Holt-Robinson and Lalehparvar say that myriad factors play into the sense of hopelessness that young people experience. That could include the inaccessibility of housing, the rising cost of living, or a sense of not being able to keep up. It also includes more existential sources of dread, like climate change or the rise of AI. Holt-Robinson also adds that the experience of financial insecurity can be self-reinforcing. A young person who feels financially insecure will often make worse financial decisions, perpetuating a vicious cycle.
That vicious cycle manifests in daily, weekly, or monthly financial decisions. Many younger people are saddling themselves with debt, sometimes because they have to and sometimes because they don’t understand the repercussions. Lalehparvar and Holt-Robinson say that many young people are so stretched by the current cost of living that what little money they have left over won’t be saved or invested, instead it will be spent on a small reward, a ‘treat’ for making it through the month,
“They might have internalized that saving isn’t going to be worth anything, so they find a way to use that leftover money for a little treat at the end of the month,” Holt-Robinson says.
“People will have the mindset that they’ve struggled all month, they’ve worked so hard, and they have nothing to show for it, so they deserve to order some sushi,” Lalehparvar adds.
The undeniably bleak nature of so many young people’s financial worldview presents a serious challenge for the Skyward team to overcome. Lalehparvar says that they begin with their marketing materials, pushing against the tide to tell younger people with less assets that they also deserve financial services. Because most advisors preference higher net worth individuals, many young people think their only option is a DIY platform. They also may not have the knowledge base necessary to confidently use that platform.