Because it will never do for us to leave our fate on the hands of men!
It doesn’t matter if you are a homemaker or a full-time career woman or married to a multi-millionaire. Whatever your situation in life, single, married or dating, protecting yourself and your own future should be the uppermost concern for you. No, this is not some feminist rant against men. I am just stating a basic fact of life. You want your future assured, then make darn sure you earn your own income and has means to continue doing so even after having children, even after quitting your day job, even after becoming a full-time homemaker or housewife.
I am not being all money-faced (eventhough I admit that I AM money-faced at times…like I always say, there’s no such thing as too much money!) but I am actually being very practical.
Think about it. Picture this.
You meet the man of your dreams (or you thought he is the man of your dreams), marry him, have children and then made the ultimate sacrifice to quit your job and be a full-time homemaker. So, you stay home to cook, clean and care for the children while he brings home the bread so-to-speak. All is hunky dory and rosy and all that crap. But sadly, there are no such thing as happily ever afters in this modern age and time.
One fine day, the so-called man of your dreams decided that he’s no longer in love with you. He’s probably bored of you and wanted to spend the rest of his life with another younger woman. Your life will come crumbling down all over you. Worst of all, you will be literally kicked out without any means of supporting yourself or your children. So, end up, he will get custody of the children and you are left destitute and alone.
Or if your guy is very faithful, due to some twist of fate, he could drop dead due to some disease, heart failure, accident, etc. And again, you are left to fend for yourself and your children alone.
In both scenarios, you will end up suffering emotionally and financially. Emotionally, you will be drained from the battle of the divorce or coming to terms with the death. Financially, you will also be drained because the person who had supported you all these years are no longer there to support you. This also could happen to those who married rich men because they could also leave you penniless by getting a new trophy wife and getting rid of you OR die with a will giving all their assets to someone else but you.
Much as we all hoped this won’t happen to us, it is always a good idea to have a back-up plan to safeguard ourselves. Think of it as insurance. So, if you married a rich man, remember to save up as much personal savings as possible. The more the better. If you don’t have a rich husband, then you should make darn sure you have your own stream of income.
By income, it does not mean you have to go out to work if you don’t want to. Nowadays, there are a lot of homemakers who earn comfortable incomes at home. Many women I know is now into opening blogshops – as in opening online stores to sell products from food to clothes to accessories to cloth diapers. If selling is not your thing, you could try blogging for money and earning an online income.
Whatever it is you feel you can do, then there is no harm venturing into it. If you think you don’t have the time now, then try to make some time for it. Think of it as investment. If your husband don’t agree to it, tell him it’s a hobby. And if you tell him it earns you a few hundred ringgit each month, he won’t stop you. After all, you are earning extra $$ for the household!
If you think that you do not need to do this as you have a happy marriage, your husband is healthy, etc, etc, I think it is time you get rid of your rose-tinted glasses. I am not saying that your marriage will fail or that your husband will drop dead any minute now. I am just saying, we as mothers and most importantly, as women, must have means and ways to protect ourselves, support ourselves and also to support our children in any eventuality. If you have a happily ever after ending, then good for you. But if not, at least, you have a back-up plan!
So, to all the women out there. Empower yourself and be independent! Show the world that we are indeed strong as we are capable of anything and can do much, much more than men. Happy Women’s Day (okay, so I am a little late since the actual day is March 8 but heck, better late than never!).
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