One of the financial lessons that I wish someone had taught me much younger was the importance of earning more. As an African-American woman this is a conversation that finally is getting highlighted through initiatives such as Women’s Equal Pay Day. This initial shows when women across ethnicities earn what white men earned the previous year. For Black women it was September 21, 2022 this year. For all moms the date was September 8, 2022 and for Hispanic women it’s a month or so away on December 8, 2022. There are so many reasons why women need to earn more money and after being a member of several different types of closed financial groups for women-I’ve seen conversations around women, empowerment and lack of earnings over and over again.
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Reason #1-Women Need to Be Financially Empowered
One of the most startling things that I’ve noticed in the women’s financial groups that I’m a member of is the constant conversations around lack of empowerment and money. What do I mean by this? Sometimes lack of empowerment with money in women’s lives shows up as something as straightforward as not knowing the login details to a shared bank account. Or, a lack of knowledge around what a spouse is earning. I’ve also seen women share that they needed permission to do something financially that I took for granted. Women’s financial empowerment that comes from earning money in some capacity changes the power dynamic within a home. I’ve often thought about when my parents divorced and how difficult that time was for my mom.
In fact, my mom was a stay at home mom until my parents divorced and she had fought to work part-time on and off throughout the marriage because my mom wanted to have some autonomy in the financial decisions she wanted to make for herself and for me. Basically, at that time my mom wanted to make money decisions without having to ask for permission. I often think about how different things could have been if apps such as Loopy (a laundry app that allows people to become Washers and earn money washing laundry for time-strapped families) a win win. One of the things that I absolutely love about this moment now is the number of apps that allow entrepreneurial focused individuals to earn money while at home. Women can walk dogs, tutor people in other languages or start an online business. None of these options are necessarily easy, but these options don’t require women to make the decision from being away from their family if that is not ideal for their family.
Women being able to earn money separate from their spouse is an important skillset to have in the event that the financial shit hits the fan.
Reason #2-Women Will Likely Be Widowed
I don’t want to belabor this point but for women, especially in heterosexual couples, the likelihood that they will be widowed is fairly high. In fact, many women become widows in their 50’s which, in my view, is much younger than people may think. Having to navigate the complexities of financial life after a spouse passes away is an unnerving, stressful and scary process. Many women fall into poverty during this time. In fact, there are numerous studies that detail how the death of a spouse impacts a woman’s financial life. Knowing how to earn money, earn more money during this moment will keep the financial wolf from the door.
Reason #3 Women Live Longer
In keeping with reason #2, women need to earn more money because we live longer. In most countries across the world, women live a significantly longer lifespan than men. We have to earn more and prepare for the time when we aren’t actively in the workforce. My grandmother has been retired for around 30 years. She’s pretty healthy for her age and fingers-crossed she will be with us for years to come.
But, I’ve also watched as she’s had to get more medical care, pay for upkeep on her home and help out family financially. Watching my elders age has been an eye-opening process. There’s a lot that they worry about financially that I never would have considered in my twenties. And because women live longer, there’s also the very important question of how to maintain one’s quality of life as we depart the workforce.
Reason #4 Women Earn Less Than Men
At the beginning of this piece I shared the Women’s Equal Pay Project and how long it takes women to hit parity with white men for earnings. Women, across the board, earn less than white men. The negative impact of a lifetime of earning less can’t be ignored. Earning less over a lifetime of work impacts:
- Our ability to invest at higher amounts. Think about it, if you’re earning $7,000 a month vs. $4,000 you have a lot more discretionary income to invest towards your future. Not just invest but to purchase a home, attain higher education, or make financial moves that you might not otherwise be able to afford.
- Women’s ability to absorb the impact of inflation on our daily cost of living. Right now things have gotten expensive. Inflation is impacting our money and if we’re earning more that helps to balance out the negative impact of inflationary pressures.
- Earning less really impacts how women use their dollars in the communities they live in. When you have more money to spend, how you choose to spend it changes. Women may opt to support local initiatives that align with their beliefs, spend time and energy supporting a social good or passion or just allocate discretionary income differently. There’s a woman in my neighborhood who is super passionate about helping kids arrive safely at school. She is able to volunteer every morning to make sure that her kids and others arrive safely.
Let’s be real, I’ve never heard someone say that it was a bad move to earn more money. For women, earning more can change the trajectory of our lives during the short and long-term.
Reason #5 Women Are Often Caregivers at Some Point In Their Lives
There are a number of different types of caregiving that women may become involved in. I’ve already been a financial caregiver years ago after my mom lost her job and I was supporting the two of us on student loans and a side-hustle at Starbucks while in graduate school. It was an incredibly scary time for me financially and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. But, I wanted to share a few other types of caregiving roles that women may find themselves in (sometimes all at once).
- Parent to a child-Depending on the age of your child, you may be actively focused on supporting and keeping alive your progeny. I had to use that word. In all seriousness, active parenting can last a lot longer than most people may think. There are adult children well into their 50’s and 60’s who are living with their parents because they need the help. This also could happen when your child is no longer able to parent THEIR child and you take over the caregiving role. Simone Biles famously was raised by her grandparents after her parents were unable to take care of the kids.
- Caregiving for Aged Parents or Grandparents-There is a point in time when your parents may need to have some help in the home. Caregiving for aged parents may include, paying for in-home assistance, paying for a facility, or moving a parent into your home.
- Caregiving for a Spouse-No one talks about this often enough. Stuff happens to people. Car accidents, health declines, etc. You may find yourself caring for your spouse and not having their income coming in during that time means that YOU likely have to generate some type of income.
Reason #6 Women Need to Afford HELP
One of the strangest things that I see is American women who can afford to pay for help opting not to. This is a huge mistake. It takes a village to run our lives. Having the money to invest in supporting roles in your life can also help you earn more money. Below are a few examples of what I’m talking about:
- House cleaning support
- Laundry support
- Mother’s Helper/Au pair or nanny share
- Yard work
- Tutoring
- Home health aid
- Cook
- Home attendant-run errands, get groceries, etc.
If you’re earning $100+ an hour and have someone helping out for $17 an hour a couple times a week this support can save you a ton of time and allow you to earn more money.
Reason #7 Women Need to Pay for Their Dreams
A number of the reasons to earn more in this post are a bit heavy. So, I thought I would end with one of the most uplifting reasons why women need to earn more. To support their dreams. There is a point when your dreams will cost money to achieve.
- Traveling abroad-It costs money to travel. Yes, you can credit card hack (Check out TravelFreely a free app that helps you optimize your rewards points and shares the ins and outs of travel cards) but, sooner or later you have to travel for food, fun, accommodation and any bills that you have waiting for you at home.
- Starting a business-Yes, you can earn money with your business. And, you should be applying for grants and scholarships. But, businesses cost money and often new entrepreneurs are investing their 9-5 earnings into growing their business.
- Writing that book you dreamed of-Writing a book is free to do, but it does take time to do. Then, you may want to pay for editing services, a beautiful cover and other aspects of launching a book successfully.
Reasons Why Women Need to Earn More
Dreams cost money. I hope that you’re left with an understanding of the urgency and importance of women earning more money and why it’s a non-negotiable. Life happens and my hope is that you’ll be financially empowered to make decisions and financial moves with intention versus urgency because you’ve been able to earn more.
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