What is Financial Empowerment Anyway?
It's what the Women's Financial Learning Centre is all about.
Financial empowerment is knowing and feeling that you are using YOUR money the way you want, to live the life you want. 5 Steps to Financial Empowerment
- Visualize the life you want and be honest about your values, beliefs and dreams
- Set goals for your life
- Set goals for your finances to support that life
- Build a financial plan that will support you to make financial decisions that work for your life.
- Work the plan.
Through coaching, courses, and publications, WFLC supports the financial empowerment of women by helping them achieve the know-how, comfort and confidence they need to use their money to live to their fullest potential. |
Women's Confidence Goes Up With Their Savings
Women's Financial Learning Centre
Alumni Top the Curve!
The amount of income that Canadians put into savings has been in sharp decline for years.
The Women's Financial Learning Centre coaches are strong advocates for correcting this crazy trend.
Putting the Numbers into Perspective
Our average personal savings rate has dropped from 20% of our annual salary in 1970, to -1.7% in 2007.
That means a lot of people built up more debt than savings last year.
Now that doesn't mean everyone did. Nor does it prove that it's impossible to get ahead. Quite the opposite.
There are a lot of people who are saving money so that they can live the life they want.
Above Average WFLC Alumni
In February, we asked our alumni to review their savings habits. (Alumni, if you missed it y ou can still check in with us here.)
Alumni reported being able to save as much as 15% of their income. And there is another trend that interests us. Women report improved confidence and a more positive financial outlook since taking steps to gain control of their finances.
The Real Link Between Savings and Confidence
On the surface, it might seem like the more money people have, the more confident they will become. It doesn't work like that.
Financial confidence and a positive outlook are directly linked to:
- Education: knowing how to use your money to support the life you want
- Conscious Action: doing what you know is the right thing for you
There are people in every tax bracket stressing and worrying about money. So the amount of money you have really isn't the issue.
Having Savings is About More than Having Money
Savings open up a world of possibilities. But building your savings isn't about greed, or about wanting more stuff.
Managing your money to support your happiness makes you feel secure and confident. Savings give you support.
Savings are:
- a quantifiable measure of the effort you have put into a goal
- a representation of what is important to you. (If you are saving for a down payment, every dollar you put toward your home says that dream takes priority.)
- a way to protect yourself and your loved ones against hard times
- a commitment to use your money as a source of support, not stress.
You Can Turn Things Around
If you are currently spending more than you save, or if you just don't seem to be able to get ahead, it's important to know you can reverse that trend.
Talk to women who are taking financial control. Take a course. Learn what you CAN do instead of focusing on what you haven't been able to do.
Build your savings and your confidence by focusing on what you need to do now, and take action!
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Financial Empowerment Quarterly
is produced by the
We are Certified Financial Planers, with a twist. We don't sell financial products, and we don't work for banks, investment or insurance companies.
Instead, we built the WFLC to provide independent and unbiased financial education for women.
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How to Save an Extra $2,000 for Your Goals this Year
AKA: How to afford your trip to New York, a guitar & lessons, a sanctuary...
1) Break big savings goals down into numbers you can deal with.
Finding an extra $2,000 might seem daunting at first. But you could probably find $40 this week right?
$2,000 is nothing more than $40 a week or $80 every two weeks for one year. That's it. If you asked the bank to automatically transfer $80 every 2 weeks into a savings account for you, do you think you would miss it? Not likely.
Instead, you'll feel great about seeing your savings grow and knowing you are that much closer to achieving a goal!
2) Identify a goal and name your savings account.
No kidding! If you name something you immediately feel more attached to it. Some banks will let you nickname your accounts - take advantage of that feature and name a savings account, "$2,000 for New York" or "Zen Garden 2009".
Each time you check your accounts you'll be reminded of your goal. You'll see how close you are to achieving it, and it really will make it fun to stash your cash.
The other benefit to naming your account is that you are more likely to protect your savings if it is clearly attached to something you really want. That will make you less likely to dip into the account for day to day incidentals. And it means that instead of playing catch up with yourself, you will actually achieve your savings goal!
3) Spend something other than money.
Say your goal is to save $2,000 to take the family on a holiday in July.
Organizing a house swap can save you well over $100 a day in accommodation costs. On a 2 week vacation that's huge. There are plenty of house swap services and you can also make arrangements through friends, or services like Craig's List.
With the major costs covered for free, now you just need to save $600 spending money by July. That's doable.
If you don't think you have time to save for something, don't use that as an excuse to spend money you don't have. You always have choices. Cut your costs. Earn some extra money. Or find a way to get some or all of what you want with something other than money.
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The Savings Account Every Woman Needs
Emergency Savings are a Must
We coach women to set up savings accounts for all of their primary goals.
One goal that we believe every woman needs to have is self-sufficiency.
Having savings that are designated for emergency use protects you from debt and dependance on others. It is a little extra support, that will give you choices during otherwise difficult times.
Ideally, your emergency saving account should have enough to cover 3 -6 months of your expenses.
If that amount sounds daunting, start by saving enough to cover 2 weeks of expenses. Once you have that, keep going.
This isn't meant to cover an emergency holiday in Spain! Your emergency savings give you options if you lose your job, if you need to take time off to care for someone, or if you become ill or unable to work.
There are also disability and life insurance options that you can look into to further protect yourself and your loved ones.
But making the commitment to save money for emergencies does more than help you take care of your financial obligations. Making a monthly contribution to your emergency savings, is a fabulous demonstration of your efforts to be self-sufficient.
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