Question about whether my coworker's 'pay yourself first' advice was actually smart or just risky

My coworker Mark told me to stash $500 into savings the day I got paid no matter what, but after an emergency car repair left me overdrawn last month, I'm wondering if that rule only works if you have a bigger cushion - has anyone else tried this and had it backfire or is he right that the discipline is worth the risk?

2 comments

2 Comments

henderson.wesley1mo ago

$35 overdraft fee seems steep. Most banks have a grace period or let you link a credit card for overdraft protection so that fee could have been avoided.

gracewebb1mo ago

Started doing the same thing but I had to tweak it after my first month. I put away $500 and then my car registration came due and I got hit with a $35 overdraft fee. What worked better was stashing $200 every paycheck instead and leaving myself enough breathing room for stuff that pops up. The discipline is real, but Mark's version assumes nothing bad ever happens. Have you tried a smaller amount to see if that feels more doable?