Loading…
13
Warning: I hit $2,000 in my emergency fund last week and almost missed why it mattered
So I've been doing the whole cash envelope thing since January and last Friday I finally crossed $2,000 in my emergency fund, which I know doesn't sound like a lot to some people. Here's the part that got me though, I almost didn't even notice it happened because I was so focused on hitting $5,000 by December. I was sitting at my kitchen table in Akron going through my spreadsheet and saw the number and just stared at it for like five minutes. The thing is, $2,000 is exactly one month of my rent plus utilities, and that means if I lose my job tomorrow I have thirty days to figure it out instead of panicking. Six months ago I had $47 in that account and I was putting groceries on a credit card with a 24% APR. I'm not trying to brag here, I'm saying watch out for that mental trap where the goal number makes you skip past the milestone that actually changes your stress level. So my question is, has anyone else hit a number that felt small on paper but hit way harder in real life, and what was it?
1 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In1 Comment
vera_palmer26d ago
Wait you had groceries going on a credit card at 24% APR? That part made my stomach drop honestly. I did the same thing for like a year and a half and just kept telling myself it was temporary, but the interest was eating me alive and I never added up how much I actually paid in fees until way later. That math still bugs me when I think about it. Good on you for getting out of that hole, because most people just stay in it and never even notice the bleed. The point you made about the goal number hiding the real win is spot on too.
2