If we are to be honest, the world is a much better place than it was several centuries ago. Both Bill Gates and Warren Buffett agree that this is the best time to be alive, and not only in terms of making money.
They also believe that man has evolved enough to find solutions for whatever troubles that come his way, and that spells good news for future generations.
All the same, these two billionaires are best known for their boss entrepreneur moves, and managing money is what they are good at. In line with their sentiment on the current state of the world, we have to admit that women are increasingly becoming more and more successful.
A Particular Concern
The push for educating the girl child has borne successful fruits, but financial experts are raising a particular concern. Yes, women are insanely successful, but they are not taking charge of their finances. Rather than be that commanding voice on what to do with their hard-earned cash, they choose to stay on the sidelines as others make these decisions for them.
Stacy Francis, a financial planner and CEO and President of Francis Financial confirms that this is the sorry case for most women, as she says it could haunt them in later days.
According to a study carried out in 2019, 59% of widows and divorces regret in not being actively involved in the making of long-term decisions where their money was concerned. The study also found out that 74% of said women are of the opinion that they can’t be good investors.
This is indeed tragic, as the general trend is that women are becoming wealthier by the day. Going by a 2015 report by the Bank of Montreal’s Wealth Institute, they are expected to be in control of at least $22 trillion of personal wealth in the United States by 2020. Wouldn’t it be a shame if they gave much of this amount up?
As Francis urges fellow women, they need to make sure that their voices are heard instead of ignoring their money. In her opinion, understanding their finances is how women can become independent and financially secure.
Start from the Basics
If you’re there and wondering what it means to understand finances, experts explain that you should start from the basics. Learn how to budget, master your cash flow, and learn how to save, and especially for retirement.
These same experts believe that women are the way they are with money thanks to an outdated belief system that has been around for centuries, coupled with a lack of communication about finances.
Echoing this stand is Dr. Kate Levinson, a psychologist and revered author of financial books. She says that it’s not that long ago that women were actively taught that they were powerless when it came to money. They could earn it but had no say in how it is spent.
This is what the modern woman is contending with, and the psychologist argues that getting away from that mindset isn’t as easy as it sounds. Women have this biological and internal resistance, in addition to having to deal with the rest of society on money matters.
However, a good place to start, Dr. Levinson advises, is to embrace their feelings and dissociate the negative from the positive when making these decisions.
