The pandemic has messed things up… debt-free totally seems out f reach. How is your financial journey going? I have learned it is a marathon not a sprint.
My dear friend Kerri from Kerri on the Rocks at the beginning of 2020 on her Instagram said something small but powerful. She was so proud of herself for making a BIG payment on her student loan. Then she went to color her visual payment sheet in, then appeared sad. It was just a speck of color, and she said, “Paying this off will be a marathon, not a sprint.”
Man oh man did she hit the nail on the head. When we really want to pay off debt and we have a plan and make a big payment we imagine the process going smoothly and faster. However, if we go and color it in…. yeah, we realize we only made a dent into the debt no a hole.
That is the lesson I learned during the pandemic more than anything. I had planned to pay off this and that and budgeted and did everything right, but when I did the end-of-year analysis I felt like it will never end. Why?!?!?
I took a deep breath and walked away for the night feeling defeated. Then when I came back the next day, with a glass of wine in hand, I remembered what Kerri said… a marathon not a sprint. I looked at the numbers again and realized the progress is good at least we are not going backwards.
Then I looked at our emergency fun. The retirement fund and everything we got to experience as a family (because the journey to debt-free is not a punishment we need to still live and enjoy life), and I remembered this time last year and the year before.
We have come a long way. Sometimes you have to look at the big picture to really appreciate the small picture. This month I challenge you to take a look at your journey and take a moment to pat yourself on the back and be proud of what progress you have made.
Lessons learned for June: Nothing happens overnight, debt that took years to create won’t just vanish. The journey to becoming debt-free is a marathon, not a sprint
Where Our Debt Stands
- Start of Debt-Free Journey: Nov. 2018 ($206,517.74)
- Debt to Date: Jan 2021 ($52,267.43)
What we started with: When we started we had a big house with 2 mortgages, 7 credit card payments, a student loan payment, a consolidation loan, 2 car payments, line of credit.
What we did: Sold the house getting rid of the 2 mortgages, and started putting money toward our debts starting with the highest interest rate and working backward. Plus paying an extra $20 on every payment.
What is left to pay off: 4 credit cards, the student loan, 2 car payments, and the line of credit.
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