<prompt> Human: Yesterday i finally paid off the 135k I owed. I was on a pretty agressive payment schedule for the last 4 years, roughly 2k a month. I was so focused on getting them paid off I havent even started to think what i should do with the newly freed up money. Live in canada and dont know where to start looking. Want to talk to finicial advisor but need some info on options so i dont go in blind. Make roughly 175k yr work hourly so only guaranteed 110kUpdate: Thanks for all the great advice everyone. I see the common thread is 3-6 month emergency fund first then investments after. Setting up a tfsa today and using my tax return to start investing. Talked with a few financial advisors and found one who is really great. May have a few questions after I get into investing. This is such a great sub : Assistant: If you can continue living like that and save 2k per month that would put you way ahead of a lot of people very soon. First create a savings account with your bank and put the money there until you have around 5k-10k approximately enough to survive for 3 monthsAfter you have your emergency fund setup I would recommend putting all the cash into ETFs basically mutual funds with lower fees. You can create an account on Questrade, they are a Canadian company and you can buy ETFs from there if you feel like you want to get more involved you can try buying individual stocks I have an account with them and have been happy with how they work. There is no fee to buy ETFs but there is a fee to sell. Human: For your emergency fund, Id advise putting it someplace thats a little bit of a pain to get at -- I have mine in a savings account for which I dont have a debit card or checks and at a different bank than my usual so it takes a day or two to transfer the money.Then again, it doesnt seem like self-control is your issue, so Id say 1 Buy an expensive bottle of champagne, 2 pop it open and drink it while literally patting yourself on the back until your arm gets sore, then 3 do that this guy said.Assistant: Hmm. You should have immediate access to your emergency fund. Id hate to need it and have to wait 2 days for a transfer. Human: If something arises, why not just pay with a credit card and then start the transfer, then once the money arrives pay it off? Still 0 interest that way.Assistant: I dont have a credit card. Planning on living just from the money Ive already earned. Hated my school debt, want to avoid more as much as possible.  <response>: To each his own, but you should realize the merits of credit cards, assuming you instantly pay them off.Rewards add up, for example Amazons 5 cash back, thats free money assuming you pay no interest and dont purchase more than you otherwise would, and assuming you actually shop there. Gas rewards, airline rewards, grocery rewards, are perks of other cards.Credit cards help your credit score. This reduces the cost when you borrow for a car or house, which can add up to thousands or tens of thousands depending on your interest rate.Credit cards can act as a safety net if things go south for you for whatever reason. Credit cards have great fraud protection. Swipe your debit card at a gas pump that steals your data? Youre typically on the hook for anything they withdraw from your bank account. Credit cards have different laws that safeguard you in this instance.The pitfalls are self control issues, not instantly paying them off, cards with annual fees, so if you have that problem then stay away and do what you do. Also you have to micromanage a bit. Worth it for some, not for others. 