While many people think money issues are the same for everyone, that is not true. Money works differently for women because women face different financial situations and choices as compared to men. They typically make less money in wages, take time off work to care for children or family members (affecting long-term income levels), and they live longer, so they need to make their retirement funds go further.
Women also approach the principles behind wealth building differently than men, and they feel differently about money, wealth and fulfillment too.
This is why redefining wealth for women has to go beyond the traditional meaning of wealth to encompass all the things that make life feel rich because it’s not just about money.
What does wealth really mean?
Traditionally, wealth refers to the assets, income level and status we achieve, but true wealth goes much deeper than that.
We’ve all heard of people who have attained what many consider to be the pinnacle of success but have found themselves to be destitute inside. This is because wealth is multi-dimensional.
Money plays a big part in each person’s definition of wealth, but so does:
- How you make your money
- The types of experiences you want to have
- The people who surround you
- Your emotional security
- The time and freedom you have to do what matters to you
- How you want to serve and support others
When women can focus on the bigger vision of wealth and the things they want to work toward, it can give them more personally aligned avenues to build wealth, improve their financial security, and expand and grow into the areas of life that are part of their personal success equation and personal definition of success.
To attain this richer form of wealth, it requires a money mindset shift.
How changing the way you think about money can redefine your wealth.
The way people can still feel financially insecure, even when they earn a lot of money, is an interesting phenomenon.
It can happen because:
- Chasing money can feel empty not wealthy
- Past money experiences and financial losses create fear and stress, no matter how much money you have
- Our family’s experience with money can drive our feelings about it, even as adults
- Expenses pace with income and lifestyle creep holds us back from true wealth
- We compare ourselves to others and feel like we still come up short
- Our income can add extra responsibilities that we haven’t created a structure for
To get past these things, we need to recognize that true wealth is a way of life, not the amount of money you make or the quantity of things you own. It’s about becoming more, choosing more and living more of the kind of life you want.
That means each woman really needs to find her definition of wealth and identify the thing that burns inside her to fuel it.
Every woman in the world who is both wealthy and making an impact, has a burning desire inside of them to make a difference. It is something I explore in Think and Grow Rich for Women, based on the original work of Napoleon Hill.
When you align your wealth-building with a deeper purpose, it becomes a two-way street—your resources fund your vision, and your vision provides the fire you need to stay the course, as you serve and support others and continue to build your wealth further.
This is how you start creating a life that is rich in every way.
Having a clearly defined definiteness of purpose can shift women from living in survival mode toward a more expansive view of the world, with a determination to play a bigger game. One where they can stop asking, “How will I get through the month?” And instead ask, “What kind of impact do I actually want to make?”
This kind of focus and dedication has a way of taking fear out of the equation, turning money from a chaotic monster into a friend that sits at the table with them, playing an active role in a much greater future.
How do you find a definiteness of purpose to build wealth?
Finding a definiteness of purpose can come in a blinding flash, like it did for me when my son came home from college with a massive amount of credit card debt. It was then that I realized the deeper importance of financial literacy and how even just a little knowledge about how money works can lift you out of debt and change your life. That fueled my purpose and life’s passion and a lot of the wealth I have created in my life.
But it doesn’t happen that way for everyone, which is why it’s important to explore:
- What makes you happy?
- What makes you angry, frustrated or feel a sense of injustice?
- What are you naturally good at doing?
- What do you think the world is missing?
Answering those questions can give you a new perspective and start to home in your focus on the things that really matter to you and a money mindset to match it.
How to define what wealth means to you.
I encourage the women I work with to explore their personal definition of wealth.
- What does wealth mean to you?
- What will greater wealth give you that you don’t have now?
- What would it help you do for your family or the people closest to you?
- How will it help you serve and support others in a bigger way?
- How would that make you feel?
- What other ways could you make a difference for yourself and others if you had more money?
- What would you do or learn if you were financially free?
It’s important to get detailed with the answers and really immerse yourself in them to feel what wealth means in your body as well as your mind.
From there, determine what’s holding you back from the wealth you want to create.
- Are there limiting beliefs you need to overcome?
- A fear of failure?
- A fear of success?
- Imposter syndrome?
- Guilt?
There are many things that can hold us back from the wealth we so richly deserve in our lives, especially as women, but many of them are simply stories we tell ourselves, or that other people have told us about who we are and what we can do.
Where there is a will there is a way, especially if another woman has already done it!
Women are powerful. We can do great things. And we can make a massive difference in the world. That is why redefining wealth is so important.
With a new definition of wealth that matters deeply to us, we can become a beacon of light for others.
And from that place, we can bring about the changes that our families, communities and the world really needs.
To get started on that path, I encourage you to get How Money Works for Women: Take Control or Lose It.It is an excellent starting point for women of any age, profession or in any stage of life.
CLICK HERE NOW TO GET HOW MONEY WORKS FOR WOMEN: TAKE CONTROL OR LOSE IT
In the News: Sharon Lechter and How Money Works for Women: Take Control or Lose It
Wealth Wave Media calls Sharon Lecter and co-author Kim Scouller’s book, How Money Works for Women: Take Control or Lose It, a financial revolution for women’s wealth.
The book bridges the gap between financial knowledge and real-world action, using examples of women across every decade—from age 19 to 86—to prove that it’s never too early or too late to take control of your financial destiny.