It Ain’t an Emergency, When You Have an Emergency Fund

“Shin,” of Money is not Taboo

Over the years I’ve discovered Dave Ramsey, Suze Orman and others, and their teachings about getting oneself “Financially Fit.” In my discovery, I’ve learned of the emergency fund, and NO it’s not a credit card. The emergency fund is just that, funds set aside for the unexpected, “The Emergency.”

Early years I didn’t know about such a thing, as Mom and Dad didn’t teach me about it, nor had I discovered, info on personal finances. That has changed over the years, and my wife and I have stashed money away, for that “Rainy Day.”

That rainy day happened in June of 2014 when I had to have a double bypass. Those suckers aren’t cheap, especially when it’s prefaced with a Heart Cath procedure and followed by two months of rehab. What, at one time, would have been an emergency, was not. It was just a major pain, literally, and an inconvenience.

Here it is September 2015, and another “emergency.” I took a fall last week, injuring my right shoulder, and as I write this, I’m waiting to go in for an MRI. Once again, a literal pain, but only a financial inconvenience, not an emergency. Why? Because we have an emergency fund in place.

I mentioned earlier that a credit card is not an emergency fund. Why go into debt, when you can save ahead, and not have to make any payments? Actually, credit cards cause their own kind of emergency, that of cash “bleeding” out of one’s pockets.

Check out Suze Orman’s article:  http://www.suzeorman.com/blog/emergency-fund-101/

and Dave Ramsey’s:  http://www.daveramsey.com/blog/4-quick-ways-to-build-your-emergency-fund/?ictid=btxt

So, what’s keeping you from having an emergency fund?

About Keith

Keith is a "60 Years Young" former teacher and counselor who's blundered through the world of personal finance, learning the basics later in life than he likes. It's his mission to share as much about personal finance as possible, helping others get a handle on it, much earlier than he did.
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