Women historically are seen as the “homemaker”, automatically causing us to not be taken as seriously as men in the workplace. According to the US Census Bureau and the Labor
Department, in 2016 women earned somewhere between 80 cents for each dollar a man earned. ** Due to lower wages, females are automatically behind the wealth curve.
Ladies, if we are not able to pay for our day-to-day expenses with what we bring home, then
saving money doesn’t seem like a realistic option. This reality also leaves women more
vulnerable to unexpected life changes versus men. Situations such as divorce, single parenting, accidents, injury or illness can cause a drastic turn towards financial hardship.
One of my closest friends, Corine, held a management position at a major corporation. She was making more money than she ever had, somewhere close to $50,000 annually (still below a male’s average salary). Although her salary was decent, it didn’t leave much room for saving, especially not the recommended six months of emergency savings. I can assuredly tell you she didn’t have anywhere near that amount saved. Most people I know do not.
Suddenly, Corine was stricken with an unforeseen illness which caused her to not be able to
work full-time. She was forced to work part-time until eventually her health required her to take medical leave. Things were stable for a while, as long as her sick leave covered her extended medical leave of absence. But when her health situation never returned to normal or improved, concerns arose.
Corine was left with a decision to make that would change her financial health forever. Should she ignore the doctor’s orders because she needed to work and make money or should she ride it out and hope her job would allow her to use some sort of disability benefit? Life decided for her.
As her health continued to decline, Corine’s medical leave and savings also declined until both were depleted. To make matters worse, the doctor ordered her to stop working. What was she supposed to do?
Officially unable to meet her daily expenses, not to mention her expensive medical care needs, her employer fired her. Corine panicked and found herself having to apply to the Social Security Administration for disability benefits. However, the process is not that easy and often requires legal counsel. Those who are approved are often denied at least once for benefits and the process can be lengthy. So, in the meantime, what was she supposed to do? In addition to her failing health, Corine lost pretty much ALL she had. She ended up selling her possessions and moving in with her parents, still with no income.
This real-life example demonstrates the danger of financial insecurity and the vulnerable position many women are in. If you are living paycheck to paycheck today, an unexpected circumstance can make it impossible to survive. So, what is a woman to do? How do we navigate our current society, knowing that we are behind the wealth curve just because of the gender we were born with?
How do we earn the money we not only deserve, but work so hard for?
We as women MUST be prepared for financial misfortunes. Saving is not an option. We MUST save! If we buckle down and put away just a little money each paycheck, we can do it. Maybe we don’t need that latte in the morning or that extra pair of shoes. Maybe we can live without a professional pedicure once a month to put away enough money to build our emergency fund. Let’s try to prevent ourselves from being like Corine and prepare for that unexpectedness that may arise. Let’s get more financially responsible this year ladies!
That leads me to one question for you…
Girl, WHAT you gonna DO with your MONEY?
** Donnelly, G. (2017 September 13). The Gender Pay Gap Narrowed in 2016.
But Only by 2 Cents. Retrieved 13 September 2018, from
Exerts taken from the book Girl! What you gonna DO with your MONEY? A Business Women’s View on Why Money Matters for Women. Copyright 2018 by Ti’Juana Gholson. All rights reserved worldwide.
Ti’Juana A. Gholson Speaker/Author/Coach, is the founder of TAG Consulting, LLC and the Women’s Business Symposium, LLC. She also facilitates a networking group called L.I.P.S. (Ladies Impacting Professional Systems) where she brings women business owners together twice a month to mastermind and support each other in business. Ti’Juana is the author of Girl! WHAT you gonna DO with your MONEY! A Business Women’s view on Why Money Matters for Women. For more information and to order the book, visit her website at www.tijuanagholson.com
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