Split your income for two years while life goes wrong on its own schedule — and find out what a cash buffer is actually worth.
Feel why keeping some savings liquid is insurance that stops a small shock becoming a debt spiral — and that the right buffer is a genuine tradeoff, not 'save everything'.
You earn $2,000 this month. Essentials take $1,200, leaving $800 to split.
This month: $400 lifestyle · $240 to the fund · $160 invested.
Rule of thumb: keep 3–6 months of expenses liquid — that is $3,600 at your essentials.
Selling investments in a hurry costs 35% of what you sell. Emergency credit runs at 36% APR.