The 5 best ways to build an emergency fund

The 5 best ways to build an emergency fundThe 5 best ways to build an emergency fundMaking ends meet while also trying to scrimp together savings for college, a house or retirement let alone a luxury such as a vacation or big-screen TV can be daunting. But there is one savings goal you should not ignore an emergency fund.This cash set aside for unexpected emergencies such as a job loss, major auto repair or medical crisis, is crucial tofinancial security.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreRainy days come for everyone, whether its a broken tail light, a leaky roof or needing to take a week off work to fight the flu, says Allie Vered, director of theAmerica Savescampaign at Consumer Federation of America. Maintaining an emergency savings account may be the most important difference between those who manage to stay afloat and those who sink in debt.According to the Federal ReservesR eport on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2016, 44 percent of adults say they couldnt cover an emergency expense costing $400 without borrowing money or selling something.As little as $500 could help you through a financial squeeze, but ideally an emergency fund should cover several months to a years worth of living expenses. While that may seem challenging, dont be intimidated into inaction. Set a goal and come up with a plan. Start small, but start. Just $10 a week adds up to more than $500 in a year.Your emergency fund should be stored in an easily accessible place, but not so easy that you regularly dip into it for everyday expenses. Keep it separate from your checking account by creating a dedicated brick-and-mortar or online savings account.Here are some ideas to help you start building that emergency fundReduce your bills and expensesThe most obvious path to amass extra cash is tocut your bills and expenses. For example, you could reduce your commuting expenses ( gas, car maintenance, tolls, parking) by carpooling, using public transit or riding a bike. Or save those bucks you squander daily on take-out by cooking more meals at home, brown-bagging it for lunch, or giving up those things you know are bad for you anyway soda, snacks, and smokes.Try shopping around for better rates on auto and homeowners insurance, phone plans, cable and credit cards. Use a list and coupons when grocery shopping to eliminate impulse buys.Consider ending some of those invisible automatically billed subscriptions and memberships you may not even remember you have magazines, smartphone apps and cable TV subscriptions. Try reducing the number of professional services you pay for, like weekly house-cleaning, car detailing or mani-pedis.Pick up a side hustleAnother avenue to extra cash is finding a way to earn a supplemental income. If you can swing it and have the time, consider a second job, at least temporarily. Rent out a room to a short-term tenant, pet sit or walk dogs on weekends, check out gig jobs online or participate in focus groups for cash.Sell your stuffPut that one mans trash is another mans treasure adage to work for you. Clear out your kids old toys and bikes, your unread books, dusty exercise equipment and unused power tools. Have a yard sale or sell those items online.Stash away extra incomeSave any windfalls that come your way, whether it be an inheritance, tax refund, raise, bonus, commission or birthday check from grandma. That can give your emergency fund a substantial boost.Remember your changeYou may be surprised at how fast collecting loose change can add up. Regularly root through your couch, car seats, pockets, purse and bottom of the washing machine for coins. Set up a jar in your house for daily deposits. Or when you get change from breaking a $5, $10 or $20 bill, instead of spending it, throw it in the jar. When it fills to the brim, shuttle it off into your savings account and start over.Many banks will also le t you round up purchases made on your debit card to the nearest dollar and automatically transfer the extra change to your savings account - Bank of America calls it the Keep the Change Savings Program. There are also many smartphone apps, likeQapital, that help you create similar saving schemes.If you respond well to a challenge, consider trying the52-week money challenge. Pick a start date. In week one, save $1. In week two, save $2. And so on through 52 weeks, at the end of which youll have saved $1,378.A final tip Dont be tempted to use your newfound savings for a payment you knew was coming, such as acar insurance premiumor a splurge for an island trip. An emergency fund should not be touched until you absolutely need it. Then it will be a lifesaver.It gives you peace of mind knowing that you can afford to pay those inevitable unexpected expenses, Vered says.Michele DiGirolamo is a former longtime reporter for United Press International and a freelance writer for MoneyGeek.com .This article first appeared on Money Geek.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

What your favorite junk food says about your personality

What your favorite junk food says about your personalityWhat your favorite junk food says about your personalitySalty or sweet, gooey or chunky, fried or cheese-covered, everyone has a favorite guilty pleasure junk food. You know - that one delicious treat you crave after a long, hard day or you salivate over when it pops up in your Instagram feed. It may depend on your mood, the weather or the city youre in, but did you know your favorite junk food can also be indicative of your personality? Its true - your junk food preferences say more about your personality than you might think.DonutsIts the sweet ones that go for the doughnuts. Always friendly, donut lovers are smiling 24/7, which makes sense if theyre eating donuts Whether its the perfect glaze or delectable chocolate-covered-sprinkles, behind every donut is sugary, doughy, irresistible goodness.PopcornIf your junk food preference is a bag of popcorn, chances are you are very versatile. Youre ready to snack on popcorn while b inge-watching Netflix, driving or even just chatting with friends. It doesnt matter if its covered with butter, caramel or chocolate - youre game for anything.Popcorn is just as flexible as you are,making it the perfect junk food of choice for you.Potato ChipsA potato chip lover can always be trusted. They are a tried-and-true friend that can appreciate the classic things in life.Thats why they love a goodol bag of potato chips. They know that no matter what trendy food item may come their way, they will stay loyal to their favorite junk food. After all, potato chips are a timeless snack that nevergoes out of style. Everyone needs a potato chip lover in their life.OreosOreo enthusiasts are often in touch with their youthful side. The tasty simplicity of an Oreo cookie brings them back to the happiest of their childhood days. Just like the iconic cookie with its hard exterior and soft, creamy interior Oreo lovers can come off harsh at first glance, but beneath this faade lies a ce nter of absolute (delicious) delight.NachosIf your go-to junk food of choice is nachos, youre living life on the edge. With nachos, you never know what will come with each savory bite. Beans? Guacamole? Maybe a spicy hot pepper? Your spontaneous personality leaves you ready for anything. If theres a new nachos recipe on the menu, youre game to try it. Youre all about keeping things spicy.This article was originally published on Swirled.

Designing the Ethical Engineer

Designing the Ethical Engineer Designing the Ethical Engineer Designing the Ethical EngineerA course in engineering design and another in engineering ethics might seem like wildly different beasts. One teaches students to make engineered goods, the other attempts to make students good engineers. But two professors at Georgia Tech have found that the best way to teach ethicsand designmay be to combine them into one class.Philosopher Robert Kirkman, an associate professor in the School of Public Policy at the university, joined forces with Katherine Fu, an assistant professor in mechanical engineering, to teach the course, Design Ethics. The inspiration came, in parte, from the book Ethics in Engineering Practice and Research by Caroline Whitbeck, a philosopher and engineering ethics pioneer.The point she makes it that interesting engineer problems and interesting ethical problems have a lot in common, Kirkman says. You have to improvise in response to a complex and dynamical system.Tr aditional engineering ethics courses typically teach ethical rules and the consequences of not following them. The idea is that you do it once and the students are set our colleagues call it the inoculation model, Kirkman says. This was a step away from that.For You Targeting Chinas Mountains of SludgeInstead, Kirkman and Fu wanted to teach how to think ethically with every step of the design process. To do so, they found a real client with real design needs a school and treatment facility for children with mental health diagnoses that needed a new playground.Prof. Robert Kirkman (right) with a group of students in his Engineering Ethics course. Image Georgia Institute of TechnologyAlthough the project was for a good cause, the students did not always know how to make the best ethical decisions as they worked through it. A lot of our students, in my experience, are motivated by social impact these days, Fu says. They want to work on projects where they can make a difference to the w orld.But those projects, usually for the developing world, tend to be parachute projects, where the students design from afar, parachute into a community and say Yeah, we saved your lives, Fu says. Maybe this is not an ethical approach to design. Maybe it should be collaborative, maybe they should be doing design themselves instead of having us act as their saviors.Kirkman and Fus students were immersed in these issues as they designed the playground. They met with the children (whose ages ranged from six the nineteen) to determine their needs. They also collaborated with the staff and learned their therapeutical approach. During the process, though, Kirkman and Fu found the students were resistant on several levels.The students come in thinking they know what ethics is, that they know the rules, they know what society expects, and you do it or dont, Kirkman says. The messy, improvisational nature of real-world ethical decisions both surprised the students and irritated them.Theyre used to clean exercises in the classroom, where theyre given a hypothetical design problem and have everything they need and its totally in their control, Fu says, We had to coordinate conference calls, get parental assents for the minors to talk to them, organize transportation to the school, get all the students in the same room at the same time to interact with them, and have all the proper legal documentation to do so. They were caught off guard and frustrated by how real the problem was.To Kirkman, all these frustrations were the very stuff of ethics. This is about ethics in practice, he says. Consent is about consent. We have these legal requirements because there is ethical value.By the end of the course, the dose of real-world ethics increased the students self-efficacy, according to surveys they took.Both Kirkman and Fu hope to teach the class again, but would change certain aspects. In particular, they feel they may have overworked the students. It often takes three or fou r tries to work out the bugs, and there were a lot of bugs, Kirkman says. One option would be to make the course a compulsory part of capstone design courses.Of course, there are benefits to learning ethics beyond becoming more ethical.If future employers can see that students are coming out with a level of sophistication over the people around them, that would set them apart, Fu says. If I were an employer looking for a new employee that would be really important to me.Michael Abrams is an independent writer.Read MoreInsect-Sized Robot Takes Flight7 Ways to Make More Money as a Mechanical Engineer3D Printing Trains Bomb-Sniffing DogsThe students come in thinking they know what ethics is, that they know the rules, they know what society expects and you do it or dont.Prof. Robert Kirkman, Georgia Tech