Dream Crushing Debt Podcast

Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years seem to happen all at once! But planning ahead can really make a difference in being able to afford the travel, the food, the gifts, and all the festivities. Even having a quiet holiday season can cost a little bit of money. The key to planning for the holidays is to give yourself plenty of time to save smaller amounts of money.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

With Memorial Day still in the rear view mirror, all of the pools and water parks are officially open - Summer is here! Here are some great ways you can still have all the fun in the sun while not breaking the bank. 1) Buy season passes on discount to water parks. 2) Do BBQs with neighbors to save money on all that great food. 3) Search on Groupon for discounted events or on Facebook for the events calendar for neighborhood or community events. 4) Make a list of what you want to do for next year. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

I think it’s important to believe that this is a myth and a mental roadblock. What is your roadblock? What is holding you back from even just believing that you’re capable of getting out of debt? Once we are able to identify that (even if it’s multiple things) then we are address them one by one. And I’d love to hear from you what you feel your roadblocks are. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

It’s time to dive in head first, or at least with both your feet. At this point, you have a budget and you’ve already identified different things you can do or change to create some extra money for you each month. It’s just a matter of putting it all into practice. Spend a weekend make whatever adjustment are needed and setup whatever automatic banking you can so you don’t have to think about it anymore.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

You probably weren’t expecting me to just say, “Take a chill! Soak up some sun.” Well, I am. Before committing to big lifestyle changes, it’ll be worth the time spent thinking through everything. This isn’t a time for doubt or to give up, it’s a time to reflect on you imagining yourself living this new way of life. The budgeted life. Once you can see yourself living this way... you have that mental game plan... the break time is over. It’s go time! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Getting out of debt sooner than later relies 100% on the amount of extra money you’re able to put towards your debt every month. This tip basically requires you to add it all up. How much extra money do you have from your paycheck every month, and how much could you have after making those adjustments. How much do you have? How much faster will you be able to pay off your debt with it? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Now that you’ve created a budget, meaning, you’ve setup some spending categories and now know how much you’ve been spending in each of them. It’s time to evaluate what you’ve been spending money on and if there are any adjustments that can be made to save some money. This could be realizing that gym membership you forgot you had. IMPORTANT NOTE: For this tip, or step, don’t take action right away on anything. You’re just making a list of things you could cut out, or make an adjustment to. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Creating a budget is no easy task. Don’t let anyone fool you if they are saying otherwise. The most important thing you need to figure out is which method you’re going to use to track your spending. You might even have to try a few before deciding which budgeting system works for you. Once you’ve figured out what works for you, you need setup some basic spending categories that every bit of spending can be tracked in. Even using previous transactions, you start to figure out how much you spend in each category and put a limit on it. This is going to be a tremendous step, but the most important as it will establish the foundation for everything else.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Knowing where to get started is tough, but if you can do these things, you’ll find success: 1) Create a budget. Know where your money is going. 2) Find areas you can make adjustments to with where you are spending money. 3) Add up how much extra money you have. 4) Let it soak in and take a deep breath. 5) Go gazelle (as Dave would say). --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Oh man. What do you have?! Honestly, selling of random things is great for the sprint, but not the marathon. Sell your couch, but where will you sit? Sell your car, but how will you get to work? I believe its less about what we are able to sell as much as it what we are able to change or switch out that will help us get out of debt faster. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

A common roadblock is just knowing where to get started. Simply put, getting out of debt is paying more than your minimum every month. However, that proved to be much harder for me and I struggled over this concept because putting an extra $50/month towards a loan was good, but not enough. I needed more than that, but where do get more than $50/month if your paycheck isn’t magically going to increase? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Unhesitatingly, yes! It is so worth it. In the last episode we talked about why it’s important, but is it worth it? From a self-worth perspective, getting out of debt is easily in my Top 3 of major life accomplishments. Sometimes the worst experiences in life are often times the best teachers because of how they shape us and help us grow into better people. If you allow it for yourself, I think you’ll find many wonderful life lessons along the way that will change you for the better. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

There are a lot of reasons why this might be important, but for myself, getting out of debt was important to me so that I was no longer burdened every time life was turned upside down. Going along with the last episode of how do I get out of debt with no job... well... being unemployed with a mountain of debt constrains how far you’re able to stretch whatever income you do have. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

The answer to this will vary greatly depending on individual situations. My experience of being unemployed while still trying to pay off debt was tough and everything was reduced down to paying only the minimums until I could sort everything back out. I have a follow up question... Does no job also mean “no money?” --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

A low income certainly makes us squeeze if we are trying to get out of debt. The good news is that it’s not impossible, but it will require some thought out sacrifices until your debt is paid off. Just remember, getting out of debt with a low income only means it might take a little while longer is all.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

You bet it will! There are two things that impact your credit score greatly: 1) Being on-time with your payments and 2) Using only a small portion of your credit line. The more you pay down your loans and get out of debt, the more you’ll improve your credit score naturally. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

I’m going to assume that you have bad credit because you had a rough go at paying back some borrowed money. Which might make it seem like history might repeat itself, but the good news is that paying off debt doesn’t require good credit - only borrowing money needs good credit. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

A credit score is basically a ranking system that tells lending companies how well you handle money that doesn’t belong to you. There are a bunch of things that affect your credit score such as: on-time payments, usage, average age, number of accounts, inquiries, and derogatory marks. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

So much of this comes down to your ability to recognize the struggles and the fears that you have and addressing them one by one. You’ll be stopped dead cold in your tracks every time if you’re unable to get over the barriers that are there. We won’t be vaulting over hurdles, most likely, but we’ll be more willing to try. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support

Write down the positive things that are happening in your life everyday. Training your brain to see the positive will go a long ways in your ability to roll with the punches. Also, finding trusted outside perspectives can help us see the bigger picture. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/dreamcrushingdebt/support