The Truth About Financial Security
and Inner Peace

By Elliot Caleira

Arianna Huffington is on point when she says that we're a country who needs The Third Metric Revolution. It is very true that power and money are inadequate measures for success. There is no doubt that we'll obtain more happiness by concentrating on wisdom, well-being, wonder and chances to be generous. The most fundamental thing for the well-being of women, in my view, is financial security that could be obtained through an adaptable approach to work.

What is The Third Metric?

The Third Metric is something that bases its roots on the idea that money won't buy you happiness. Money is like a double-edged sword. It can't buy happiness, but it can purchase financial security. The idea is to bypass what could be called financial insanity — putting in 18 hours days and pushing your way to the top all in the name of power — in continual pursuit of everything that's bigger, better and flashier. That is almost like giving your soul to the devil. Making sure the baseline ability is there to make an income, on the other hand, leads to peace and happiness in the long run.

When I speak of financial security, I’m speaking about having the capacity to pay your monthly expenses, put your kids through college, save enough money for retirement and handle of each one of life’s uncertainties (divorce, job loss, supporting aging parents financially, illness, etc.) comfortably. This is what many would view to be basic requirements — and if these requirements can't be fulfilled, the stress of worrying about being financially insecure is like none other. Women restrict their financial security and professional fulfillment, too often, by thinking there's just one very orthodox way of working.

Women and Work

The women who have no breath left as they're fighting their way up the corporate food chain and at-home mothers seeing only rigid workforces have the chance to find solace given the fact that work can arrive in many different forms. Work doesn't just need to be about commuting two hours each day to a 50 hour work week at a desk job. Depending on what your changing life situations and needs are, you could produce a small or large income to insure against life’s curve balls. However, if you do find yourself with some debt whether from school or a home, you can check out national debt relief reviews.

Certain full-time positions are out there that allow complete or partial telecommuting. These are part-time roles that necessitate working a couple hours or a couple days each week on long-term consulting jobs, freelance work and entrepreneurial ventures you come up with here and there. Work commitments and structures can vary as different life circumstances come and pass. Women have options and choices for occupations that can enhance, rather than detract, from well-being, even in tough job markets.

Finding Flexible Work

There is nothing noble in remaining in a position that takes every last ounce of energy from you. There is no reason to keep out of the job market — for a decade or longer oftentimes — in the fear of the work becoming life-consuming. Women are capable human beings who will find some way to make a type of job work out. Although corporate behemoths are oftentimes wrapped tightly in bureaucratic restrictions, many small to medium-sized business have the ability to hire you in flexible ways.

Most women — including those who have the chance of living in affluent communities today — would find it wise to produce some form of income from graduation day all the way on through the retirement years. Not all people are going to want to run the United States or “lean in” to the C-suite. There is still the universal urge to go deeper into financial security.

Many women depend too much on spousal income — even after plenty of their jobs or husbands go away. Women do not, often, seek out financial advisors, do the math or truly face the facts regarding whether their existing household revenue will fund a retirement lasting upwards of 30 years.

Elliot Caleira is a freelance writer in the self-mastery and health and wellness spaces. When he's not writing you'll find him cooking or teaching Portuguese classes. More articles by Elliot.