Traditionally, the term ‘man’ is synonymous with leadership, strength and authority. Men have long been the breadwinners and worked hard to support their families on the financial front.
Whilst this expectation is now less rampant, and gender equality less radical, men are still facing significant financial pressures.
Amongst many other factors, men feel pressure to:
Secure a high-income job to support themselves and often others (e.g. wife, children, family).
Pay for a woman on the first date.
Maintain their job, as being fired or laid off would compromise their identity.
Compete against their colleagues for a higher salary or position.
Perform financially as well as, or better than, their parents.
The fact is, financial matters and employability have long been a part of a man’s identity. Whilst women approach ‘breadwinning’ as an opportunity or a choice, men view it more as a pressure.
A recent CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) Report in 2016 revealed that men are twice as likely as women to feel financial burden in a relationship, and twice as likely to feel responsibility for the relationship’s financial matters.
Furthermore, men feel far more pressure than women to display emotional strength and are three times more likely to feel responsible for taking control of a crisis.
There are many studies that link these financial expectations within society to elevated rates of depression and anxiety in males.
Whilst society has come a long way in narrowing the equality margin, it’s evident that men are still feeling a sense of pressure to be successful, strong and financially well-off.
Clearly, that’s all easier said than done.
With no current national framework for financial literacy and no formal education policy, money just isn’t something we’re taught in schools or beyond.
As a result, 1 in 5 men admit that they cannot save their money, 1 in 4 don’t know how to invest and more than 50% of men don’t budget, according to a recent Australian Government financial literacy survey.
In the absence of education, we learn our money behaviours from our direct influences, be it our grandparents, parents, friends, or even what we see on television.
We formulate our money beliefs around our earliest memories and we cling to these patterns of behaviour without even realising.
This is where the long-standing belief that men should be the hunters and gatherers stems from. While we watched our fathers, our fathers watched their fathers. And the cycle was born.
At Thalia Stanley Group, we believe that every person has the right to make decisions based on the truth. This is where financial literacy comes into play.
Our unique series of men's events, titled ‘Money For Men’, gives men the opportunity to feel confident in their financial abilities and their capacity to build wealth.