Your savings account might be your saving grace
Lately I've been thinking about what it means to create emergency savings, especially as it keeps bubbling up in my Google searches. The idea of a 'rainy day fund' sits well with me at face value, but it also implies that a person has the flexibility to stash away cash. This is slightly problematic because clearly not everyone is enjoying such financial freedom right now. We know that in this current pandemic-focused world, some people are literally going from pay cheque to pay cheque. So, there actually isn't a rubber-band bound wad of notes under the mattress for these folks. Indeed for some, financial support is a far more realistic solution. This is worth calling out before we press on. We have written up some guides on such support for both individuals and businesses, so they're worth a read if you're interested.If you are fortunate enough to still have regular pay coming in, many online writers, including our own, point toward the value of emergency savings. So, what is that in reality?A recent New York Times article informed me that you can’t just save willy-nilly for an emergency fund, but rather must have a disciplined approach. Specifically, the author suggested saving a regular percentage of your pay or any windfall, like a tax refund. Then, put that little bit of money into a savings account to be used later on.This is what the motivated among us call a "savings goal". The point is that without a fixed visualised goal you'll never achieve the bare minimum saving needed for your emergency. Instead you'll procrastinate or forget. I've read elsewhere that we sometimes propose a savings target that's far too lofty. This can be intimidating, the same way it is to overcome a 3-0 football deficit at the half. Any good coach will tell you if you break the task down into smaller bits, the target will seem easier to hit. You’ll be more upbeat about actually achieving it.
