By Julia K. Pham, CFP®, AIF®, CDFA®, Wealth Advisor at Halbert Hargrove
One secret to success that more women (even those with seemingly super powers) should embrace? Delegation! Here are some suggestions for working women on enlisting the help of others across the universe of their lives.
This column is part of a special series Halbert Hargrove produced in honor of March being Women’s History Month to highlight women’s accomplishments and challenges.
Being a superwoman doesn’t equate to superhuman strength. In whatever roles you play in the workplace and your personal life, feeling buried and stressed is probably all too familiar. We all need to acknowledge when we’re taking on too much — and ask for help when needed.
We women are so capable, and our brains are hard-wired to capably multi-task juggling a multitude of responsibilities. Why not delegate some of those tasks instead of running ourselves into the ground?
Massive strides, but more are required
Today, we’re seeing women in the workplace reaping the benefits fought for by the generations before them. In the U.S., women have already passed men in the likelihood of getting a college degree — including graduate degrees. And we’re increasingly taking on leadership roles in previously male-driven professions like finance, law and medicine.
But there’s still a lot of controversy in our culture about gender inequality, not the least in terms of women’s pay and share of upper-level management positions. And how about our share of drudgery?
One of the clearest indicators of not-yet-vanquished inequality is that women still do the majority of domestic work — cleaning the house, cooking dinner and caring for their kids. Fact: In the U.S., women who work 35 or more hours per week spend on average 4.9 hours per day on unpaid household duties, while their working male counterparts spend an average of 3.8 hours per day. Studies show that this disproportionality not only inhibits women’s employment options, earnings and economic stability, but also impacts their health and happiness.
The key to keeping your sanity and health is enlisting help and building trusted partnerships.
Help in managing your financial life
As a working professional, you’re in the process of perfecting your own craft. Outsourcing to other experts should be a no-brainer.
As a wealth adviser, I daily see the benefits of the planning, investment advice and discipline that pay off for our firm’s clients. So here’s my bias: The first professional you should seek out should be someone to help manage your financial life — maintaining a livable income, saving for retirement, growing your wealth, saving for children’s college. If these represent priorities in your life, you should place these critical responsibilities in the hands of an expert.
For more information or questions, please contact Halbert Hargrove at hhteam@halberthargrove.com
