Recently I was chatting to a potential client who, much to my pleasure, told me how valuable she found my blogs. She specifically asked if I could write an article giving tips for breadwinner businesswomen who are either raising a young family or about to give birth to their first.
Like so many working women before her, this woman was feeling overwhelmed by the demands of a professional career and a family. She was finding it challenging to manage intense full-time work while giving her spouse and young children the time they needed. She felt trapped, spread too thin and overawed by the demands of juggling almost every aspect of her life.
I was extremely grateful for the feedback I gained from this interaction, specifically because I know from past experience that the WealthChoice way can – and will – help her manage all these touchpoints.
For many executive women, life is a day-to-day tightrope walk while juggling career and family. Many of these women have little time to live life on their terms, let alone have some sort of financial strategy for the future they’d like to enjoy.
Fortunately, my brand of bespoke financial planning, which considers all aspects of a woman’s working and personal life, breaks away from the traditional one-size-fits-all model of financial planning to create holistic solutions that support busy breadwinner businesswomen and enable them to live their best lives.
Starting a Family Takes Precision Planning
The process starts with an open and honest conversation, an in-depth examination of your financial health, your goals and your specific personal and professional challenges. From there, we craft a life plan that works – for you!
In my experience, working women – and particularly breadwinner businesswomen – should begin to plan financially from the moment they start thinking about starting a family. This includes putting in place a plan for job flexibility and understanding the maternity leave options at their company.
In particular, it’s important to focus on the following:
- Know Your Maternity Leave Income Coverage: Questions you need to be asking yourself include: How long will I receive a salary from my company? Will it be 100% or a portion? Does my state provide disability for maternity leave? How will my income be impacted with a child? Will I be able to cover the increase in expenses if my income decreases?
- Reassess Your Budget: You’ll need to consider new budgetary line-items such as childcare, equipping your home for a baby, as well as clothes, accessories and food. Plus it’s critically important to decide when to start contributing to a college fund (I always recommend from the moment your child is born, so you get the full benefit of growth over time).
- Increase Your Insurance Cover: For every new parent it is an imperative to have life insurance. If you already have life insurance, then it’s important to review how much you have and assess if it is sufficient. Not only should you consider the medical costs associated with having a child, from prenatal appointments to childbirth classes, you should also consider the cost of insurance once you’ve added your child to your plan.
- Build Your Emergency Fund: Since your family is expanding it’s an excellent idea to put more into your emergency fund for those just-in-case moments. As a rule of thumb, it is good practice to have an emergency fund with at least six months of fixed expenses in cash if you are single, and three months if you have a working spouse or partner.
- Update Your Will: If you don’t already have a Will, then it’s important to have one in place before your baby is born. This document will ensure that your child inherits your assets in the event of your death and, if they are a minor, clearly states who will care for your child.
- Consider Upcoming Expenses: If your current home is small, then you’ll also need to factor in the possibility of moving house or investing in a bigger property as your child grows up. When you do start looking, remember that considerations like proximity to good schools and nurseries will now become really important.
On a more personal note, I resonated with this series of positive and affirming tips from life purpose coach Erica Carrico. Stop trying to be perfect, she says. Take time out to have fun, and to be open to help – be it a daycare or even a family organizer. Carrico also affirms my view that filling your own cup first is the best gift you can give to your family; it helps to keep you focused, positive and in the moment.
Advice for Entrepreneurs and Tech Startup Execs
A few years ago I read an article in Forbes magazine in which the writer suggested that as a female entrepreneur and mother, women should “accept that there is no such things a ‘balance’.”
For any breadwinner businesswomen at the helm of an organization – and especially those steering highly competitive tech start-ups – I would argue that balance comes naturally if you focus on prioritizing. This only works if you take the time to decide what is important – including you! – and tailoring your schedule around those commitments.
If, for instance, attending your child’s baseball games is a non-negotiable, then block out the time in your diary – just as you would with a client meeting. Turn off your phone, and give your full attention to the little person on the pitcher’s mound.
As Forbes contributor Nona Djavid wrote: “I do not check my email or Slack messages, and I focus on my current situation. I want him to remember that Mom showed up to every lesson to cheer him on and watch him improve.”
As a personal note, I still remember when my daughter told me that I never listened to her. It stung terribly, and I decided then and there to be more present. Now, I make sure my attention is 100% focused on my children when I’m with them or speaking with them from across the country.
Considerations for Women Lawyers
While all careers require heavy time commitments, a special word needs to go out to breadwinner businesswomen working in the notoriously demanding legal profession, where many regularly work more than 60 hours a week and a single week of vacation a year is not uncommon.
In a 2023 Law360 Pulse survey 31% of female lawyers said their work-life balance had deteriorated in the past year (compared with 18% of male lawyers) and 46% reported feeling continual stress (compared to 28% of men polled).
Fortunately mother-friendly legal firms are emerging across the US; practices that are turning their backs on traditionally glass ceilings and finding ways to support female lawyers through mentorship and career guidance. Some of the advice shared by female lawyers who find themselves juggling these very commitments, includes supporting one another, being adaptable, communicating your needs clearly, planning and prioritizing.
Even for women lawyers who choose to take on a part-time position to help prioritize family time, the unpredictability of the profession means that long hours are inevitable. Which means that, for any woman in the legal profession, full-time childcare is inevitable. One of the positive results of the 2020 pandemic was the ability for many in the legal field to have some flexibility around their work hours and location, so where possible it is advisable to build on those gains..
Remember: Outsourcing Is OK
In a previous blog I wrote – Female Breadwinners: The Challenges of Doing It All – I shared some eye-opening facts about women in the modern American workplace. For instance, that 41% of American mothers are the “sole or primary breadwinners for their families” who earn at least half of their household’s total income.
Not only are women often breadwinners at home, they are increasingly in senior positions in the office. This means that women need help. And they shouldn’t be afraid to ask for it.
I’ve had many conversations with breadwinner businesswomen who complain of a lack of time, but still insist on packing school lunches, cleaning and doing laundry. If you are dealing with intense hours and heavy work pressure then something has to give. If you push yourself to be all things to all people, that something to snap will be you.
By outsourcing to a housekeeper, or enrolling your child at daycare or with a trusted nanny, you are ensuring that you offer your family the best version of yourself when you walk through the door.
However, with the rising cost of childcare it is critically important to plan upfront for the costs associated with childcare, as well as the projected increases over the coming years. Fortune magazine puts the yearly cost of childcare in the US at $14,117, a figure that has accelerated by more than 41% in recent years. As a result, I work closely with my clients to ensure that budgets are in place to prioritize childcare, preschool and even summer day camps.
We also take the time to weigh up the IRS tax credit of up to $6,000 a year for two or more children versus making use of a Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA). Contributions to a Dependent Care FSA are capped at a pre-tax limit of $5,000 per calendar year (per couple), and these funds can be used to cover eligible dependent care services, like daycare. Since the FSA is only available to employees, it’s important to see which option best suits your situation.
What Does Your Ideal Life Look Like?
Before I took the plunge and started WealthChoice I had to ask myself the question: What does my ideal life look like? Today I challenge my breadwinner businesswomen clients to answer this for themselves, then to work with me to design a financial plan that supports her dreams and ambitions, and allows her to live life on her terms.
My approach is centered on choices – from the way you spend your money to the decisions you make around childcare, promotions and career decisions. Making the right choices for you is both freeing and empowering. If you’d like to work with me to help give power to your choices, get in touch and let’s chat.
