Have a savings plan to prepare for emergencies. Putting away money for a rainy day is very empowering (I’m speaking to myself here). As your money grows you begin to feel more secure in knowing you have the funds to take care of unexpected expenses.
It is hard to predict when an emergency will happen that will require a large chunk of cash. If you have money saved that is specifically for these times your stress level will go way down. You will not feel desperate and resort to uncharacteristic behaviors.
It is recommended that you have $1k-3k in savings. If you can manage to save at least $500 that is better than nothing. Open up a separate account for your rainy day fund. Use your tax refund, raises, or other windfall of cash to fund this account.
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
This is definitely at the top of to-do list! Its always a “how do you save something when you have pennies left over?” BUT, until now, it never occurred to me to set aside a little of my tax refund instead of using the entire amount to pay down debt. Thanks!