Whether you like it or not, the fact is that there will be difficult times in life. So the best thing you can do is to prepare yourself before they come. If you do, you will survive or even thrive. But if you don’t, such times could ruin you. It’s your preparation that makes the difference.
Preparation takes time though, so don’t wait until the last moment before you start. Start early so that you will be ready when the time comes.
I’m sure there are others, but here are four essential things you need to prepare for difficult times:
1. Emergency fund.
Bad things could happen to your personal finance. For instance, you could lose your job or have to pay a big medical expense. If you aren’t prepared, such events could damage not only your personal finance, but also your health and relationship.
Prepare yourself early by building an emergency fund. Most experts say that you should save at least three months of living expenses there.
2. Network of relationships.
When something bad happens, you can get the help you need through your network. If you lost your job, for instance, you can find a new job through your circle of friends.
Start building your network long before you need it. And remember, the way to build it is by giving. Be there to help them and don’t keep score.
3. Knowledge.
Knowledge is essential for making good decisions. Why? Because it helps you know what options are available and how to compare them with each other. People often make bad decisions simply because they don’t know that there are better options. Or perhaps they don’t know how to evaluate those options.
Build your knowledge so that you won’t fall into that trap. Read blogs. Read books. Watch lectures. Don’t learn things yourself the hard way. Instead, learn from other people’s experiences.
4. Faith.
When you are in a dark time, the most important thing you need is faith. Why? Because you may not be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so you need faith to keep going.
A strong faith, however, doesn’t come overnight. You need to build it over time through spiritual habits. In my case, those habits are praying and reading the Scripture.
Do what works for you and start building your faith. Don’t wait. You will be glad you did.
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Photo by Sean McGrath
It’s a good list Donald and I think you’ve hit on the important points. Can I offer a subtle tweak? When it comes to knowledge there’s an area that is worth working on and that is “know yourself”. This will include your personality and passions but most importantly having a deep sense of what you’re about, your mission or calling. This links to faith and understanding that there’s more to life than just the material things around us. In tough times having this knowledge can be a source of determination to help us through.
I completely agree, Peter. Thanks for the insight!
Donald ,thanks for share ,It’s good for us to improve our-self .
In china , there are many good foreign Website cannot be opened , face book ,twiter,skype and so on .It’s really a big trouble for us to become a internation elite
Glad you like it, Eric!
Network and relationships are the two things I need to improve myself upon. Currently, I didn’t cultivate enough of them thus it could pose a HUGE problem in the future at times when I need them.
The other three are also important especially faith which I think most people lack(myself included). Anyway, thanks for writing this, Donald.
You’re welcome, Wan!
I think we should always improve all of them, though of course we should prioritize the ones that we lack the most.
Yup, all are important but like you said it depends on what we are lacking or maybe what we needed most.
This is wonderful
Thanks!
I’m glad emergency fund is your first tip. I swear my friends don’t beleive this.
So many people live pay check to pay check. We all need a cushion just in case.
~Lea
Yes, we don’t know when an emergency will occur, so we always need to be prepared.
for me the most important one is having someone to help you in bad time: a friend, family or your pair. Never forget to take care of your people
That’s important indeed. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Donald,
Glad to read this article. I think if you have emergency fund for difficult time then you’ve all set to face difficult time. Despite if you’ve all above mentioned thing then it’s very good for anyone.