The Financially Empowered Woman
Historically many women have deferred to their husbands regarding their family’s financial matters. As a financial advisor, this is a sticky subject for me. Luckily this paradigm is shifting, and women are realizing the importance of having a seat at the family financial table. The statistics clearly illustrate the need for women to step up to their own financial plates. Why?
- 80% of women will become responsible for their finances at some point in their lives.[1] Unfortunately, too often that time is at the death of her spouse or because of a divorce. Both of these losses are at the top of the list of the most traumatic of life events. The distress from death or divorce can negatively affect our immune systems as well as our cognitive abilities. Clearly, this is NOT the time to be learning how to take over our finances.
- Women are often out of the workforce for a number of years to raise our children. With less time in the workforce, women generally earn and accumulate less than men. Couple that with the fact that women live longer than men, the financial numbers are not in our favor.
These realities illustrate why financial planning is so important for women. The great news is that once a woman makes the decision to become an active, engaged, empowered participant in her financial life, she can work with an advisor to devise a plan to work toward pursuing those goals.
Financially speaking ignorance is NOT bliss. It is never too late to become an active participant in your family’s financial fitness. Start by writing down your goals and asking questions. For example, but not limited to, what are our assets and debts, how much insurance do we have, how much are we saving for college, retirement, etc., do we have Wills, Health Care Directives and Power of Attorney documents? A Financial Advisor can be an important partner to assist you in your financial empowerment process by providing professional advice and perspective, and helping you construct a plan to best meet the specific needs of you and your family. Being an active participant in your financial future is one of the most empowering actions you can take.
[1] Kathleen Rehl, Moving Forward on Your Own: A Financial Guidebook for Widows.