Oh I was there. I was sick and tired of making debt payments and not seeing the balances go down. So I cut my expenses, moved to a cheaper apartment, sold my car and got a second job – voilia, debt free.
No matter what you are budgeting for, I think your point about letting yourself have some fun money is SO important. If you don’t allow yourself to have any fun, you can get debt repayment fatigue which will almost definitely de-rail you from your goals. There’s nothing worse than missing out on life.
I completely agree Daisy. You need to live life or that debt fatigue will be even harder to fight off.
Carlos @ TheFrugalWeds
My wife and I are currently paying down some debt. We set aside a certain amount of money each month for fun (usually food). Also we set aside some money each month for travel so that when we do travel it is not a shock to our financials.
Great topic Derek. All about finding the balance that is right for you in your personal situation with your debt. We paid off $109k in 50 months, but along that time we treated ourselves to an occasional dinner out or ice cream for he kids.
Something new that I wanted try right now. Sounds simple yet would be very effective on my part. This would be a way that will redirect my thinking not to the amount of debt that I needed to pay, but to the reward that I will be getting If I pursue and consistently pay off my debt.
Oh I was there. I was sick and tired of making debt payments and not seeing the balances go down. So I cut my expenses, moved to a cheaper apartment, sold my car and got a second job – voilia, debt free.
I hear ya Tahnya – I had to do a few of those things myself when I was paying off debt and they gave a huge boost to getting my debt paid off.
No matter what you are budgeting for, I think your point about letting yourself have some fun money is SO important. If you don’t allow yourself to have any fun, you can get debt repayment fatigue which will almost definitely de-rail you from your goals. There’s nothing worse than missing out on life.
I completely agree Daisy. You need to live life or that debt fatigue will be even harder to fight off.
My wife and I are currently paying down some debt. We set aside a certain amount of money each month for fun (usually food). Also we set aside some money each month for travel so that when we do travel it is not a shock to our financials.
That’ a great way to handle it Carlos as it gives you something to look forward to while paying off the debt.
Great topic Derek. All about finding the balance that is right for you in your personal situation with your debt. We paid off $109k in 50 months, but along that time we treated ourselves to an occasional dinner out or ice cream for he kids.
Sounds like you had a good mix along the way. Congrats on paying off all that debt! That’s huge!
Something new that I wanted try right now. Sounds simple yet would be very effective on my part. This would be a way that will redirect my thinking not to the amount of debt that I needed to pay, but to the reward that I will be getting If I pursue and consistently pay off my debt.
So what are your thoughts Nik? What are the types of rewards you plan to give yourself? Something small I assume?