Blogging Away Debt

Five Words That Sum Up Our Debt Payoff Success

I look at my debt ticker on the right hand side a few times a day. I still can’t believe where it is today. Over $17,000 of our credit card debt is gone. It may sound a little sappy, but I am a sappy gal sometimes. When I really start thinking of how far we’ve come, I can’t help but get teary-eyed.

I owe our success so far to five simple words:

Spend Less Than You Earn

Sure, there are many “keys” to financial success that you will hear, but I really believe those five words sum it all up. Even if you make $1,000,000 a year you will still get into trouble if you spend more than you earn. It’s a very basic principle and one that is very simple when you think about it.

Prior to starting this blog, we had no concept of spending less than we earned. We were in the mindset that it was okay to purchase things on credit because we will pay it off later. I shake my head at some of the spending that comes to mind. If only we had grasped the concept of spending less than we earned way back when. But the past is the past and life is about learning from your mistakes.

Now that we embrace the concept of spending less than we earn and practice it, we have made a huge dent in our debt. It will also help us pay it all off. It can’t stop there, though. Even after the debt is paid off, we will still spend less than we earn and build up a substantial amount in our savings and build a nest egg so we can live comfortably in retirement.

That’s not all! There is the next generation to think about. Although I haven’t brought it up yet, my son will definitely know the concept of spending less than you earn by the time he leaves the nest. He may choose to not apply that concept (and learn it the hard way like we have), but I am going to do my best to make sure he understands it.

Oh, and I’ll show him this blog and he can see how much debt you can get into if you don’t practice the concept! 😉

It Wasn’t Meant to Be

by Tricia

I mentioned in the comments on Monday that my husband didn’t get the good job that he applied for. This job would have basically doubled our income.

It is difficult to not think about how much we could have done with that extra income. Our credit card debt would have been gone in a year. Within three years, we would have been able to pay off all of our student loans and our mortgage. Sometimes, it is too easy to get caught up with thinking about what we could have done with the money.

Then you get a letter in the mail that says it was not meant to be. At least, that’s what I tell myself because it is supposed to make me feel a little bit better. I can’t sugar-coat it. My husband not getting a job that he was clearly qualified for stinks.

Anyways, that job was a deciding factor on whether we were going to pack up and move. Where we live now doesn’t have much in the way of jobs that my husband is qualified for. We are very fortunate that my job is portable and as long as I have high speed internet access I can go anywhere. But for him, it’s a little harder.

It’s tough, though, because if we move we could have a whole new set of problems to deal with. We know the area we live now and it is dirt cheap to live here (our home only cost $35,000). Then there are the things you can’t put a price on. Things like taking a short drive to the lake to build a sand castle. Or standing on my porch and seeing a sky full of stars and the northern lights shimmering across the sky. I could go on and on why where I live is special.

C’est la vie. It wasn’t meant to be and it’s time to move onto another phase of our life. Who knows? Maybe we’ll find another spot in the country even better than where we live now.