Start an Emergency Fund
No matter how much planning you do, something will eventually go awry. That’s why you should create an emergency fund. An emergency fund is a pool of money that you use only during emergencies, like paying for surgery or flying across the country to attend a funeral.
To start an emergency fund, deposit 10% of your money in a separate account. Don’t touch that money until you absolutely need it. Your emergency fund should equal six to eight times your monthly expenses, but the more you keep aside in your emergency fund, the less reliant you will become on credit cards to dig yourself out of trouble.