Why Having Your Own Money As A Female Is Important?

"Having your own money is so essential for a woman!"

You've probably heard women around you say this. But why do you think they emphasise this so much? Why does this statement matter so much to them?

Let me tell you.

I am a woman, and I am 29 years old. I graduated in 2018 but didn't pursue postgraduate studies because of my financial difficulties. Although several relatives offered to pay my tuition fees, I declined, hoping to start earning instead.

I still remember that my first salary was around INR 8,000. Fast-forward to June 2025, and I had been working on and off. The monthly salary credit message in my bank account used to give me a sense of peace and the freedom to buy whatever I liked.

I was never someone who would brag about buying expensive things because, deep down, I already knew I couldn't afford them. Yet, I was happy because whatever I earned was enough to fulfil my basic needs, such as buying good clothes, ordering food online and covering other miscellaneous expenses that I couldn't afford before.

Then my marriage was fixed, and I left my job in the hope of pursuing my passion for YouTube.

From July 2024 to July 2026, I continuously posted videos on YouTube, hoping to get monetised one day and earn money by simply sitting at home rather than commuting to an office for a 9-to-5 job.

I don't know where this fire inside me came from, but I started believing that one should always build their own business rather than spend their life working to grow someone else's.

"You must follow your dreams and work hard, but for your own business, not to grow someone else's!"

And honestly, I still believe in this thought. But life taught me something that I didn't understand back then.

When I started pursuing YouTube full-time, I genuinely believed that things would work out quickly. I had worked so hard, uploaded hundreds of videos, experimented with different topics and spent countless hours recording and editing.

I thought one day I would wake up to a notification saying that my channel had been monetised and that all those efforts would finally start paying off.

But reality was different.

YouTube didn't grow the way I had imagined. There were days when I would check my views repeatedly, wondering what I was doing wrong. There were days when I would literally cry, questioning my abilities and wondering why something I was putting so much effort into wasn't giving me the results I wanted.

And somewhere along the way, I started missing something.

My own money.

I was married, and my husband was supportive. He never made me feel that I couldn't ask him for anything. But somehow, I started feeling uncomfortable asking for money, even for little things.

You know why?

Because I had always been used to earning my own money.

I knew what it felt like to buy something without having to explain why I needed it. I knew what it felt like to pay for my own expenses. I knew the satisfaction of seeing my salary credited to my bank account.

And suddenly, I wasn't experiencing that anymore.

It wasn't that my husband wasn't willing to provide for me. It was that I missed being able to provide for myself.

There is a difference.

I started realising that financial independence isn't always about buying expensive bags, travelling abroad or living a luxurious lifestyle.

Sometimes, it's simply about not having to think twice before buying your favourite skincare product.

Sometimes, it's about ordering something you like without feeling guilty.

Sometimes, it's about having the freedom to make your own decisions without feeling financially dependent on another person.

And sometimes, it's about knowing that if life takes an unexpected turn, you have something of your own to fall back on.

That's when I realised how important having your own money actually is.

I didn't want to give up on my dreams, but I also didn't want to keep waiting for YouTube to become my source of income.

So, I decided to try something different.

I started my own gifting hamper business, Wrapped in Luv.

It's a small business where I curate thoughtful gifting hampers for different occasions. It all started with an idea, a little courage and a willingness to learn things I had never done before.

I invested my own savings, explored markets, purchased inventory, experimented with packaging and spent hours figuring out how to turn this little idea into something real.

Was it easy? Absolutely not.

There were moments of confusion, doubts and questions about whether I was making the right decision.

But something felt different this time.

Even though the business is growing slowly, every order gives me a different kind of happiness.

It's not just about the profit I make. It's about knowing that somebody trusted my work, liked what I created and was willing to pay for it.

And when I earn money through Wrapped in Luv, I feel that familiar sense of independence coming back.

I may not be earning lakhs right now. I may not have a huge business or hundreds of orders every month.

But I am building something of my own, at my own pace.

And that matters to me.

I have also realised that a woman's financial independence doesn't necessarily mean she has to do a 9-to-5 job.

She can run a business, freelance, create content, work from home or have multiple sources of income.

The point is not where the money comes from. The point is that she has the ability to earn, save and make financial decisions for herself.

And please don't misunderstand me. I am not saying that taking financial support from your husband or family is wrong.

Marriage is a partnership. There will be phases when one person earns more, and there will be phases when the other person contributes differently.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

But I do believe every woman should have something of her own.

Even if she earns ₹5,000 a month. Even if she starts with a tiny home-based business. Even if she saves a small amount from whatever she earns.

Start somewhere.

Don't wait until you have the perfect business idea, the perfect skills or enough confidence.

I didn't have everything figured out when I started Wrapped in Luv either.

And one more thing: don't spend everything you earn. Learn to save, understand money, build an emergency fund and become aware of your finances.

Because earning money is important, but knowing how to manage it is equally important.

I want every woman reading this to understand one thing.

Your own money gives you more than purchasing power. It gives you a sense of identity.

You are someone's daughter, someone's wife, someone's mother or someone's daughter-in-law. You may have several responsibilities and roles to fulfil.

But beyond all these relationships, you are also an individual.

An individual with dreams, interests, ambitions and a life of her own.

And you deserve to have something that belongs to you.

So, if you are a woman who has put her career on hold, left her job after marriage, taken a break to raise children or is simply thinking about starting something of her own, please don't underestimate your ability to earn.

It's never too late to start again.

You don't have to become a millionaire. You don't have to prove anything to anyone.

Just build a life where you don't have to abandon your own dreams and identity.

Because, at the end of the day, having your own money isn't about not needing anyone. It's about not losing yourself in the process of depending on someone.

And I think that's one of the most important forms of self-love a woman can practise.