I think it’s fair to say that to pay off any debt takes determination, discipline, and some sort of motivation. We started off our debt free journey rocky and the entire process was a struggle. As rocky as it was, here are some things that helped us stay focused.
We Asked Ourselves Why?
When we started this journey, we already knew why. I had officially decided that I could not drop my daughter off at childcare. While this was the plan throughout the pregnancy. I could not bring myself to send our precious little one off.
The thought of it made me physically ill. It was pretty much a decision that we both thought was a good one; however, we had not planned on living life without two incomes. Something had to change immediately.
Our why became the catalyst to our debt-free journey and would continually be the thing that carried us through. We wanted to have at least one parent 100% available to care for our current baby and future children. With my husband being in the military and us not having family close, we knew we were making the right choice.
Made a Plan and Created a Budget
There was no way that we could go from two incomes to one income without a plan. I came across Dave Ramsey and devoured the content in his infamous book Total Money Makeover.
His debt-free baby steps were exactly the plan we needed to start our debt-free journey.
The next step is to create a budget. We’d never had a budget before, so this was new for us but not hard. Budgets are the foundation of your debt-free journey.
We Sacrificed
We get asked a lot, what did we sacrifice during our journey?
We said no to a lot of things. My husband was deployed so it was easier for him to turn down Friday Birthday Dinners and wedding invites. Me not so much.
We moved my Mother in Law in who was both a sacrifice and a blessing.
While it can be tough to share a space with another adult other than your spouse, my MIL made the transition pleasant. She jumped right in to help with my daughter while I went to hustle as a substitute teacher.
This was a maybe position. By that I mean maybe you would work or maybe you wouldn’t. It really depended upon availability. The sacrifice was working on days I didn’t want to, choosing assignments out of the way, and taking assignments at schools where I knew the children would give me hell.
This position was short-lived because my mother-in-law moved out shortly. I took full advantage of it. It definitely helped me move the dial on my student loans during this time.
Optimized One Parent Staying at Home
This may not be the best option for everyone, but it was something we knew having a stay-at-home parent was important for our family. I made it a point to save money in every way possible.
It was now my full-time job to do so. I cooked more, began couponing, and shopping sales, all in the name of saving a coin. I searched for free activities and enjoyed indoor activities a lot more.
In addition to keeping our expenses low, I was able to be home with our child. This was a major savings. Child care expenses can be outrageous, sometimes being equal to the pay of a parents paycheck. We decided it was in our best interest to remove that expense entirely.
A beginner’s salary in my field would have paid for child care with very little left over to pay towards debt.
We Embraced Frugality
Frugal can be a dirty word. I enjoy the idea of saving a coin when I can. While this can be looked upon as cheap, stingy, or tight-fisted, I’ve always viewed it as smart money.
While I embraced the challenge of living life on less, my husband found it annoying. It makes me smile now, however, at the time I was fuming about the fact that we both weren’t taking this journey seriously.
He was buckling down on spending so I compromised and realized he was trying to do his best. For that I was happy.
We Said No Often
Saying no is an art form. It takes practice and finesse. Once you get it down its a valuable tool in your toolbox.
The hardest part of saying no is feeling like you are letting down friends and family. I have never regretted putting our family goals first. I made sure to support friends and family in ways that didn’t involve me spending butt loads of cash and I am still close friends with them all.
We Ate at Home Often.
You knew that was coming. Eating at home is the easiest way to immediately cut your expenses,
and it’s one of the first things we did. We cut our food costs using coupons and shopping sales and planned weekly meals.
We used every extra dollar we had and put it towards our debt. Small tiny payments left over from the budget helped us crawl out of debt quickly.
Getting out of debt is hard. Getting out of debt with two stubborn, my way or the highway people is even harder. Somehow we have managed. We continue to disagree on money even now. However, we both agree (mostly) on the future of our finances.
