You might not have a ton of money saved or invested. And reading what you should have or should be saving — say, saving 20 per cent each paycheck, or having your yearly salary saved by the time you’re 30 — can be overwhelming. So much so that you just might not start.

Ask a financial professional when the “best” time to invest is, and they’ll tell you: Yesterday. Assuming you didn’t start yesterday, the next best answer is today.

The current bull market’s longevity has people worried. It all has to end some time, and some economists are predicting a recession by the end of 2020. Assuming that holds true, that gives you around two years to get your finances in order. What should you be prioritising?

Your emergency fund is supposed to give you some peace of mind to cover expenses when times are tough. However, most times you wish you could spend a little extra aren't emergencies. For those, give yourself a smaller "comfy couch" fund.

Life is full of emergencies, big and small. Emergency funds are meant to protect us financially in these events, but we don't always have enough to cover them or perhaps we didn't foresee a money-draining event happening to us. What event surprised you that cost you a lot?

It's a good idea to have some kind of financial buffer to help keep you in the black. The problem is, not everyone can afford it. If you're struggling to set aside money for things like an emergency fund, start small with a change jar.

You probably already know how important it is to have savings set aside for emergencies, such as a job loss or an unexpected hospital bill. To avoid tapping your emergency fund, consider creating an additional savings account for expenses that aren't so dire.

Money experts don't agree on the particulars of emergency funds, but just about everyone agrees you should save for emergencies. Nobel Prize winner and "father of modern portfolio theory" Harry Markowitz offers his rule of thumb for setting aside cash for emergencies.

You've heard of an emergency fund, and they're a must for setbacks and financial pitfalls. In case of larger financial emergencies, Financial Samurai suggests what he calls the "Armageddon Fund".

While we often treat having an emergency fund as a given, it's not something all financial experts agree on. There are some situations where it might not make sense to have an emergency fund as we normally think of it.

You need an emergency fund, there's no doubt about that. How much cash should be in that fund, on the other hand, varies depending on who you ask. Most experts say between 3-6 months, but that's a pretty big jump. For a better idea of where you fall on the spectrum, try the 3-6-9 guideline.