During the last International Women’s Day, my mother hosted an event in one of her social organizations, Bharat Vikas Parishad. She prepared a quiz about women, which she would ask all the members attending the event.
Some of the questions were:
- First Indian woman to go to space?
- First Indian woman to climb Mount Everest?
- First Indian woman to cross the English Channel?
- First Women President of India?
All of these were great questions. They show that there is nothing that a woman can’t do. Hopefully, it would motivate more women to aspire to become the best in their fields.
But it made me wonder, if knowing these answers would empower women in a “practical way”?
Unfortunately, if there is one thing that the world appreciates and respects is Money. Anyone who knows how to manage money will always have an upper hand over others. For centuries, women are not appreciated in their household work, as it doesn’t involve money.
Since in most households, only men would earn money, they would initially make all money-related decisions. Which requires them to gain knowledge about managing money. Which in turn makes them more eligible to again take those money-related decisions in the future, while keeping the women at bay. This becomes a never-ending cycle and slowly creates a divide.
In a strange way, knowledge of money gives you power.
So I suggested few more questions that should be asked to a 21st-century woman:
- What is the rate of interest of your bank and how much is the inflation?
- What is the interest rate of PPF in India? What is the lock-in period? What is the minimum amount to be deposited every year?
- Gold was Rs 4300 in 2000. Today it’s Rs. 48,000. What is the annualized rate of return since then?
- How much is the yearly premium for a life insurance policy?
Taking control of your financials is the best way to gain confidence and show authority. It automatically puts women on the same table which men always assumed to be theirs.
To empower women is to make them financially literate. And it all starts by asking the right questions.
Recently, I came across this great video by PayTm demonstrating the same.