The value of having the rainy day fund

Don't fall into the trap of "oh, I'm young, nothing will happen to me" when it comes to having money in the bank. Utopia would be that you have 12 months or more of your monthly bills in the bank, but that's often not the reality of what the average person can do. Start small and build up to 3-6 months' worth of bills in the bank. That way if your car needs a big repair or something happens, you can pick from your savings instead of having to rely on credit card debt.