Financial Influencer Anushka Rathod Shares Steps To Securing Financial Well-Being As A Woman

In India, there are several societal and cultural factors that contribute to women being discouraged or stopped from talking about money matters. Financial literacy challenges traditional gender roles and stereotypes that often limit women's financial capabilities. It encourages women to take charge of their finances, pursue careers in finance, and challenge societal expectations.

Anushka Rathod, a young financial influencer spoke with SheThePeople and discussed how she reacts to people who stop women from talking about money matters. She also talked about how women should be financially secure and how understanding money matters can empower them.

Rathod started by saying that, as a woman, you always have to fight for a seat at the table when it comes to money conversations. But eventually, when women show they have financial knowledge, have reasonable points, and have the ability to sit at the table, they will get to sit there.

Anushka Rathod On Financial Literacy

Social norms expect (and encourage) men to be the breadwinners and "protect" their wives and children. We asked Anushka Rathod what advice she will give if it was the reverse, if women ran the house, how would they protect their husbands and the children?

Rathod believes that women are generally better at saving money, so when it comes to an emergency fund, women and their "piled up cash and jewellery" will come in handy.

The young financial influencer added that saving is what women are good at, and women can actually save it for a rainy day for their families. Her advice included situations where, when it comes to children, there are certain things like education or marriage that women can already start saving for by making PFs.

"And whether it's a boy or girl, a parent should always encourage them to make their own money right after they turn 18."

Rathod also talked about how women need financial security. She added that women need to be prepared for unexpected events such as medical emergencies, job losses, or retirement. By acquiring money knowledge, they can plan for the future, build emergency funds, invest wisely, and secure their financial well-being.

Steps To Secure Financial Well-Being:

She broke it down into steps. The first step, according to her, should be creating an emergency fund for yourself. These emergency funds could be 5 to 6 per cent of your monthly expenses for you or your family that is financially dependent on you. These need to be highly liquid and put in a liquid mutual fund. This is very important for when you lose your job or get into a sudden situation where you invest all your money and the stock market crashes. Then you can't do anything, so the first and foremost thing is to have an emergency fund.

The second step, according to her, should be that you must have your medical insurance because medical bills come unannounced, especially in a scenario where you are already short of cash, and if a medical emergency comes, it will put you in medical danger, so you should have your medical insurance.

The influencer also shed light on how Indian women always avoid investing in their own health and how it can be fixed. She discussed how it is very important to take care of yourself by adding, "I don't see my payment to my nutritionists as an expense but as an investment because if I am not healthy and I'm not able to work, I'm not able to earn, so the payments I make for my gym, my nutritionists, and my healthy diet are investments for me."

Gold As An Investment Instrument

Historically, women in India have had limited access to financial education and resources; they consider gold an investment instrument. Rathod talked about gold investment and how women approach it. She said, When it comes to gold investment, women still consider gold jewellery an investment, so when you are buying jewellery, the more complex or fancy it is, the more you are losing on making charges."

"If you want to consider a gold investment, you can go for gold coins or you can go for online mediums to invest in gold."

Moreover, the perception of women and impulsive shopping is often based on stereotypes and generalisations. Rathod advised her on how to control impulse purchases. She added, "You can't, and you shouldn't. What you can do is create a separate account for your discrete investments, like buying random stuff, dinner, or whatever you want to do."

She further added that one should set a budget; if the purchase comes under the budget, one can buy it, and if it doesn't, one will automatically not be able to buy it. That's how it creates friction that will help one not make more impulse purchases and still enjoy themselves at the same time.

Suggested Reading: Fight For A Seat At The Table: Financial Influencer Anushka Rathod On Financial Independence