General savings
General savings is the first savings job you should ever plan — before the vacation fund, before the repair fund, before any goal. It is the envelope that says: this part of my income is mine, and it does not need a destination to exist.
A job, not an afterthought
In a zero-based budget, savings is not what is left after spending — it is a job with a planned amount, like rent. Plan the general savings envelope first, in the draft, and the rest of the budget is built around keeping it.
The floor, not the ceiling
General savings is the minimum you pay yourself every month. Some months you will move more into it — a bonus, a light bill. The envelope is the floor; the extras are decisions made in the open month.
Where it goes next
When a specific goal appears, money moves out of general savings into a named fund — a transfer with a record. General savings is the reservoir; the funds are the streams.
General savings, in numbers
One open month: the floor is planned like rent, and one decision adds to it:
How the money moves
The envelope that says 'this is mine' — a savings job with no destination yet.