Overcoming Challenges Faced by Female Breadwinners

Being the primary or sole income provider in your family can be empowering, but it also comes with a complex set of financial and personal considerations. What is your contingency plan if your salary decreases? How can you maximize your income? Is it worth taking risks in your career? You might also be balancing household and caregiving responsibilities which could have an impact on your relationships as well as financial decisions.

More than 75% of U.S. adults providing unpaid care to an adult over age 50 are women and many of them are raising children of their own.¹ Wives who are the primary earner in opposite-sex marriages spend more time on caregiving and housework, and less time on leisure than their husbands do.

To bridge potential communication gaps with your partner, it helps if you both understand the value each of you brings to the relationship, financially or otherwise. Financial equality can empower you to define your goals and gain confidence in your financial independence. Ideally, you and your partner have supportive conversations about managing careers, finances, caregiving, and housework. But sometimes it takes someone outside the relationship who can provide assistance to help alleviate the buildup of stress. 

Taking a deep breath

Burnout is a real problem for women. It’s understandable if you’re spread thin as the primary or sole income provider. Balancing both responsibility and nurturing roles can be overwhelming and could lead to intense stress. Every minute of your day is probably accounted for, without any time for yourself.

Having a comprehensive financial plan can address all aspects of your financial life and help alleviate your worries about financial security. Additionally, it’s important that other aspects related to your role in the family receive acknowledgment and support through coaching services that complement financial planning. For instance, preparing for difficult financial conversations with your partner, working through family planning concerns, and prioritizing responsibilities.

To decrease your mental load, a financial plan can give you answers to some of the questions that may be weighing on you: “What if my job goes away tomorrow?” “Why do I sometimes feel resentful towards my partner?” “What happens to my family if I pass away?” “Who will take care of my children or elderly parents if I am unable to? “How can I prioritize my time more effectively?”

Creating a plan

 Connecting the dots of your financial life helps to provide a full view of how your situation can lead to achieving your financial and emotional goals.

• Paying bills in an emergency: Ensuring you have a contingency plan if your income stops.
• Disability insurance: Helping protect your family if something happens to you that causes an interruption in income.
• Estate planning: Putting the proper documents together according to your wishes to help your family stay financially secure upon your death.
• Cash flow management: Creating a reasonable spending plan that ensures money is going where you want.
• Balancing workload with your spouse: Engaging in conversations and using a third-party person to mediate if needed.
• Compartmentalizing responsibilities: Coaching to help you focus on the urgent and important matters in your life.
• Managing your investment portfolio: Trusting a fiduciary that can allow you to concentrate on work and not spend time managing your investments.

Getting help

Mercer Advisors understands the needs of households where a woman is the primary or sole income provider. Many of us are in the same situation. Nearly fifty percent of our client-facing team are women and juggle similar concerns.⁴

We can collaborate with you to build a plan that helps address your personal, professional, and financial goals. In addition, we will take your mental wellbeing into consideration and recommend useful solutions for easing your mind and sparing you valuable time.

Being a female breadwinner can come with many challenges, within our society and within a relationship. Our job is to support you by applying our 40 years of experience as financial advisors, and as women who can understand how your needs are different from male breadwinners. If you want to connect with someone who has been in your situation and can create a plan to help bring you Economic Freedom™, let’s talk.

₁“Caregiver Statistics: A Data Portrait of Family Caregiving.” A Place for Mom, 15 June 2023.
₂“In a Growing Share of U.S. Marriages, Husbands and Wives Earn About the Same.” Pew Research Center, 13 April 2023.
₃“What The Female Same-Sex Married Breadwinner Wants From An FA.” Forbes, 19 Oct. 2020.
₄ Client-facing employees include Client Services, Financial Planning and Family Wealth Services *company statistics as of December 31, 2024.

Mercer Advisors Inc. is a parent company of Mercer Global Advisors Inc. and is not involved with investment services. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. (“Mercer Advisors”) is registered as an investment advisor with the SEC. The firm only transacts business in states where it is properly registered or is excluded or exempted from registration requirements.

All expressions of opinion reflect the judgment of the author as of the date of publication and are subject to change. Some of the research and ratings shown in this presentation come from third parties that are not affiliated with Mercer Advisors. The information is believed to be accurate but is not guaranteed or warranted by Mercer Advisors. Content, research, tools and stock or option symbols are for educational and illustrative purposes only and do not imply a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell a particular security or to engage in any particular investment strategy. For financial planning advice specific to your circumstances, talk to a qualified professional at Mercer Advisors.

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