For the past five years, I’ve served on a committee that distributes financial aid to those with short-term needs. During that time, I’ve noticed a few patterns that lead people into financial trouble and into situations where they need to ask for help.
Often, it’s a mix of things they could and couldn’t control. Typically, a stroke of bad luck—such as a health issue or job loss—is what pushes them over the edge, but leading up to that was a pattern of small choices that left them vulnerable and without much of a safety net—if any.
