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#Leadership : #WomenOlderWorkers – Let’s Stop Letting #Women Age Out of the #Workforce Worse Off than Men…We try to prepare girls to be successful women by plotting their career paths early. But women heading toward retirement get little support and often pay the price.

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When your father or grandfather retired, his company might’ve thrown a little get-together, complete with toasts by backslapping colleagues, a cake, and an engraved watch. If he was lucky, he walked into retirement knowing he had a company pension or ample retirement savings to see him through the rest of his life.

Today? Not so much. Especially not for women.

Women who are approaching retirement in the U.S. today face a trifecta of challenges: They’re living longer (an average of 20 years past age 65), have significantly less money saved (an average of just $34,000), and face ever-increasing costs, especially for health care (an average of $5,503 a year out-of-pocket). This adds up to far greater economic insecurity among women as they age. In fact, according to the National Institute on Retirement Security, women aged 65 and older have incomes that are 25% lower than men’s, and they are 80% more likely than men to be impoverished past age 65.

Women of color face even deeper disparities as they age. African American and Latina women earn less from Social Security, assets, and pensions than do white women, and they rely on Social Security for a larger portion of their income, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

The good news is that employers have a unique opportunity to turn these numbers around, by thinking proactively about supporting working women today so they can age well later. Here are three ideas.

CLOSE THE PAY GAP AND EXPAND MENTORING

Women begin retirement with a hurdle that’s followed them their entire careers: the gender pay gap. Labor Department statistics show the gap is as stubborn as ever, with women earning 21% less than men, a disparity that worsens among women of color and in certain industries more than others. Lower pay means less money saved, both in personal retirement accounts and Social Security benefits. Overall, women receive nearly $4,000 a year less in Social Security than men.

Employers can level the playing field by eliminating the gender wage gap among their employees now, so their women employees don’t leave the workforce already disadvantaged once they retire. This is not an impossible goal. Starbucks, for example, has reached100% pay equity among its employees. One part of the solution is to widen women’s participation in STEM fields; another is for employers to offer more flexible schedules and remote-work opportunities.

Companies also need to do a better job of nurturing and mentoring women to move up into leadership positions that offer greater opportunities and more pay. Staff development and performance management are critical to ensuring that women keep learning and developing over the entire course of their careers–this way they can retire from them on a more secure financial footing.

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LET WOMEN PHASE INTO LIFE AFTER WORK

Few women today want to work one day and stop the next. They want and need to continue working, but other responsibilities may be tugging at them. By one recent estimate, for example, up to 20% of working women are also caring for an elderly loved one.

Employers need to create organizational climates where women approaching retirement don’t feel it’s risky to have conversations about phased retirement options. Working part-time or moving to a position that requires less responsibility can be a solution–and employers should be game to offer that. In the latest Transamerica Retirement Survey, only 23% of workers said they plan to immediately stop working at a specific point in time. However, 25% also said that their employers do nothing to help employees enter retirement. Organizations need to step up and change that.

ARM WOMEN WITH KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT’S AHEAD

As a society, we try to prepare girls to grow into successful women; think Girl Scouts, STEM initiatives, and Girls on the Run. But how do we help women prepare to age well? We don’t teach them how their bodies are going to change as they age, or how to manage their savings so it will last an extra 20 years.

Just as we counsel younger women to make informed decisions about their education and careers, we need to support older women in planning for a successful third phase of life. My organization, the National Council on Aging, created an “Aging Mastery Program”to provide this kind of unbiased guidance, complete with small steps people can take to chart their own paths toward aging well.

While the days of engraved watches and pension plans may be over for most (and were never equitably available to all to begin with), a secure retirement should be a right for every person who has put in a lifetime of work–especially women. Forward-thinking employers need to help women plan not just for successful careers but for successful lives after work. And they need to start right now.

Anna Maria Chávez is Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer at the National Council on Aging.

Rich Bellis is Associate Editor of Fast Company’s Leadership section.

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FastCompany.com | July 27, 2018

#Leadership : Dos and Don’ts: How To Use Your Girl Power In Corporate Culture…The Corporate World Changes so Fast that Your Employee or Colleague of Today can Become your Leader of Tomorrow, so it is Important that You Build Relations at Work.

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There’s no shortage of women entering the travel industry — but men dominate when it comes to senior management, especially in the hotel industry. According to a 2015 white paper produced by the Hospitality Industry Pipeline Coalition, women hold less than 40 percent of all managerial positions in hospitality, less than 20 percent of general management roles and just 5 to 8 percent of board positions.

female-employee

Laura Salles, a millennial employee on the rise at the Hotel Arts Barcelona, shares her tips for getting ahead. (Courtesy of Laura Salles)

Ritz-Carlton aims to change that: the hotel company is putting an emphasis on equal opportunities for women, in alignment with the UN’s goal for equality in the workplace by 2030. Through Community Footprints — its corporate social responsibility arm —  Ritz-Carlton has announced a mission to promote the rise of female employees into management positions by encouraging mentorship and other positive reinforcement.

The goal: “keeping women inspired to not only enter the workforce but to remain in the workforce and to then progress into opportunities for leadership,” says Nicki Allen, manager of Community Footprints.

 One Ritz-Carlton employee whose career is being fostered as a result is Laura Salles — the perfect example of girl power in action. The 24-year-old was recently named manager of international and domestic communications at the Hotel Arts Barcelona, a Ritz-Carlton property in Spain. After starting in 2013 as a trainee at the front desk, Salles has had a meteoric rise through the ranks — from pool supervisor to club lounge manager to her current role as public relations manager, which involves overseeing the property’s image and traveling around the globe to promote the property.

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Originally from Brazil, Salles says she has consistently been encouraged and mentored within her various roles. She wants to encourage other young women to pursue and follow their dreams, too. And yet, she recognizes there are unique challenges to navigating corporate culture, especially as a woman.

This go-getter reveals the top Dos and Don’ts that have helped her achieve her career goals — and that other young women can follow, too.

Dos:

1. Build genuine relationships (as opposed to kissing up to those you may assume could one day benefit you personally).

The corporate world changes so fast that your employee or colleague of today can become your leader of tomorrow, so build relations at work. Besides making your work environment more fun, this will cultivate good future connections.

2. Ask for responsibility, and believe in yourself.

During your career, not everyone will believe you should be promoted and might have thoughts like: “She is too young, she doesn’t have enough experience.” No matter how young you are, you need to demonstrate your capabilities by projecting confidence, and give your leader confidence to entrust you with new opportunities. Most importantly, believe in yourself and others will believe in you, as well.

3. Focus on balance: Cultivate a personal life, in addition to prioritizing work responsibilities.

Your personal life is as important as your professional life. You don’t want to look back with regret in a few years, saying: “I did not live in my 20’s.” You can work hard, but you can also play hard. Having friends and social life after work is vital. With breaks and fun time off, you’ll come back to work with even more creativity.

4. Maintain a positive attitude.

Young people are naturally positive, so play this up. Energy is contagious, as is empathy; you can impact your work environment and connect with your colleagues by behaving as you’d want others to behave.

5. Smile — always.

This simple act will help you in every interaction with others. Be approachable. Remember that this is an exciting journey, and there are endless opportunities to learn and grow.

Don’ts:

1. Don’t compare yourself with others.

Everyone has a different career and life. You are not better or worse than anyone — you are YOU. And that should be your point.

2. Don’t forget to breathe.

Allowing insecurity, anxiety or emotions to hold you back from accomplishment is you hampering your own potential.

3. Don’t talk too much; listen more.

Understand that many people have experienced more than you have. So give a chance to listen before you impose what you think. This is particularly important when you are young and starting out.

4. Don’t mix your private and professional life.

Everyone has personal problems but you need to try to control them when you are at work. Don’t let your emotions dominate you. You don’t want to transmit an immature or uncontrolled image.

5. Don’t take no as a stop sign.

Don’t get tired, don’t give up. “No” should be gasoline for you to continue and work hard to finally get to “yes” (opportunity). You will achieve your objectives when you strategically plan them. Running without a clear destination will not drive you anywhere.

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram and check out more of my work atlaurabegleybloom.com.

 

Forbes.com |  September 27, 2016 | Laura Begley Bloom 

 

 

#Leadership : How Women Leaders Emerge From Leaderless Groups…Women are More Likely to Take Command in Collaborative Work Environments—Including Those that are Predominantly Male.

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 In spite of a significant imbalance between male and female leaders in business, new research from the University at Buffalo’s School of Management suggests that in collaborative work environments where women are outnumbered, they often emerge as the natural group leader.

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The findings fly in the face of the reality of the U.S. workforce, where many fail to recognize the extent of the female leadership gap. Women represent just 3% of new CEOs in the U.S., 5.1% of Fortune 1000 CEOs, and 4% of Standard and Poor’s 500 CEOs. A recent survey by the Rockefeller Foundation also found that nine in 10 respondents thought there were more female business leaders than there really are, and further research by the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University found that those women are more likely to be targeted by shareholder activism.

“We tend to see the man as more leader-like than the woman,” says lead author Jim Lemoine, in a video interview by UB School of Management. “What we were interested in in this research were exceptions to the rule.”

In the study, researchers assigned nearly 1,000 participants to small groups and asked them to complete a series of tasks, later polling them on who emerged as the natural leader of their group. The study was replicated with participants of varying ages over both long and short-term periods.

 

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When the groups communicated a lot, or were more “extroverted” in Lemoine’s words, women were more likely to emerge as leaders. They were also more likely to emerge as leaders when the groups were predominantly male.

“When a group is composed of lots of extroverted people, they talk more,” he says. “They’re actually getting to understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses and who may be the better leader beyond this diversity demographics stuff.”

 

This getting-to-know-each-other phase is key to gender leadership balance, says Lemoine. “It makes the environment less masculine, more balanced, and gives everyone a chance to play on equal footing,” he says.

Lemoine adds that when he advises companies, he often encourages them to ignore strategy talk at first and instead spend some time getting to know the other people in the room.

“When we think of men, we think independent, aggressive, competitive risk takers, which is for a lot of people a stereotypical view of a leader,” he says. “When we think of women, we tend to think—true or not—more helpful, more cooperative, more caring.”

Lemoine explains that in spite of centuries of gender imbalance, he finally sees the tide beginning to turn in favor of female leaders. That is because when people are asked what kind of leader they want to work for today, the typical answer has evolved to describe stereotypically female characteristics. As he puts it:

People tend to answer this more now, ‘I would like to work for someone who is ethical,’ ‘I would like to work for someone who really cares about me, who understands me, who trains me, who puts me first, who’s very authentic. As our ideas of what a leader is changes, so do our ideas change of who a leader can be, so really the future is looking bright for more gender equality for who becomes a leader.

In other words, one of the key strategies for breaking the gender leadership gap in the workplace could be simple conversation between team members, in a setting that gives every member of the team a level playing field.

 

FastCompany.com | JARED LINDZON  | 09.12.16 5:25 AM

Your #Career : 5 Tips To Help Women Work Longer…Women are Working Longer before Retiring, or Working Part-Time in Retirement, & That’s a Good Thing.

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Let’s start with the big picture and why I find this trend to be a silver lining for boomer women — both financially and spiritually. Then I’ll offer some advice on ways women can successfully stay on the job and use these bonus working years to strengthen their finances as they age.

portrait of Young pretty business woman work on notebook computer in the bright modern office indoors

A recent study, Women Working Longer: Facts and Some Explanations, presented by Harvard University economists Claudia Goldin and Lawrence F. Katz at the National Bureau of Economic Research’s Women Working Longer conference last month, reported that women have been working longer for a long time. Their labor market participation increased decade after decade during the 20th century, as more women entered the labor force.

The New Story About Working Women

But that’s an old story, they wrote. “The new story is that a large fraction of women are working a lot longer, past their sixties and even into their seventies,” said the report.

In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that by the end of this decade, about 20% of women over 65 will be in the labor force.

“Women’s increased participation beyond their fifties is a change of real consequence,” according to Goldin and Katz. “Rather than being an increase in marginal part-time workers, the higher labor force participation of older women consists disproportionately of those working at full-time jobs. Women are remaining on their jobs as they age rather than scaling down or leaving for positions with shorter hours and fewer days.”

Four factors that have influenced the uptick: More women have been holding jobs with greater advancement, have been college graduates, were not currently married or were married to men who also extended employment into their later years.

 

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Working for the Money — or Not

Sometimes, the women aren’t working because they need to, financially.

“From my work with Katz, we find a strong increase in employment among the most highly educated of those women older than fifty-five and for those who are in managerial and professional occupations — even if their financial security appears to be reasonable,” Goldin told me. “Higher levels of employment for women older than fifty-five years also appear to be among those who are healthier and whose occupations are the most rewarding and least physically taxing.” (This echoes the survey conducted by Elizabeth Fideler for her book, Women Still at Work.)

In other cases, however, money is very much a factor.

Olivia S. Mitchell, executive director of the Pension Research Council at The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania Mitchell and Annamaria Lusardi, a professor of economics and accountancy at The George Washington University School of Business, report in their new study, Older Women’s Labor Market Attachment, Retirement Planning, and Household Debt:

“When we explore the reasons for delayed retirement among older women…household finances also appears to be playing a key role, in that older women today have more debt than previously…In large part this can be attributed to having taken on larger residential mortgages due to the run-up in housing prices over time and lower down payments as well.”

Other gauges of financial distress, they said: few women are able to easily cover their expenses in a typical month or have set aside emergency fundsto cover expenses for three months. Many women also said they didn’t pay off credit card balances in full, paid only the minimum due and were charged fees for late payments or exceeding the limits.

Catherine Collinson, president of Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies and Transamerica Institute, recently told a U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing that her organization’s surveys found that only 42% of women workers say they are building a large enough nest egg to retire without financial worries, compared to 55% of men.

“Women age 50 and older — especially unmarried women — face extreme financial risks and potential poverty in retirement,” Collinson told me when I interviewed for a previous Next Avenue article. Many women Transamerica surveyed say they plan to work until age 70 or later — or don’t plan to retire at all.

The Financial Bonuses for Women Working Longer

Fortunately, when I touched based with Mitchell this week, she noted that there were a host of financial bonuses for women extending careers.

“Longer work reduces the drawdown on financial assets,” she told me. “Longer work could lengthen the time one is covered by employer-based health insurance, hence diminishing personal spending on health care costs. And a longer worklife can contribute to enhanced well being due to continued relationships with co-workers and social networks.”

And, as they say on late night TV infomercials, there’s more!

“Work can provide important resources for women — such as a sense of meaning and purpose, a positive identity, and a social network — in addition to financial benefit,” said Colorado State Assistant Professor Gwenith Fisher, who has been studying when and why people retire. Fisher was on a Future of Work and Retirement panel I recently moderated at Columbia University’s 2016 Age Boom Academy.

Moreover, added Fisher, “continuing to work is also associated with cognitive and health benefits: research that has studied patterns of cognitive functioning has shown that working in jobs that involve thinking, problem solving, and creativity is related to less cognitive decline, and retirement is also linked to earlier mortality, even among people who did not retire due to their health.”

Of course, men can enjoy these benefits by working longer, too.

(More: A Sneak Peek Into the Future of Work and Retirement)

Working Longer and Social Security

Working longer can provide women with a significant financial boost from Social Security, too.

Women are more dependent on Social Security than men and their average Social Security income is roughly 77% of that of men, according to research by Aine Ni Leime of Case Western Reserve University. Moreover, said Ni Leime (who recently presented research at the Work and Family Researchers Network annual conference in Washington, D.C.), women are 56% of all Social Security beneficiaries age 62 and older and 66% of all beneficiaries age 85 and older.

The potential gain in Social Security benefits alone from working longer is enough to place married women on equal footing with married men in terms of Social Security wealth at age 70, according to research by Harvard economist Nicole Maestas, an expert in the study of aging who was also on my Age Boom Academy panel.

“Working beyond the Social Security early retirement age until age 70 would make a sizable increase in the magnitude of lifetime Social Security benefits to which married women are entitled,” she found. “The gain in years worked at older ages would be sufficient to offset early gaps in the earnings record, and would place women on par with men in terms of lifetime resources available to them in the latter part of life. This is because the additional years of earnings at these ages replace earlier years of low or zero earnings in the retirement benefit computation formula.”

5 Tips for Women Who Want to Work Longer

So for women who’ve been persuaded that it’s worth staying on the job beyond the traditional retirement age, here are five tips to make sure youdon’t burn out, do stay employable and can use the bonus years to prepare for a financially secure retirement:

(More: How to Love Your Job Even If You Don’t Like It)

1. Never stop learning and adding skills. It’s crucial to keep your skills sharp if you want to stay on the job. Sign up for continuing education, or professional development programs offered by your employer.

2. Keep up on trends in your industry. Then, when attractive opportunities arise at work, you’ll be ready to raise your hand for them. One suggestion: set up a Google Alert to alert you about the latest news in your field.

3. Ramp up your financial literacy. Learn all you can about investing, retirement savings and Social Security strategies. Mitchell and Lusardi found that women who were more financially literate were more likely to plan for retirement, were less likely to have excessive debt and were less likely to be financially fragile.

4. Calculate your retirement savings needs and save at a level to achieve them. Among women who estimated their retirement savings needs, 62% say they “guessed,” according to Transamerica. Only 7% had completed a worksheet or done a calculation and just 3% consulted a financial adviser for the figure.

5. Continue participating in your employer’s retirement plan. The longer you work, the longer you can keep contributing and stave off dipping into those funds, allowing them to grow tax-deferred. That way your money works longer, too.

Forbes.com | July 3, 2016 | Next Avenue

Your #Career : The Woman’s Guide To Getting Back On Her Own Two Feet….Women are Often the Default Caregivers in many Families.  This often Results in the Decision to Leave the Workplace which Can have Detrimental Effects on their Career When Returning to the Workplace.

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Sadly, the longer a woman off-ramps, the harder it is to get back into her field of choice. When deciding to start a family, these are the issues that should be discussed ahead of time via proper planning to ensure a smooth on-ramp back into the workplace.

Free- Women Looking over Snow Area

On the upside, we do live longer, but those of us who stay at home with children to raise them ourselves also have the burden of sacrifice our highest earning potential during our child-bearing years.

One of the best parts about running a blog that discusses women and money is the interactions I have with women behind the scenes.  Readers, needing answers to pressing money issues.  And, while I am not a financial advisor, and articles written here or across other social networks and partner sites should never be construed as such, I am often able to give insight into issues that come up during our email exchanges.

A question often asked is:

“How can I make my own money without sacrificing time with my family?   I want to stand on my own 2 feet”

Why This Is Important

This is an important issue for women as we should be able to stand on our own so that we’re prepared for whatever life brings our way.   We’re not five year olds needing to ask daddy for $5 to buy ice-cream.  Yes, this is a touchy subject, depending on who you’re talking to but an important topic nonetheless.   Too many women find themselves without options once their partners are no longer in the equation, whatever the reason.

Understanding the minutia of money management is of utmost importance as we often think that if we make the money, the money management skills will just show up.  Not at all.  In fact, the opposite is true.  We must master our money mindset before we make the moolah!  Teaching yourself these principles will give you the foundations needed to be successful.

Now let’s talk about you, the budding money making machine!

Barriers To Financial Independence?

Looking at this closely will help you figure out why things are the way they are.

The replies I often get are:

“My husband manages all of it”

“I don’t know how to…I haven’t had a job in years..”

“I’ve been taking care of our kids so money was the last thing on my mind”

One of the best pieces of money advice my mom gave me years ago is that:

“Women often work hard at teaching their children the art of being independent while abdicating that responsibility to themselves”

We simply must stop giving up power in our relationships this way.

I think it’s great that we want to be there for our kids when they’re growing up but we often forget about who we will be once they are independent and don’t need us anymore.  It is often after the kids are in school or the unfortunate event of a separation or divorce that some women think about returning to work and how they will support themselves.  But it can be done with some forethought and careful planning.

Amber Wright of TalktoAmber.com discussed how she managed the transition back after the birth of her children:

To manage my transition back to work after having both of my daughters, I gave myself time to prepare mentally and physically. At least two weeks before my return, I started using my alarm clock again to help wake me up earlier. We also did test runs with the sitter so our family could adjust and not go into shock overnight. Involving my husband in the process made a difference, as well. My heart still ached terribly, thinking about how much I’d miss my babies, but the early start helped make it a little easier! 

 

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MB from Washington, DC had a particularly difficult time deliberating her return due to her son’s illness:

… returning to work after Dominic was born was particularly hard. I know that that is something that all mothers struggle with but Dominic had spent quite some time in the hospital. He was born 7 weeks early and became very sick. Three months of his life we spent in the NICU Hopkins. Which meant three months of his life he was cared for by someone else. In thinking about returning to work there was a tremendous amount of guilt. Not just the guilt that comes from attempting to balance being a mother and being career woman but also something deeper.
Something that stemmed from the fact that, while I know I could not care for him when he was sick that it was still my job as his mother. So I’m on maternity leave was finally up and it came time for me to return to work I seriously considered becoming a stay at home mom. This turned out to not the feasible for my family because we could not afford it. But beyond that being financially feasible, I realize that my career as a part of who I am. I worked long and I worked hard to get where I am and my career. I dedicated the majority of my life to my education into decisions that would create opportunities for me and for my family. Some of those opportunities stem from the places that my career has taken me. The truth is, I like having a powerful job. I like having influence and I like being able to provide for myself and for my family. I like that I have a career not a job but a career. So it came time to consider what was best from my son I realized that I had to do what was best for me. I had to wait the opportunities that are created by having “enough.” So many families struggle with “not enough”. I didn’t want mine to be one of them. 
… but I digress. I realized that I had to push down the guilt and consider that perhaps being a mom isn’t just about being present. That it isn’t just about being able to cook every meal and kiss every boo boo. I realized that it had to be about, at least for me, showing my son that there is a balance. That mom will always love him and will always be there to kiss every boo boo if he needs it.
But also but there are other sides to me and to all people. Being Dominic’s mother is the greatest blessing and privilege I have ever been given. It is more important than anything I will ever do. Is more profound than a job I will ever have. He is the most important thing in my life. But it is okay for him not to be the only thing. I realize that being a mother is not the sum total of me and that’s okay. Part of being a mom is providing an example. He should know that people work for opportunity. He should know that women can be accomplished and educated and powerful and can provide.
My son will know these things because I will show him. I have ambitions and dreams and goals that I will work to attain as his mother not in spite of being his mother. People think you have to choose. People think you have to pick a side – motherhood or career. I disagree. I think maybe part of being a good mother is being well rounded. It’s finding a way to be happy. If you’re happy involves success in your career can you find the way to balance it. You make a way to be both a great mother and advance your career in that order.

As you can see, this can be a difficult balance because many women struggle with the decision of having to decide between work and childcare.

However, if you’re planning to stay at home with the kids once you have them, create a plan that enables you to keep your resume fresh and skills updated while you do so.  One never knows what the future holds which may lead to you to re-enter the workforce hoping that someone will hire you once again.

Communication

Talk to your partner about managing your money together if you don’t already have that arrangement in your relationship. At the very least, you should have a role in the management of the money in your relationship.

Maintain access to all accounts.  You’d be surprised how many women don’t have access to the money they make.   Know where your accounts are stored, check your credit report as well as your partner’s and review the status of all accounts listed on the credit report to keep yourself abreast of everything going on financially.

Women are often the default caregivers in many families.  This often results in the decision to leave the workplace which can have detrimental effects on their career when returning to the workplace.

Sadly, the longer a woman off-ramps, the harder it is to get back into her field of choice. When deciding to start a family, these are the issues that should be discussed ahead of time via proper planning to ensure a smooth on-ramp back into the workplace.

On the upside, we do live longer, but those of us who stay at home with children to raise them ourselves also have the burden of sacrificing our highest earning potential during our child-bearing years.

One of the best parts about running a blog that discusses women and money is the interactions I have with women behind the scenes.  Readers, needing answers to pressing money issues.  And, while I am not a financial advisor, and articles written here or across other social networks and partner sites should never be construed as such, I am often able to give insight into issues that come up during our email exchanges.

A question often asked is:

“How can I make my own money without sacrificing time with my family?   I want to stand on my own 2 feet”

Why This Is Important

This is an important issue for women as we should be able to stand on our own so that we’re prepared for whatever life brings our way.   We’re not five year olds needing to ask daddy for $5 to buy ice-cream.  Yes, this is a touchy subject, depending on whom you’re talking to but an important topic nonetheless.   Too many women find themselves without options once their partners are no longer in the equation, whatever the reason.

The Road Back To Independence

The money struggle for women is real.  Whether you’re married, single or newly divorced and want to learn how to manage money properly, it’s best to start here:  21 Days To Rock Your Finances: Day 1- Create A 1 Year Financial Plan.

Understanding the minutia of money management is of utmost importance as we often think that if we make the money, the money management skills will just show up.  Not at all.  In fact, the opposite is true.  We must master our money mindset before we make the moolah!  Teaching yourself these principles will give you the foundations needed to be successful.

Now let’s talk about you, the budding money making machine!

Barriers To Financial Independence?

Looking at this closely will help you figure out why things are the way they are.

The replies I often get are:

“My husband manages all of it”

“I don’t know how to…I haven’t had a job in years..”

“I’ve been taking care of our kids so money was the last thing on my mind”

One of the best pieces of money advice my mom gave me years ago is that:

“Women often work hard at teaching their children the art of being independent while abdicating that responsibility to themselves”

We simply must stop giving up power in our relationships this way.

I think it’s great that we want to be there for our kids when they’re growing up but we often forget about who we will be once they are independent and don’t need us anymore.  It is often after the kids are in school or the unfortunate event of a separation or divorce that some women think about returning to work and how they will support themselves.  But it can be done with some forethought and careful planning.

Amber Wright of TalktoAmber.com discussed how she managed the transition back after the birth of her children:

To manage my transition back to work after having both of my daughters, I gave myself time to prepare mentally and physically. At least two weeks before my return, I started using my alarm clock again to help wake me up earlier. We also did test runs with the sitter so our family could adjust and not go into shock overnight. Involving my husband in the process made a difference, as well. My heart still ached terribly, thinking about how much I’d miss my babies, but the early start helped make it a little easier! 

MB from Washington, DC had a particularly difficult time deliberating her return due to her son’s illness:

… returning to work after Dominic was born was particularly hard. I know that that is something that all mothers struggle with but Dominic had spent quite some time in the hospital. He was born 7 weeks early and became very sick. Three months of his life we spent in the NICU Hopkins. Which meant three months of his life he was cared for by someone else. In thinking about returning to work there was a tremendous amount of guilt. Not just the guilt that comes from attempting to balance being a mother and being career woman but also something deeper.
Something that stemmed from the fact that, while I know I could not care for him when he was sick that it was still my job as his mother. So I’m on maternity leave was finally up and it came time for me to return to work I seriously considered becoming a stay at home mom. This turned out to not the feasible for my family because we could not afford it. But beyond that being financially feasible, I realize that my career as a part of who I am. I worked long and I worked hard to get where I am and my career. I dedicated the majority of my life to my education into decisions that would create opportunities for me and for my family. Some of those opportunities stem from the places that my career has taken me. The truth is, I like having a powerful job. I like having influence and I like being able to provide for myself and for my family. I like that I have a career not a job but a career. So it came time to consider what was best from my son I realized that I had to do what was best for me. I had to wait the opportunities that are created by having “enough.” So many families struggle with “not enough”. I didn’t want mine to be one of them. 
… but I digress. I realized that I had to push down the guilt and consider that perhaps being a mom isn’t just about being present. That it isn’t just about being able to cook every meal and kiss every boo boo. I realized that it had to be about, at least for me, showing my son that there is a balance. That mom will always love him and will always be there to kiss every boo boo if he needs it. But also but there are other sides to me and to all people. Being Dominic’s mother is the greatest blessing and privilege I have ever been given. It is more important than anything I will ever do. Is more profound than a job I will ever have. He is the most important thing in my life. But it is okay for him not to be the only thing. I realize that being a mother is not the sum total of me and that’s okay.
Part of being a mom is providing an example. He should know that people work for opportunity. He should know that women can be accomplished and educated and powerful and can provide. My son will know these things because I will show him. I have ambitions and dreams and goals that I will work to attain as his mother not in spite of being his mother. People think you have to choose. People think you have to pick a side – motherhood or career. I disagree. I think maybe part of being a good mother is being well rounded. It’s finding a way to be happy. If you’re happy involves success in your career can you find the way to balance it. You make a way to be both a great mother and advance your career in that order.

As you can see, this can be a difficult balance because many women struggle with the decision of having to decide between work and childcare.

However, if you’re planning to stay at home with the kids once you have them, create a plan that enables you to keep your resume fresh and skills updated while you do so.  One never knows what the future holds which may lead to you to re-enter the workforce hoping that someone will hire you once again.

Communication

Talk to your partner about managing your money together if you don’t already have that arrangement in your relationship. At the very least, you should have a role in the management of the money in your relationship.

Maintain access to all accounts.  You’d be surprised how many women don’t have access to the money they make.   Know where your accounts are stored, check your credit report as well as your partner’s and review the status of all accounts listed on the credit report to keep yourself abreast of everything going on financially.

How Do I Get Back And Stand On My Two Feet?

Go back to school.  Start there.  Did you finish college?  Do you want to go back to graduate school?  What are you passionate about that requires a degree or certificate?  Do you need to go back to school?  These are all questions that you must ask yourself if your path to returning to the work force involves going back to school.

Start A Business.  Along the same lines of going back to school, what are you passionate about?  Do you see a need in the market that hasn’t been filled?  What problem can you solve? How can you work to fill that need while creating income for yourself?  This can include producing your own stuff to sell on Etsy or Ebay to heading a startup company which solves a problem.

Update Your Skills.  If you’re in a field like myself, then you’ll need to make sure that applicable licenses or certifications are always up to date as allowing them to lapse costs more time and money.  Talk to the licensing or certification board within your field and find out what you need to do in order to maintain your skills in this area.  If you plan on applying to jobs that require a license or certification then you’ll need to make sure this is up to date.

Attend workshops and conferences in an effort to remain up to date with the current trends in your field as well.  This also gives you the opportunity to network with others which we will discuss in a bit.

Volunteer or Intern Within Your Field

This continues to be my most successful piece of advice.  It has worked for me and countless others who needed a foot in the door.  Yes, this does mean sacrificing time and money but when you’re in the position of needing to prove yourself, then beggars can’t be choosers.

One of our administrative assistants did this prior to obtaining a paid position with us and it worked out nicely for her.  When the executive assistant that she supported quit, she was able to move into her position with relative ease while collecting a new full time paycheck.

Network, Network, Network!  Did I Say Network?

I lied.  This too is a great way to land a position.  Network with others in your field.  Go to chapter meetings, join associations and go to the hosted happy hours.  Talk to others about your goals and learn to sell yourself.

Be willing to sacrifice and prove to them that you’re the woman for the job.  Talking to the right person means they can possibly put in a good word for you during the hiring process.

Find A Mentor i.e. Your Sisterhood of Success AKA “Personal Board Of Advisors”

Who supports you professionally when it’s time to make hard professional decisions?  Do you have a group of women or even one woman that you can turn to?  I take that back, it doesn’t have to be a woman.  Anyone who supports you and is able to provide professional guidance will do.  Women are more successful when they have mentors guiding them both personally and professionally.   Especially when women mentor women.  Great things happen!

This starts with choosing your Personal Board of Advisors.  Some of you might refer to this as “Big Sister in my Head”.  Personally, I have always imagined Oprah and Michelle Obama as big sisters in my head, so you get my drift!

How do you choose your Personal Board of Advisors?  Kathy Korman Freygives us some tips on getting started:

Visualize yourself in a room with all of the people who represent each place setting.  Who do you want in that spot supporting you throughout the years?

Once you’ve picked who you want in your Sisterhood of Success, chart a plan to connect with them.  This can be someone who is readily accessible or someone you’ve admired from a far.  In the latter case, do your home work and make the process easier for them. 

Remember, flattery will get you what you need.  Let them know how much their work means to you and that will open the door to discussions around lending their time to help make you a success.

Once you have a plan stick to it!  Remember, consistency is key, once you’ve established the relationship with this person, keep the lines of communication open and be flexible.

What are your thoughts on women seeking advice on how to get back on their feet, financially?  What tips do you have?  Stories to share?  Any encouragement or advice is much appreciated!

 

Forbes.com | February 22, 2016 | Ginger Dean