Planning for the Unexpected

July 2, 2025 In the beginning of this Project Money journey, I sat down with my coach and created a plan—a solid one. We looked at my income, my expenses, my goals, and started building a strategy that made sense for me and my family. I committed to working on that plan, and for a while, things were going great.

Then life hit.

My car broke down. Completely. And when you’re a full-time working single parent of three, losing your transportation can feel like everything is falling apart. In the past, I probably would’ve panicked, reached for the credit card, or started looking at loans. But this time was different.

Thanks to the plan I made with my coach—and the discipline I’ve been building, I had savings. Not a lot, but enough. And I can’t tell you how thankful I am for that. Because while it stings to dip into your savings for car repairs, you know what feels worse? Going deeper into debt.

This experience reminded me why having an emergency fund is so important. Life will  happen. But when you have a plan and you're working on it, you're in a much better place to respond instead of react.

I’m not where I want to be yet, but I’m not where I used to be either, and that’s something I’m proud of. One step at a time, forward.
You might also be interested in By tracking spending and building awareness, Ifeanyi avoided debt and gained control—proving that small habits can lead to financial change... Resilience meets planning: Ifeanyi's financial strategy turns a car problem into a lesson on the power of preparation and progress... I’ve really enjoyed my start with Project Money! It’s been an eye-opening experience and one I’m genuinely excited about. From day one, I’ve felt supported... Please read the following before proceeding to: The website you are about to visit is solely the responsibility of the merchant or other party providing the site. The content of this third-party site, including materials and information, is solely the responsibility of the provider of the site. The Credit Union is not responsible for any such third-party content. Any transactions that you enter into with a vendor, merchant or other party that you access through this third-party site are solely between you and that vendor, merchant or other party. The Credit Union does not endorse the content contained in this third-party site, nor the organization publishing the site, and hereby disclaims any responsibility for such content. The Credit Union Privacy Policy does not apply to this third-party site, and for further information you should consult the privacy disclosures of the third-party site.
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