A few years ago, at a seminar on women and money in a room with 75 women across ages and professions, an educated, urban woman in her late 30s began by saying that she and her husband moved to West Asia 12 years ago to meet certain financial goals for their family. The family had returned to India recently. During the seminar, she said she had come to the shocking realization that she had no idea what these goals were and how they were met. She said she wanted to ask about these when she got home, but was acutely conscious that her sudden interest in financial matters may raise “unnecessary suspicion”. At the same session, when asked how many women had financial goals of any kind, only two young women raised their hands.
The relationship between women and money seemed, mostly, dismal.
Cut to 2019. Even as women get more and more convinced about financial independence and security, they find it hard to leave behind deeply internalized stereotypes. Author and #MakeMoneyEqual ambassador Emma Gannon observes in a 2018 The Guardian article, “Men shouldn’t have to suffer under huge money pressures of ‘being a man’ and women shouldn’t be spoken to like they are naturally bad or inept with money. The research shows how deep-rooted these assumptions still are and how they are being subtly perpetuated in the media.”
The article notes how women “splurge” on expensive shoes, and men “invest” in a good suit, according to the media. Women are portrayed in popular culture and daily jokes as being reckless spenders and poor savers, which becomes a widespread gendered generalization. Even articles aimed at men and women portray financial planning differently—as a complex “minefield” with pictures of piggy banks or family planning references for women, and discussion around portfolios, calculated risks and combat references for men.
These stereotypes are not only damaging, but they are also factually incorrect, observes Monika Halan, Mint’s consulting editor and the author of Let’s Talk Money. She argues that women perform a variety of tasks that include dealing with financial matters directly, beginning with their household budgets, and are therefore, well-positioned to think about setting their own financial goals. It is important that women develop the ability to dissociate being financially astute with the ugly connotations around being “money-minded”—a belief that women marry for money or choose a husband because of their financial status.
Millennial women will—slowly but steadily—change this narrative. Today, financial independence is on their radar as demonstrated in our online survey. Almost unanimously, they seek a career. However, only 45% of them said they could call themselves financially independent and a significantly smaller number said that they have set financial goals for themselves. Approximately 75% of our respondents said that their families were not financially dependent on them, which suggests that women are still some distance away from being viewed as providers. They are expected to prepare the bread, not to win it.
Like any good insurance, financial acumen is a smart investment. If women could assume control and take charge of their money and assets, it would enrich them with practical skills and train them to be self-reliant. This would bring an added sense of self-worth, confidence and dignity; and, of course, financial independence which leads to all other kinds of independence—intellectual, physical and emotional.
While notions of being “money-minded” have been looked down upon and questioned among women, they are easily forgiven among men, given their role as the provider in families and society. Women have to walk the fine line of managing household finances effectively and ensuring the well-being of the family without being “greedy” or generating personal wealth of any kind—particularly in India. The lack of control over financial resources and decisions relating to investments have deprived women the means to pursue their own interests, and perpetuated their belief that wealth creation is the game of men. While there is enough evidence to prove that women make efficient financial managers, they are not often encouraged to become financially “savvy” or generators of wealth. Worldwide, there is increasing proof around women’s success in the field of managing money and finance. A 2015 report by KPMG showed that women-owned or managed hedge funds have outperformed the industry standards by almost 25%, every year since 2007. And yet, basic financial security and preparing for an aspirational lifestyle is often misunderstood as greed, in women.
As women embrace financial independence, can they become creators of wealth and move beyond just ensuring sustenance for their families? This seems like one of the big few hurdles that they still need to cross. Can the millennial girl get there?
The Millennial Girl is a column based on an online survey conducted with more than 100 urban, working millennial women to uncover their attitudes and opinions about the workplace.
Anuradha Das Mathur is founder and dean of the Vedica Scholars Programme for Women, and a Yale Greenberg World Fellow 2016. Mohini Gupta contributed to this article.