Paradigm Shifted

So I am not an enemy of debt.  I find that having a little bit of keeps things in check.  And being open to taking on debt means allowing greater opportunity.  The trick, I’ve found, is not to be owned by the debt, at least not for a long period of time.

I’ve had a changing relationship with debt.  On the one hand, being in debt means that I don’t extravagantly spend like I used to.  On the other hand, one does start thinking about how the debt repayment funds would be much more useful in savings…

I used to live well beyond my means, taking on debt without really caring about it.  One day, I sat down and tried to figure out exactly how much in debt I was.  I was really surprised.  So I started tracking it, in the hopes of paying it off.  I realized that the payoff couldn’t really happen unless the spending habits changed.

But the spending habits don’t change until you start thinking about where you want to be in life, and where you want to go.  Until I started thinking a bit further into the future, I didn’t really think about what being in debt really meant.  And in the same vein, for people who aren’t in debt but also aren’t saving.

I realized one day that I want to travel.  I want to be able to work part-time.  I want to have a job that pays pennies but gives me an enormous amount of personal gratification.  And these aren’t really things you can do with debt.  And it was at this point that the debt took over my life, and I was consumed by the need to pay it off.

After a few months at the extremes, I found my way to the center.  I am no longer consumed by the need to pay off my debt, but I’m also not spending like I won’t live through the week.  I have a much healthier relationship with my debt, and my finances overall.

Of course, now that I’m past the crossover and well into the final stages of payoff, I’m a bit obsessed again.  But with a final payoff date of early August, it’s so close I can taste it.  I’ll forgive myself a little obsession again.

Just a little peek at my success – in just over a year and a half, I will have paid off the equivalent of half of my salary.  No small sum!  At the same time, I’ve managed to fully fund my Roth IRA every year.  I’ve also started putting money towards my 403b (about 2.5%).  And I’ve got a few grand in savings.   And I never let myself feel deprived – I am as socially conscious of a shopper as I can manage, my work wardrobe is up-to-date, and I’ve taken 4 international trips in the past 2 years.

Now I am aggressively saving, because I have some ambitious plans for the next 10 years!