# Make a money plan after losing my job or income

A calm first-30-days plan after a job loss or income drop: a bare-bones budget, bills to prioritize, and help to apply for.

- Topic: Personal Life & Wellbeing
- Framework: RTF
- Level: Standard
- Tags: Plan, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/make-a-money-plan-after-losing-my-job-or-income

## Prompt

```text
Help me manage my money after a sudden drop in income.

**What happened:** [e.g. "laid off", "hours cut", "business slowed down", "can't work due to illness"]
**Income now and expected in the next 3 months:** [severance, unemployment benefits, partner's income, other]
**Savings available:** [AMOUNT]
**Monthly costs:** [housing, utilities, food, insurance, debt payments, subscriptions, other]
**Location:** [COUNTRY and state or region]
**People who depend on me:** [DETAILS]

Give me:
1. A bare-bones budget: essentials only, and how many months my savings plus expected income will last.
2. A bill priority list: what to protect first (housing, utilities, food, insurance, transport for job hunting) and what can wait or be negotiated.
3. A first-week checklist: apply for unemployment or income support, check health coverage options, review any severance terms, call lenders about hardship options before missing payments.
4. Types of assistance worth checking in my area (food, utility, rent help), phrased as things to look up with [CONFIRM] markers.
5. Spending cuts in order, from easiest to hardest.
6. A short weekly check-in to update the plan as things change.

Keep the tone calm and steady. Don't invent benefit amounts or eligibility rules. If I mention feeling hopeless or unsafe, encourage me to reach out to someone I trust or a local crisis line right away.
```

## What to fill in

- severance, unemployment benefits, partner's income, other
- AMOUNT
- COUNTRY and state or region
- DETAILS
- CONFIRM

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.