Flips like Jake

I was once told by an older male colleague that I really wouldn't have to worry about my financial future because I would get married and my husband would take care of me. I was 23 at the time and felt confused by this remark. First, I was always raised to be responsible for myself and not be dependent on a man for anything (something instilled by my dad). Second, to be really honest with you, I secretly liked the idea of not having to worry about my finances, ever!

Well, here I am staring down my 39th birthday (a whole nother blog post), no husband in sight, having worked in mostly the non-profit sector and with a savings account that's got something in it, at least. I just never really gave much thought to my financial future until I heard the preachings of Suze Orman a few years ago. It was like the scene in the Blues Brothers when Jake sees the light and does a series of flips. Ok, not quite but almost.

As social security and Medicare continue to be targets of elimination, I've started to get really serious about the future stuff, which is closer now than it was 15 years ago (gulp). After reading and doing a bit of research, I've learned that women are usually at a disadvantage when it comes to saving for retirement and often do not think about doing it until later-- me being the perfect case in point. The earlier you start working on it, the better.

So here are some opportunities for you:

1) CT NOW will be hosting a pay negotiation workshop on Thursday, 9/22, 6:30 - 8:30 @ the Hamden Library. The higher your salary, the more you can save for retirement! You can find more information about that, here. We will be hosting one on retirement planning next year, stay tuned!

2 & 3) The National Women's Law Center (NWLC) is hosting a 2 part online workshop on preparing for the future. The first part is on what women need to know about social security, and that will be happening on Wed, 9/7 @ 2 pm, and the second will be on what women need to know about pensions and saving for retirement, which will be happening on Mon 9/12 @ 1 pm. More information can be found, here. They are FREE, but require registration.

Perhaps if you take the time now to empower yourself, you'll later be doing flips like Jake because you can actually retire before age 80.