HHello to all beautiful women out there reading this!

Finance, personal finance, investments, ROI, insurance, profit & loss… all these financial terms we all know and heard off; but what about our own finances? Do we really look at it and are in charge of, at least to some extent?

Today, majority of the women are earning money either by doing a job or through their profession and businesses. Even if they are not, they are making budgets for monthly household expenses, managing expenses within limits and handling money smartly.

In short, women have instinct, skills and ability to handle their money and finances!

but still.. few things are lacking when it comes to ‘women and their personal finance’…

What are they and how some simple basics can change your personal finance story… lets read out..

• Be financially independent:

Women, specially in small villages are financially dependent.  Many women from cities also are. Either they do not ‘need’ to earn money or they are shouldering many responsibilities back home which are restraining them to go out and earn money.

But women never stop by seeing hurdles on their path. If you really wish and are determined, you can ‘start earning’. You can start some virtual learnings and the turn them into business or can turn your hobbies and skills into business like cooking classes, or teaching art forms to people virtually or can start a part time job.

If you are in villages, ‘self-help groups’ are almost everywhere where you can get loans and facilities to start something of your own. There are many schemes launched by government to promote finance independence among women and provide funding to start something of their own.

It’s important because ‘financial independence’ gives you altogether different confidence, you learn many new things, meet new people and gain some ‘extra’ weightage when you put your opinions in a family and society.

So, look for the suitable opportunities to be financially independent!

• Learn about basics of personal finance:

Everyone must be ‘financially literate’… Especially, women!

Personal finance has many dimensions and concepts which we all must know at its basic level.

We should know about available investment instruments, their risk levels and return potentials, how to get adequate and right insurance policy, how to apply for loans, how to create emergency corpus etc.

We all must ‘read, watch and listen’ all possible things about personal finance.

This will make us vigilant and learned which in turn make us to manage our money in better way. No one can mislead or cheat us while handling our money and investments.

When you will be informed about these basics, you can teach them to your children who are future earners and investors. They will thus learn to value money and understand it better.

• Set goals for you:

You must have set goals for your family, your children; now it’s time to set goals for you.

Be it gaining higher post in your cadre or achieving milestones in your business or planning a trip with your besties or living a peaceful retired life at the place you wish to or buying a car which you dreamt of on your own.

These goals, whether big or small can make you more focused and determined in your financial journey. They will drive you to stay focused in your career and manage money wisely so you can achieve them.

• Start investing:

Whether you are earning or not, you are a part of investment journey of your family. But, make sure you start investing for you and your goals.

If you are earning then please keep some part of your earning exclusively for your investments. If you not earning, then make sure you are investing a part of money which you save every month from your household expenses.

Watching our investments grow gives us equal happiness as watching our own children grow!

• Start to take part in money discussions in your family:

In many households, still, men of the family take all decisions related to money and investments even if they have earning female members in a family. Well, its their respective tradition and practice. But, yes, you can surely try to modify it.

Slowly but surely, start taking part in money discussions in your family. Read and understand basics of personal finance and start giving your opinions politely but in firm manner.

Slowly they will understand and happily welcome you to all money matters.

This way, you will also get to know about transactions, loans taken, loans given, investments made. This will guide you to stay strong in any unexpected bad situation which life may throw at you financially.

• Keep records of your finances:

When you earn money or handle it, take part in money discussions, you are better informed about all money matters. You should then start maintaining records of all investments made, loans taken, details of all bank accounts, nominations made in different investments and insurance policies, cashflows, etc.

This record must be updated from time to time and your spouse must be informed about it.

• Keep your emergency fund ready:

We all have watched our mothers to save money every month to ‘sail through stormy days’! This is one of the biggest lessons we have learnt from our mothers.

Emergency never comes informed. It comes suddenly and can wash out all our future plans and current standard of living.

Being a lady of the house, you should be vigilant about it and keep your emergency fund ready.

You should make provision for an amount equivalent to 12 months of your monthly expenses. So that, when any unexpected situation comes, you can sail through for at least a year and within a year, you can get alternatives and solutions to your problems.

Current phase of ‘COVID -19 has taught the importance of ‘emergency fund’ hard way to many people.

You can invest this money in liquid mutual funds or short-term bank FDs.

• Insure yourself:

‘Insurance’ is the strongest pillar of our personal finance. ‘life insurance’ and ‘health insurance’ are very important.

Please make sure that you are opting for ‘pure’ life insurance which is ‘term insurance’. Term insurance serves the true purpose of life insurance as it gives ‘death benefit’ to nominee of the policy on death of the insured but, doesn’t give any benefit if the insured person stays alive till the end of the term.

This makes sure that your dependents will remain financially independent even if you are not alive.

So, if you are earning, please opt for your own life insurance and if you are not, then make sure your spouse opts for it with your nomination.

‘Health insurance’ is also important for you and family. Make sure you are adequately insured with it. You can take family floater health cover and be a part of it.

Please take standalone term insurance and health insurance for you.

Please do not ignore the fact of insuring your life and health well on time and with adequate amount.

• Do something for your parents too:

Our parents take immense efforts to raise us, educate us and to be a strong woman that we are today! Post marriage, almost every girl looks after wellbeing and happiness for both her houses and families,

Its our duty along with our brothers to look after our parents financially in their old age. Make sure you are doing it in every way possible.

As a dutiful daughter, part of your earnings can be utilized for this purpose.

This will surely make them proud and happy for you and you will feel the sense of contentment.

Dear ladies, be the change you want to see and take charge of your personal finance NOW!