WOMEN COMMIT NOT THESE FINANCIAL MISTAKES

Considering income when deciding whether to resign. A survey showed American women have lower participation rate than men in the workforce (57% versus 69.4%). Before deciding whether to leave a job for whatever reason, take into account several factors.

Women, especially mothers, tend to exhibit the availability heuristic in decision making. They simply focus on their salary and state of mind rather than its long-term implications such as the effect on social security payments.

For example, Jane, a mother of two, is mulling the idea of leaving her job to raise her two daughters. Like her, many women compare childcare costs with their current income. But it should not be the only consideration.

Here’s why. Women who took some time off to take care of kids often experience a much steeper motherhood penalty. Also, the earnings of those who continue working full-time for the same employer after having a child drop 14%.

Managing careers impulsively. Women earn 79 cents for each dollar made by men. The average full-time working women loses over $460,000 over a 40-year period in salaries because of salary inequality. That’s tantamount to 12 additional work years.

Several factors are attributed for wage gap, including behavior, industry, and hours. Men apply for jobs when they only meet about 60% of the qualifications, while women do so when they meet all the criteria. Men tend to score promotion based on potential, while women on previous performance. Also, women do not often ask for increment unlike men.

Their behavioral differences are quite apparent. Women have lower confidence levels than men, believing the society might look at them negatively for being assertive. Researchers discovered men are straight shooters when assertive. However, women are considered aggressive and pushy and at risk of getting negative evaluations according to their personal style, not work quality.

Relinquishing money matters to their significant others. While many couples decide on financial matters jointly, women are less likely to be the chief decision maker. Studies showed both men and women are more confident in men’s capacity to assume full responsibility, if necessary. Married women from Generations X and Generation Y, meanwhile, seem to play a smaller role in their finances.

Again, these behaviors are caused by lower confidence and lower financial literacy among women in their capability to take charge of their finances. Not to mention finance is associated with men, partially blaming the financial industry for the bias towards them.