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Since I got mad with my debt situation I started to imagine what it would be like to be without debt.
What would it be like for my family, or any family, to enjoy financial independence, instead of throwing away hard earned money in paying the big banks and credit card companies?
Part of that introspection led me to come up with five tips on how myself or anyone for that matter, can improve their financial situation at any stage of life:
LEARN
Develop a passion for continuing education. In almost every field, whether in IT, personal finance, or any other job we’re in we can always learn more.
Most companies have personal development training courses and are keen in investing in their worker’s development, so check with your company’s HR to see what paths are available for career development and certification.
I can say that in IT where I’m currently aligned, there are a hundred different certifications and career paths that can propel your career and earning potential.
In my particular case, I was already getting paid market rate at one of the biggest media companies a few years ago but since I started learning about Cybersecurity and how it was currently the hottest sector in IT, I wasted no time in utilizing the company’s training resources that eventually led me to take and pass Cybersecurity certifications. After passing my salary quickly jumped from $40 to $70/hr.
Whatever field you’re in, there’s always a niche or specialization you can pursue that can raise your salary potential, which in turn can help accelerate your debt reduction plan.
MOVE
Get mad and get moving. For me, sitting around and stagnating at where I was a year and a half ago absolutely sickened me. It got so toxic for me, I decided to get out, and the way I did it was to learn a new career path.
What worked for me was I had to motivate myself. So my second tip is to motivate yourself.
Find someone like your spouse, family member or even a good friend who will encourage and be an accountability partner with you. I know in my experience, as soon as I told my wife about my plan, she immediately encouraged me and got on the same page knowing the future of our family was at stake. She supported me and did whatever it took to help, including picking up my end of the chores while I was studying to prepare for my certification exams.
I can honestly say that it added extra motivation for me to all the more pass my certs, which I did with her help, that eventually got our debt reduction plan moving.
PLAN
Write the plan down; get extra detailed down to specific items, be a ‘nerd’ as Dave Ramsey would put it. I needed to finally get a hold of my financial and personal well-being by doing an inventory of my current situation, my “starting point” if you will.
I got down to documenting how to start our debt reduction plan; wrote down our income versus debts and expenses; created a budget on a spreadsheet and online, I use every dollar which is very intuitive and user-friendly, and in that way I got a practical view of what I had to deal with as far as assets and liabilities go, and it ain’t pretty too.
ACT
Start acting on the plan.
Step one I did was to Increase my income by moving to a new job which as I mentioned above almost doubled my salary.
Second is to do side hustles, and in my particular case is being a part time realtor (long story on this one so I’ll try to share on another post soon); we started selling stuff on eBay and are also planning to have a garage, book, and even a bake sale, anything that will generate cash will surely help with the cause.
The third was to STOP using credit cards and START using cash.
The fourth was to start paying off debts from lowest to highest via the ‘debt snowball’ method, more on that in another post coming up. And finally, tracking all our money, in and out, via mint , since I was familiar with the app from a long time ago.
One caveat though, and I learned this from experience, is to take it ‘slow and steady’, try not to rush; I remember it took a while to get us into this mess, so I had to stop stressing myself thinking about how to get out of it right away.
There are very few shortcuts; that’s why it’s a journey, there will be a lot of lessons to be learned, the key is to see us making it to ‘debt free’ stage, and planning on how our family will celebrate once we get there; it’s already motivating me as I type.
PRAY
Lastly, I don’t know about you but I have realized that nothing in this journey will make sense unless I take it to the one who truly cares about me, my source of strength, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, He’s always ready to help and has always rescued me from me 🙂 and I know He can do the same for you.
Whatever circumstance you’re in, however dire it may look in your eyes, nothing is impossible for Him, and for those who believe.
So have that conversation with Him in prayer, He is waiting and ready for you.
Do you have other tips to journey out of debt? Please leave us a comment or drop us a line at thedebtfreejourney@gmail.com
Peace and God Bless you all.
Malou
Awesome goals and we’ll articulated path to get there..definitely motivating. Thanks for sharing☺☺
thedebtfreejourney@gmail.com
Thanks Lou, appreciate the comment.