3 Questions For Women Who Don’t Take Control of their Money
By: Padmaja Choudhury
Tags: Women And Money, Money Mindset, Money Management, Women, Money

A few months back, I asked one of my female colleagues where she invests her money. To my utter surprise, she said that her dad invests her money on her behalf and she is planning to delegate it to her husband after her marriage. I was shocked. After hearing that from a banking professional, I didn’t know how to respond.

If someone like her isn’t taking charge of her money, what about other working women? I asked around and besides a few of my ex-colleagues, most of them willingly give up the control to their dads or husbands and they don’t see any problem with that.

In this article, I want to ask three simple questions to women who after securing a source of income don’t take control of their money. These questions may sound crass to some, ‘on the face’ for few. But, honestly, I am sick of it. Sick of women not giving a damn to the money that they have earned. It is the very money that they are earing after studying for more than 20 years, doing 9 to 5 jobs five to six days a week, taking orders from superiors, putting up with corporate bullshit, commuting for hours and the list goes on.

I get that managing money can be a daunting task, but what if it is not and the voices are just in your head? You may like to think that you are tired of all the office work, household work and you don’t have enough energy to focus on it? It is not you, but it is social conditioning.

Money gives power and the right to make decisions. That’s why men would never say no if you tell them to manage your money. Try telling your partner or husband to look after the kids or household work so that you can focus one half of a Saturday taking care of the money stuff. Good luck with that!

So, here are the three questions that I want to ask all the women who give authority to men to manage their money.

Photo by rupixen.com on Unsplash

Don’t you want financial independence in the truest sense?

You may have a high paying job. While you may think that half of what belongs to your husband also belongs to you, but it is not true.

If your husband dies without a will, the assets will be distributed among all legal heirs as per the provisions of the Hindu Succession Act.

Here is the relative defined in Class I of the Schedule of Indian Succession Act:

Son,

Daughter,

Widow

Mother

Son of a pre-deceased son

Daughter of a pre-deceased son

Son of a pre-deceased daughter

Daughter of a pre-deceased daughter

Widow of a pre-deceased son

Son of a pre-deceased son of a pre-deceased son

Daughter of a pre-deceased son of a pre-deceased son

Widow of a pre-deceased son of a pre-deceased son.

Is it financial independence if you have NO CLUE where your money is parked? Has he invested in mutual funds, stocks or have deposited in fixed deposits. Sure it is on your name and you will get messages on your phone, but is it true financial independence?

So, rather than giving your husband full authority, it is best to discuss and talk about it. Discuss your common financial goals with your spouse and find out the best possible ways to achieve the goals.

A financial advisor can help you to plan for your goals and create a will so that no problem arises after the death of the spouse.

2. Do you want to be at your husband’s mercy?

Your husband or dad may be investing a decent sum of money in your name, but when you don’t know where they have parked your money, you also don’t know how to redeem. Maybe withdrawing from fixed deposits is not a big deal, but what about mutual funds and stocks?

Do you know the platform or the financial advisor through which he has invested?

What about the folio number or the account password?

Do you know how to add or invest more money after increment or job change?

What should you do in case of an emergency?

If you are not actively participating in managing your money, you will have to be at your husband’s or father’s mercy all the time for every DAMN little thing.

3. Don’t you believe in yourself?

The society puts a lot of pressure on young girls and women to be perfect. From our bodies to the way we drive, we are over conscious most of the time. And it takes some experience to move past it.

As a result, of this all social conditioning, we tend to believe that we are never enough. We are not allowed to accept the fact that maybe men and women are different and may have different ways to work out the same issue. We are extra cautious. Talk to any woman who drives and she will tell you how she needs to extra careful while driving. It is because if she does a mistake, it is not because she is a bad driver, but the fact that she is a WOMAN.

Do you feel the same about money? Do you think that your family members will ridicule if you take the wrong investment decisions? So, it is better to delegate this task to men, right? Wrong. How do you think men learn? Of course, by making mistakes and learning from it. How will you learn if you don’t want to understand or experiment? Sure, the pressure will be more on women to be right but it is time to move past that. Don’t you think so?

If you don’t believe in yourself when it comes to money, try changing your narrative. I am referring to the ‘I can do it’ attitude.

Conclusion:

Tomorrow is Women’s Day. You may receive tokens of appreciation from your colleagues and gifts, but all that will pass away and turn into dust, but making it a point to take control of your money will remain with forever and change your life for the better.

This Women’s Day open doors to new possibilities and beginnings!