The answer is "yes." We don't have to wait for financial reform. We don't have to wait for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to come to the rescue. Meaningful change can begin today and it starts by taking on every day and every dollar as though it makes a difference, because it does.
Everyone should have a plain old fashioned savings account that can serve as a safety net if we have a setback. There actually was a long stretch of time in recent American history where our country had a 10 percent personal savings rate and the economy was humming. Before the onset of The Great Recession our personal savings rate bordered on zero leaving us no margin for error. Many of us ignored the need for a savings account because we had a false sense of wealth. We actually bought into the concept that our homes and our securities were worth more than they really were. We didn't need to worry about a job loss or a medical setback because we could have easily covered our expenses by tapping into our home equity. That theory doesn't hold true today, so it's time to rethink our Plan B. The old Plan B was completely flawed anyway; this is actually a perfect time to regroup by setting up a savings plan. Baby steps are fine, but ultimately it's a worthwhile goal to save at least 10 percent of our net income as a safety net on top of what we might be setting aside in a retirement fund.
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