Financial Myths | Personal Finance

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

A Women’s Perspective on Personal Finance

"Outdated financial myths can still have negative impact on women", author says

In the past, women were often taught some pretty silly notions about money, says Nice Girls Don’t Get Richauthor Lois P. Frankel. And even though a lot of these notions are outdated, many women are still affected by what they or their mothers or women of previous generations were taught. Most women have probably heard these ideas before; the question is whether they are affecting your finances in subtle or not so subtle ways.

Here are some of the personal financial myths that have been passed along about women and money, she says:

• It’s just as easy to marry a rich man as it is to marry a poor one. Many women were told or taught to rely on marriage for financial security in the past, Frankel says. She says marrying rich is just not something you can count on, and even if you do, divorce and other factors could threaten your financial health if you rely on marriage alone for your financial stability.

• You don’t need to focus on your career or earning power, because you will only be earning a second income. While that may be true for some women, you never know what life will throw at you—and you need to be well prepared through education, etc., to empower yourself financially.

• Women aren’t good with numbers—or money. Even though this may seem like an outdated idea, many women were raised with this belief and are still affected by it.

• Money can’t buy happiness. Frankel says that if you believe this you need to be reminded that poverty will not buy happiness either. Money doesn’t guarantee happiness, but it does allow for many choices that are not options if you are poor.

• It’s better to do good than to do well. Not true—because the assumption in this myth is that these two things are mutually exclusive. Rich people can do many good things for society.

• If you work hard, you will be rewarded financially. Not necessarily true. You can work hard, without working smart—which means focusing on your career so that you can earn more.