Why Women Need Wealth.

^{I am a working single parent with two young children, and I am also a Psychologist. And I have had enough of counting the cost of my groceries at the checkout; I am done with trying to get as much as I can for as little as possible for my kids for Christmas; I am sick of coming home from work at around 6pm then frantically doing housework and cooking dinner so I can try to get my kids into bed before it gets too late; and then spending the rest of the night feeling guilty that I don’t spend enough time with my kids. “Financially stressed” is a measure used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) as part of their General Social Survey (ABS, 2011, 4159.0). The ABS reported that 19% of all Australian adults lived in a household that had one or more cash flow problems in the previous twelve months. Additionally, nearly four times as many (41%) Australian adults in one family single parent households with dependent children as those in one family couple households with dependent children, reported that they could not raise $2,000 in an emergency. This ABS Report also stated that “the reporting of financial stress does not necessarily imply that a household has low income. Some high income households reported financial stressors” (p.1, 2011). So, regardless of your income level, single parent status (with dependent children) quadruples the likelihood that you will experience financial stress.}

^{And financial stress brings with it a lifestyle of poor physical health, an increased rate of suicide, fewer education and career opportunities, high crime, and unhappiness for generation after generation. We learned back in the 60′s the amazing power of women working together – it is because of the Feminist Movement of that era that, unlike my mother, I can choose to work or not to work, or to leave work and return when my kids are older. And yet, we have allowed ourselves to become trapped in our lack of wealth creation opportunities, just like we were trapped in our lack of employment opportunities back then. If you want to live the life of your dreams, the life you and your family deserve, a life where you are not reduced to scraping the dropped sauce from the floor, it is now time to turn to your neighbours, your work-mates, your clubbing girlfriends, your family members, the woman beside you on the bus, and ask “how can we work together to create wealth in our lives?” Because, come hell or high water, this is going to be THE LAST CHRISTMAS THAT WE ARE BROKE!}