By Amy Jones, Lift Women’s Foundation, Board President
It’s easy to get wrapped up in our own professional vernacular, and I spend a lot of time talking about women’s economic empowerment. I’ve realized that people don’t always understand what I truly mean when I say this is something I passionate about.
At it’s core, women’s economic empowerment is about having the resources, opportunities and agency to make meaningful choices about your own life. It means that we have a society the does not unnecessarily limit the economic future available to them.
Importantly, and distinctly, empowerment does not mean women need to achieve what men have achieved. What is available to men is not the benchmark.
A woman’s vision for economic success may be bigger, smaller, or simply different. She may want to build a company, pursue a leadership role, work part-time while raising a family, build generational wealth or have enough financial security to leave a situation that no longer works for her.
The goal for women’s economic empowerment is not a prescribed destination. The goal is to remove barriers that unnecessarily restrict the journey.
That is why I tend to think about women’s economic empowerment through three ideas: choice, security and mobility.
Choice: Do I have meaningful options, and can I make financial decisions for myself?
Security: Can I meet my needs, build financial stability and withstand setbacks?
Mobility: Do I have a realistic and equitable opportunity to improve my economic position over time?
For women, economic empowerment means having choice, security and mobility. It means living in a society where being a woman does not unfairly limit access to any of them.
