Johannesburg- Nowana Sobopha, an investment analyst at Momentum Investments, shares four key lessons she’s learned on her personal financial wellness journey – and notes a few ways in which a woman’s investment approach may differ to a man’s.
Not investing/saving for retirement from the very beginning. It is critically important to start saving for retirement as soon as you start working. For women, I believe this is especially important. We know that, still today, women often earn less than their male counterparts. But, statistically, women also outlive men by several years.
Knowing both of these, it makes sense for women especially to start saving for retirement as soon as possible to ensure they are able to afford their own healthcare and maintain a comfortable lifestyle.
Don’t leave your own financial status off your ‘worry list’
I often feel that, as women, we put the needs and futures of others at the fore, and push our own needs to the bottom of the priority list. Of course, it’s very important to worry about children, education, and saving enough to provide for your dependants. But, in doing so it is critical that we don’t neglect saving for our own retirements. If we don’t have enough money in retirement, the very same children we constantly worry about will likely end up burdened with our care when we are elderly and retired.
People also often forget that medical expenses usually increase during retirement. Medical aid is expensive for the elderly – so we need to specifically plan to pay for it if we want to afford it on our own when we’re retired. Plan your finances so that all your children have to worry about is who is hosting Christmas.
Debt and credit – don’t live beyond your means
I can’t say this strongly enough: everyone needs to avoid living off debt. A credit card should not be your go-to “account” when you want to buy something you cannot actually afford. Rather learn to be patient and save enough money to purchase the item you need. Top tip: sometimes as you wait to save enough for an item, it might go on sale and you score even more.
Over-insuring for funerals: stick to one policy, and save the rest
I don’t know about other cultures, but as a black woman, I know that it is culturally important to ensure that our loved ones get a “dignified” send-off. And, given the importance that is placed on such an event, funerals are usually expensive affairs because they need to accommodate (and cater for) the community at large.
Separate to the actual funeral event, part of African culture is to support the family throughout the period (not just on the day). It is considered “un-African” to let people leave without having had something to eat, and it is also considered impolite to leave without accepting something to eat if it has been prepared for you.
All of this costs money. You often find people signing up for multiple funeral policies. But, I strongly believe there is a better way to meet this cultural need.
Having at least one policy will give you peace of mind in the event of an unexpected death, but why not put the money you would’ve paid towards premiums on more funeral policies in an interest-bearing savings account? This way, your money doesn’t get “locked in” by a policy for an uncontrollable period of time.
A savings account will allow you to keep the money for that but you will be able to access it if something else arises that is more urgent at the time.
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