So many young girls in their 20s and early 30s are faced with this question about 6 months into their pregnancy. It is not an easy question to answer, but answer they must!!

Should I be a stay at home mom? should I be a housewife? Should I give up my Rs. 1 million job? or Rs. 500,000 or Rs. 2 million…the greater the amount, the greater the reluctance, normally. However if one has a decent corpus, the guts to give up the job is higher. I know women who never went back to their jobs after childbirth and I have friends who reported for duty on the 21st day (yes you read right, 21). Yes that happened in US where there is a better back up for leaving small kids in day care.
Take a typical girl who has had a nice happy childhood. Her dad met all her financial requirements (no problem picking money off dad’s purse for any purchase). Then they graduated (they shared all the bills with their friends – girls or boys). Then they got a nice job and told dad “Here dad this perfume, shirt, watch, tickets to Singapore, ..car….is for YOU, and I bought it out of MY earnings”.

Then came marriage.

Then came life with a new person. Very nice, very understanding. A complete sweet heart. However she is Independent. She will NOT ask him for money (dammit I earn as much as him or more than him!).

For the past 5 years she did not have to ask anybody for any money. She just swiped her card. She just went to the ATM.

She bought gifts for her dad, mom, sis, friends. Attended friends weddings. She flew to Cuttack, Lucknow, Bhilwara, – to attend weddings.

Now she is pregnant. Should she stop earning?

Who will pay for that gift? For that phone she thinks her Dad deserves? For that ‘little’ cousin who is graduating next week? For that servant who has been working in her mother’s house for 22 years?

Will she ask her husband? The question is not whether he will give. The question is will she ask?

Will it be as smooth?

Create a source of cash flow. Make sure when you are working you save money. Say Rs. 1 million or at least Rs. 500,000 – girls this is a MUST. Keep it in a Long Term MIP…in the growth option. Whenever you need money do a smart withdrawal. If you think it is dipping ask your beloved husband to top it up.

Let us say it had Rs. 1 million (or Rs. 100,000, as you wish). You could easily withdraw say Rs. 6k a month. or about Rs. 70k a year. Use it ONLY, ONLY, and ONLY for your personal whims and fancies. You will feel comfortable that you are using your money. Remember NOTHING from this should be spent on buying gifts for your kid, husband, house, etc – that is his responsibility, right?

Now let me wait for the brickbats from the guys.