your adult children draft basic documents as well. I find this especially important when you have adult (in age) children away at school. As soon as my girls turn 18, I work with an estate planner to draft a very basic Will, Power of Attorney, and Health Care Proxy. This gives me peace of mind that should something arise, I can access information and help them make decisions, if need be.

I also tell my clients, as soon as you’re an adult, you need to think about creating your own board of directors, consisting of an attorney, a CPA, and, of course, a financial planner. It is never too early to start with these professionals, and in my practice, no client is too young or too small (in terms of asset size) to help. See my recent quote in Barron’s on this issue.

I also believe in education 👩🏾‍🎓and want all my clients to feel comfortable asking questions, seeking knowledge 🧠, and discussing 🗣 financial topics of interest. By helping my clients with their finances, I’m improving their financial confidence, which makes me happy.

Go, Britney!

In closing, I must say that I love Britney Spears. I love her music and I love that she has called attention to an on-going problem in financial services – our lack of talented women to educate and support female and diverse clients. I’m optimistic that Britney will come out on top💪🏽, especially if she surrounds herself with a team of transparent, trusted advisors 👩🏻‍💻who communicate openly and regularly 📆 with her. And she should feel proud that her hardship calls attention to the importance of educating women to take charge of their own financial independence and freedom. You go, Britney! 👏👏