Power. What does that word and concept mean to you? The concept of power has as been something that I have been pondering quite a bit lately. For starters, Conde Nast Portfolio magazine in its April 2008 issue discussed how women in fact are not making great strides in the business world. Women still make substantially less on the dollar than men; women are still hugely underrepresented in the boardrooms and in executive positions; and women continue to struggle to balance life, work and well-being.
It is imperative that women make powerful decisions about their careers, wealth, well-being, etc. and Modern Venus Ltd. is dedicated to giving you tools to do just that. In this newsletter, we have a wonderful article from Krystin Fischer, a wonderful financial professional, which encourages you all to research getting life insurance, no matter how old you are, whether you own property, or whether you are married and/or have kids.
As Modern Venus Ltd. hits its first anniversary, I want to thank all of you who have been clients, who have attended the wonderful parties we have thrown this year, and those of you who have sent lots of compliments and support our way. I also have been thinking a lot about how women can and are breaking out of the strangleholds of their current situations by starting their own businesses. Women can create and control more of their time, and can create additional sources of revenue, by starting side businesses and/or striking out on their own. Therefore, in this issue and the next, I'm going to be writing about women and entrepreneurism. Please let me know if you like this subject because if you do, I'll make it a standing column in this newsletter.
Warmly - Marianne Merritt Talbot, Esq., Executive Director
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Protect yourselves: is it time for you to get life insurance?
By Krystin Fischer, Financial Representative
Okay, ladies, this might not be the sexiest subject but this is a very important one: is it time for you to get the proper insurances to protect yourself? It doesn’t matter if you don’t yet have a family or own a home or anything else you think might be the trigger for you to get some. You also might think: “hey, I’m young, I don’t have to worry about getting insurance because I’ll still qualify when I get a little older.” As an insurance professional who loves working with my female clients, the fact of the matter is that the insurance industry is changing and it is getting increasingly more difficult for even younger women to qualify for life insurance. Therefore I tell all my women clients to look into getting life insurance now.
The value of insurance to a woman’s overall financial portfolio is essentially the cornerstone of any sound financial plan and purchasing it young is something that women should consider if they have or anticipate a traditional insurance need in the future. Life and disability insurance in particular are two forms of insurance that are typically provided by employers but in a limited way. Life insurance is often a small multiple of of a woman’s salary and disability insurance, if offered by ones firm, is typically a fraction of base salary excluding any commission or bonus paid. Many group plans are not portable if and when you leave a firm. Individual plans by quality carriers offer much stronger contract language are a nice compliment to group plans.
Many people approach me about the concept of exploring life or disability insurance coverage after they experience a personal tragedy, be it a premature death or long term disability that makes the notion of needing coverage a tangible reality. Unfortunately, opting to get insurance with a reputable company just because we want it, it is not always a viable option depending on age, health, and avocations. Procrastination is a demon of human nature that can often have a lifelong negative affect from a financial risk management perspective. Life insurance is less expensive for women due to our statistically longer life expectancy. However disability insurance is more expensive for females versus males as more things tend to happen to women that impair our ability to work for periods of time. That being said, I have seen many women whose health has changed in the course of one year, even one month, which has excluded them for qualifying for insurance coverage or, has made the coverage so expensive the cost was impossible to afford. Our doctors have the luxury of getting to know our specific medical profile and working with us over the long haul. Insurance companies get a snapshot of our health and make decisions based on mortality tables, actuarial tables and statistics. Therefore, what our doctors deem as small things that can be tended to over time, underwriters need to look at from a much broader range. Simply put, if Woman A has slightly higher blood pressure than Women B, Woman A is probably going live longer and hence, will have to pay less for her life insurance plan. Insurance is the only financial product that is age and health sensitive and typically as we get older our health does not improve. I have had many clients tell me that they were going to put off applying for coverage, and spend the next several months working out to shed the pounds that would bump them out of the best health classification. In my experience of 50 people saying that, no one has ever lost a pound! The bottom line is, the younger you apply for insurance, the better off you are going to be long term from a cost and risk point of view.
There are millions of stories I have heard since entering this industry a few years ago that have attributed to my passion around risk based products and the importance of protecting young families adequately. Even if you are not married with 2.5 children yet, if having long term debt in the form of a mortgage or long term dependants is a probability, the cost of locking in and protecting your insurability is truly priceless.
Make sure when you are structuring your overall financial plan, you are considering all of the potential twists and turns life has a tendency of throwing at us. Life and disability insurance is like a parachute – you would rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it!
I'm happy to talk to any of you about your insurance options - feel free to contact me!
Warmly- Krystin
917.368.3065
Krystin.fischer@nmfn.com
http://www.nmfn.com/krystinfischer
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women AND entreprenEURISM
For two decades, women have been starting businesses at twice the rate of all firms. Between 1997 and 2006, the number of women-owned firms grew 42% compared to 24% for all businesses.
* Nearly 10.4 million firms are owned by women (50% or more), employing more than 12.8 million people, and generating $1.9 trillion in sales.
* Three quarters of all women-owned businesses are majority owned by women (51% or more), for a total of 7.7 million firms, employing more than 7.1 million people, and generating $1.1 trillion in sales.
* For the past two decades, majority women-owned firms have continued to grow at around two times the rate of all firms (42% vs. 24%).
* Women-owned firms, 50% or more owned by women, account for 41% of all privately held firms.
Businesses Owned by Women of Color
* There are 2.4 million firms owned 50% or more by women of color in the U.S., employing 1.6 million people and generating nearly $230 billion in sales annually.
* Between 1997 and 2006 the number of privately held firms 51% or more owned by women of color grew five times faster than all privately held firms (120% vs. 24%).
* Women of color own 42% of all firms owned by persons of color, up from 36% in 2004.
Source: Key Facts on Women-Owned Businesses, Center for Women’s Business Research, 2006
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READER'S CORNER: "ECCENTIC GLAMOUR: Creating an insanely more fabulous you" BY SIMON DOONAN
I have been a huge fan of Simon Doonan since I first read "Wacky Chicks" a few years back. Simon Doonan is the Creative Director of Barney's New York and is responsible for its fabulous, over-the-top windows (you may have also seen his cheeky commentaries on Vh1 and "Top Model"). Now Doonan has written "Eccentric Glamour," which is a call for women to have more fun with their fashion, to live bigger through what they choose to put on their bodies, and also, very importantly, to "Say No to Ho"- meaning no hoochie-mama fashions. It is hilarious (didn't you want to know about his Jazzercise obsession and his penchant for dressing as Queen Elizabeth?), has a bunch of fun interviews with the likes of Dita Von Teese and Hamish Bowles, and is call for women to have more fun and to be more extravagant and eccentric! It's perfect summer reading - pick one up at a local bookstore or grab a copy online.
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THANK YOU FROM CIRCLE OF HEALTH INTERNATIONAL!
Thanks to all the beautiful amazing women and handsome charismatic men who came out for Modern Venus Ltd. and Laughing Sage Wellness' "Spring Into Health" soiree on April 8th at the D'Or lounge at the Dream Hotel!
We are thrilled to report that due to the generosity of all of our guests, we raised over $2,000 for Circle of Health International! Circle of Health provides healthcare for women in war-torn and other ravaged areas around the world (including in Louisiana for victims of Hurricane Katrina!). This money was raised by and through the generosity of many sponsors, including but not limited to -- Anise New York for the vintage jewelry (gold! rubies! amethysts!) and jersey dress, the Alicia Mugetti Design Salon for the couture chiffon scarf, the Brazil Bronze Glow Barfor its Oscar-worthy body wraps, Rhemedy by Rhed for the two delicious massages, Caterina Marra, a celebrity facialist for her Sonya Dakar signature facial, Swirl Events for the insanely wonderful donated wine tasting, Ladies Who Launch for the tickets to an upcoming Julia Cameron lecture, Scent by Alexis for the incredibly gorgeous "Goddess" perfume (available now at Henri Bendel, ladies!), and South n' France for the insanely delicious hand-rolled and hand-dipped bon bons, and the list goes on!
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