“What is your net worth?” (not to be confused with “your self-worth”) is a real question that many women can’t easily answer. This simple question and resulting hesitancy may reveal that this could be a roadblock that stands in the way of women managing their own financial lives.
By the way, most men feel comfortable with their financial literacy skills and can confidently spout out their net worth. Many women are not even sure how to calculate their net worth (more on that later), and what’s worse is they are clearly not secure with their finances in general. This insecurity was highlighted in the 2024 Intuit Financial Literacy Survey.
Step away from the old baggage
In your parents’ day, many were taught that it was “impolite” to discuss money. Money was a forbidden topic. This big secret persists today, with the Intuit survey finding that the stigma surrounding money talks is alive and well, with 27% of women surveyed confessing that it’s easier to talk about their sex lives than their money. This whispering and fighting have resulted in money issues being one of the major reasons for divorce. In fact, a study for National Debt Relief found that 54% of respondents believed having a partner who is in debt is a major reason to consider divorce.
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Years ago, when I was an on-air financial expert for Oprah Winfrey, her producers had a hard time finding women who were willing to discuss their money lives on TV. We would interview prospective guests who said that it was way too personal to discuss financial issues with their prospective partners. It was mind-boggling for me. Here, they had intimate relationships, but discussing their partner’s income, assets and debts was too personal?
Neale is a financial voice for women and a pioneer for the topic of "kids and money." Neale is a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author. Neale started her journey with The Chase Manhattan Bank, joining as one of the first female executives, and later became president of The First Women's Bank and founder of The First Children's Bank. In 1989, Neale formed the Children's Financial Network Inc. with the mission of educating children and their parents about money. Neale has also appeared as an expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show and Good Morning America.
Women have gotten in their own way
This lack of financial savvy has kept women back. For instance, according to the Intuit survey, 47% of men say they have enough savings to cover three months of expenses, but only 38% of women say they have enough savings to cover an emergency. This lack of money smarts also takes a big toll on your physical and mental health. A whopping 61% of women have reported financial stress, of which 43% of female respondents reported experiencing anxiety or depression. These stressors can result in lost sleep, strained relationships and reduced productivity at work.
The really bad news is that the percentage of U.S. adults demonstrating poor money skills, as reported by Moneyzine, has increased from 20% in 2017 to 25% in 2023. Anyone with very low levels of financial literacy is seven times more likely to spend 20 hours a week (mostly at home) dealing with personal finance-related issues.
This can also mean that employees, on average, reported losing more than seven hours of productivity at work each week, due to financial stress, according to the Wellness Barometer Survey by BrightPlan. Think about this, that’s almost missing a day of work each week, or a month and a half of work each year, because you don’t have a handle on your finances. The problem is even greater for the younger generations and the financially vulnerable, according to the Financial Health Pulse 2023 U.S. Trends Report by the Financial Health Network.
Knowledge is power
Understanding and handling your money is your gateway to building the financial life you want. More than half of the women surveyed by Intuit said they wished they knew more about their finances. Also, they didn’t know where to start.
We know that the old paradigm that “women are not good with money or math” is hard to overcome. And we also know that, historically, girls have been kept out of at-home financial education that may have been reserved for the boys in the family. Younger boys weren’t taught that much either, though, with 30% of adults in a Bankrate survey saying their parents didn’t teach them how to build financial wealth.
So, part of your power to acquire financial knowledge is now going to reliable places for sound money advice.
Step away from social media
On the one hand, it’s great that women want to learn more about money. But on the other, the Intuit survey shows that 29% of women and 47% of female entrepreneurs are turning to social media for advice. I love the cute animal videos on platforms such as TikTok and Facebook’s Reels, but trust unknown people to give me good financial advice? No way. According to a survey by WallStreetZen, 76% of Gen Zers turn to YouTube and the about-to-be-banned TikTok for financial tips and tricks from so-called finfluencers. WallStreetZen also reports that #FinTok has more than 4.7 billion views.
Before you click from that great video of a dog on a skateboard to what you think is sound financial advice, ask yourself some of these questions:
- Is the person giving the advice qualified or just looking for clicks?
- Are financial products being pushed to you?
- Is the influencer connected to an actual financial institution?
- If the investment looks too good to be true, it is.
Scammers are also out there. Some influencers are unqualified to give advice, and their suggestions can be dangerous. Inc.com points out that more than half of influencers are deemed by researchers to be “antiskilled,” meaning that if you follow their advice, you could actively lose money.
If you are taking advice to do things such as set financial goals and build a budget that can cut spending and redirect your money to save for the life you want, I’m all for it. I’m not trashing all online social media advice. In fact, in a study conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Chime, 68% of people admit that #FinTok has improved their financial situation.
Fidelity found in its Women’s History Month 2023 Survey that not only do women want to get a handle on their money woes, but they do a great job when they do. In fact, 90% of those surveyed had made money moves or plans to and were proud of their decisions. They were focusing on adjusting their spending habits, saving more to reach their goals and improving their credit score.
How to determine your net worth
Your net worth tells you what you are worth financially. It is a simple process, and there are lots of online calculators to help you. Put simply, your net worth is the value of your assets minus your debt. Think of it as what you would have left over after selling all of your assets and paying off your debt.
Here is a simple example of net worth:
Assets:
- Home: Valued at $560,000 (that is net of the mortgage)
- Savings account: $20,000
- Investment portfolio with today’s market value: $200,000
- Car owned free of loans: Valued at $23,000
- Total assets: $803,000
Liabilities:
- Outstanding mortgage: $230,000
- Credit card debt: $20,000
- Student loan debt: $22,000
- Total liabilities (debts): $272,000
Net worth: $531,000 (assets of $803,000 minus liabilities of $272,000)
OK, that may have felt good, but the average net worth for people ages 55 to 64 is $1,566,900, according to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances.
Women, it’s time to get off your assets
You can take charge of your finances and know your worth. I have spent the past 50 years empowering women to take charge of their financial lives. In fact, my new book, Get Off Your Assets: A Women’s Guide to Avoid Getting Screwed in Your Gray Divorce, addresses women who are considering getting a divorce, are already knee-deep in it or are coming out of one. But my bigger message for this article is: Never confuse your net worth with your self-worth.
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