How women can change their lives by managing their investments
Published in Rescu.com.au - August 2011
By Janine Cox
What does it take to turn an idea into a reality? While most women can conceptualise the answer to the question, many fall short of creating the reality they want.
I was thinking about this when I met a friend this week. I mentioned how a wise man once shared with me the philosophy that has guided him through life; "if it is to be, it is up to me". By this he meant if I want something in life I need to make decisions, take charge, go out and get whatever it is I truly want.
Ten years ago when I first heard this at a seminar, I recalled looking around the room and seeing something that still holds true today, the audience was predominantly men. Ten years later and I am still baffled as to what stops more women from taking charge and learning what to do to secure their own future wealth, particularly when statistics suggest that around 50 per cent of marriages end in divorce. This is proof alone that women not only need to make their own money, but secure their financial future.
For my friend the motivation came when she had to fend for herself and two children after her divorce. There wasn't much to divide up when they separated except a big mortgage and superannuation so they had to sell their house. She now rents a small place in a suburb that she doesn't particularly like, away from friends and her children's school. At the time she knew nothing about investing or how to make money work harder for her, and she didn't have the confidence to think she could change her situation.
What is it they say about the mother of all invention? Isn't it something like ‘necessity is the mother of all invention'? What she has learnt since those days was that it doesn't take a lot of money to make things happen, you need is the motivation from within.
She talked about the first year putting her plan into action she saved $2,600. From there she put the savings into a term deposit earning six per cent interest, so that the bank was doing some of the work building up her cash. She continued saving and with interest she had almost $5,000 after a short period. I would not suggest that saving was easy; the important thing here is that she remained disciplined and her whole family will reap rewards.
By getting government assistance she was able to do a course to learn how to invest. In 2009, she bought her first parcel in Commonwealth Bank, using what she learnt studying. Fortunately the market was rising at the time and she made 20 per cent on her investment when she sold the shares in 2010. The exciting part is that before she knew it the money she saved plus interest and the capital growth from the shares had lifted her balance to almost $7,000.
Whilst her primary goal is to build up her investments, she does realise that she needs some rewards. Her prize is a goal to buy a reliable car. All of us have different situations and goals, so ask yourself this, if I put my mind to it, what can I achieve?
