GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Rachel Rodgers is the CEO of “Hello Seven”, a company to help women make more money. The subject is especially timely right now given that measures aimed at combatting COVID-19 have disproportionately harmed the careers of women at a much higher rate than men, studies continue to show.
Rodgers’ first book, “We Should All Be Millionaires”, which she started right as the pandemic began, was just released this month and touches on many of her company’s ideas and best practices.
“How to build wealth, not only through entrepreneurship but also even through professional endeavors. I’m teaching women in this book how to negotiate for higher pay, how to start a side hustle. How to invest,” Rodgers told Fox 17.
She advocates for women to make more “Million Dollar Decisions”, which includes setting boundaries and more equally dividing up the domestic labor around the house.
“That’s why you’re seeing what you’re seeing in this pandemic. Women are the ones that are doing the homeschooling. They’re doing all of the household labor and they’re trying to keep up with work. So managing a toddler while you work a full-time job is not an easy thing to do and that responsibility falls on women almost exclusively,” Rodgers explained, adding, “Getting some of that mental load off for sure is going to free women up and allow us to turn towards our money more and really see the financial opportunities.”
The Grand Rapids based organization “Bridges in Tech” helps women and women of color learn more about the technology field. Freeing up personal time to join organizations like this is what Rodgers is hoping more women can find time to do.
Rodgers says women need to focus on earning more and realizing that nothing bad will come of it.
“Unfortunately the message most media is sending to women is, ‘Stop buying lattes, clip the coupons, stop being a shopaholic’," Rodgers said. "Where as men get media messages like, ‘Take risks, independence, freedom.’”
Rodgers says more women need to avoid the acronym “BAD”, which stands for “Broke A## Decisions”.
“The reality is nobody is getting wealthy and nobody is becoming a millionaire based on cutting costs," Rodgers said. "Studies show that if you save your way to a million, it will take you on average 32 years which is basically your entire career, versus if you starting focusing on your earning potential at work or as an entrepreneur, that it’ll happen in something like seven years.”
She says investing in yourself can pay immediate dividends, whether that’s through a career professional event or investing in convenience, like eliminating the weekly burden of laundry or other household tasks.
“When you can use a drop-off service and $40 bucks later your laundry is done and delivered folded to you and you get a whole day back," Rodgers said. "Not only just to work but to rest. To recoup so you can go back on Monday ready to slay at work instead of feeling bedraggled like a lot of women feel right now. Those are the moves that we make that really lead to a lot more wealth, not cutting the lattes.”
For more information about Rodgers’ company or book, go to her website Hello Seven.