Calling all Ladies

I was reading an interesting article recently from Justine Roberts, the founder and CEO of Mumsnet.  In it she comments on the difficulties facing parents, particularly women as they attempt to return to work post children.  She describes it as a ‘sad reality that mothers almost have to pretend they don’t have a family to get on at work and even sadder to think that they have to babyproof their careers’.

The reality is that of course parents get the more complex deal when trying to balance work and home, and in particular mothers.  There may be cries of sexism and angry fathers beating their breasts, declaring that they do their bit.  But to talk in generalities, it is normally mummy who leaves work early when little Johnny has chicken pox or misses work to care for little Sophie when your finely tuned childcare plans fall down in ruins around you.  The truth is as well, that as a mother you want to be there to look after your children and avoid being struck down by a bout of the dreaded ‘GUILT’. So we just put our heads down, ignore the comments of ‘working from home again today dear’ and get on with things, as our mothers have taught us to do.

So if we are going to dust ourselves off, be brave and enter this highly emotive world of ‘ the working mother’, then I say let’s make sure that all the diatribe we might chance upon along the way is worth it.  To my mind this surely must mean making the money we are earning, work for us.  A recent study by Prudential entitled ‘Financial Experience and Behaviours Amongst Women’, indicates that women are still less likely to seek out financial professionals to help them achieve their goals.  We know what our goals are, ‘having enough money to maintain our lifestyle in retirement, to cover healthcare expenses and reduce personal debt…’, we just need a little nudge in the right direction to help us achieve them.

Today not tomorrow is the time to start thinking about our futures and taking action to ensure that the income we generate today can help us enjoy the lives we want to lead tomorrow.  So ask yourselves this, ‘have you had your pensions reviewed recently, are your monies invested in the best possible place, is your mortgage on the best rate, is your family properly protected if anything were to happen to you?’.  At Prosser Knowles we can help you to answer some of those questions and help you to plan for the future that you have earned.  We understand that you may be juggling a lot of responsibilities, but our job is to make your life just a little bit easier.

So come on ladies, if you can persuade a grumpy toddler that it is not a good idea for her to go to nursery in your high heels today, whilst trying to remove the remnants of breakfast from your son’s newly laundered school uniform, manage to feed the cat, put the washing out, remember to lock the door and get everyone to where they should be before the clock strikes nine, you can pick up the phone and ask for some financial help.

For further information, please click here to request a call back from one of our advisers.

Written by: Vanessa Coates – Financial Planning Consultant, Prosser Knowles Associates Limited

Prosser Knowles Associates Limited is Authorised & Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. The value of your investment can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount invested. The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate Taxation and Trusts. The information in this document does not constitute advice or a recommendation for any product and you should not make any decisions on the basis of it.  Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.