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Goal: Pay off all intrest accruing debt by age 30

kes29

New member
I'm pretty fortunate in that financial aid and scholarships helped me through a Bachelors and Masters program with relatively little debt compared to my peers. But that being said, I lived in an obscenely expensive city for grad school and quickly found myself up to my ears in credit card debt that was piling on just to pay for food and transportation costs.

I grew up fairly poor, so seeing myself in any kind of debt feels like automatic failure.

I've paid off 1 $1,000 loan since graduated, and have closed 3 of my 4 credit cards in the last 3 years. So it's progress I have to remind myself of, even if it doesn't always feel like I've made any progress at all.

I am determined to pay off my major sources of debt (currently car and student loans are tops of that list) by the time that I'm 30.

It feels pretty impossible right now, given I'm unemployed and have been for almost a month now. But. Hopefully something will come through soon.
 
This is an awesome goal. I'm curious as to what your specific plans are (mainly because I'm in a similar situation). I've heard Tony Robbins as well as other great teachers say never to underestimate what you can accomplish in the long-term, even when your goal seems impossible. Sorry to hear about your unemployment, I hope things get better soon!
 

kes29

New member
This is an awesome goal. I'm curious as to what your specific plans are (mainly because I'm in a similar situation). I've heard Tony Robbins as well as other great teachers say never to underestimate what you can accomplish in the long-term, even when your goal seems impossible. Sorry to hear about your unemployment, I hope things get better soon!
Thank you! I'm waiting to hear back about 2 potential jobs - both waiting to hear if I make it to a third round interview. So. Fingers crossed!

For me, I'm tackling my highest interest first. Hence the credit cards. I have 2 with a balance and 1 is closed now so I can't accrue more debt on it thankfully. And that card is my oldest but has the highest interest rate out of everything. Any extra money I've been getting has been directed to that card. Then once that's paid off, it's on to the only open card I have to pay that down.

When I have a full time job, I'm really good about maintaining a budget. I do careful meal planning and buy everything I'll need for the week only once. The more trips to a store I make, the more I find myself buying foods I really don't actually need. When I shop, I also make a grocery list every time and stick to it. Plus, making a list lets me look for coupons on the stores app. And I use an awesome cash-back app called Ibotta that will give you certain amounts of money back if you buy certain items. It's hit or miss most of the time, but every penny counts. When I get a full $20 back through that app, I turned around and put it on a card.

And that's as far as my plan has gotten for right now. I have 2 side hustles. One doing freelance writing/editing and the other as a personal shopper. Once I have a full time job, having these side streams of income will be really helpful too.
 

r.nuno29

New member
Thank you! I'm waiting to hear back about 2 potential jobs - both waiting to hear if I make it to a third round interview. So. Fingers crossed!

For me, I'm tackling my highest interest first. Hence the credit cards. I have 2 with a balance and 1 is closed now so I can't accrue more debt on it thankfully. And that card is my oldest but has the highest interest rate out of everything. Any extra money I've been getting has been directed to that card. Then once that's paid off, it's on to the only open card I have to pay that down.

When I have a full time job, I'm really good about maintaining a budget. I do careful meal planning and buy everything I'll need for the week only once. The more trips to a store I make, the more I find myself buying foods I really don't actually need. When I shop, I also make a grocery list every time and stick to it. Plus, making a list lets me look for coupons on the stores app. And I use an awesome cash-back app called Ibotta that will give you certain amounts of money back if you buy certain items. It's hit or miss most of the time, but every penny counts. When I get a full $20 back through that app, I turned around and put it on a card.

And that's as far as my plan has gotten for right now. I have 2 side hustles. One doing freelance writing/editing and the other as a personal shopper. Once I have a full time job, having these side streams of income will be really helpful too.
These is definitely a great start to paying off debt. I myself am in a similar situation where I have student loans, credit card debt, and no stable form of income. I am waiting to hear back from a few employers so hopefully all goes well. I’m sure once you get a full time job you will begin to see real results. Also, keep the side gigs for as long as you can. They are always good to have around Incase of any emergencies where you find yourself in need of additional work. Thanks for your post! Make sure to keep us updated on what works/doesn’t as I’m sure many of us can relate to your situation.
 
It sounds like you've got a good plan. It takes time, but if you stick to it I'm sure it'll all pay off (no pun intended). My credit score was great until I took out student loans and my score dropped over 100 points because of it. My debt is primarily loans. Luckily, I'm able to pay it off a little bit at a time. But I'll admit the psychological feeling of knowing how much more I have to go is hard at times.
 

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