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How to Keep a Good Attitude While Being Debt-Free

June 10, 2020 by Tasha Hackett 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Sometimes being debt-free isn’t much fun.

When I look around at the world driving nice cars and eating at nice places and going on nice vacations I can get discouraged. But then I remind myself that I am choosing this! (And then I also remind myself that 80% of Americans are in credit card debt.)

“I’m choosing this!” is more than just semantics. That little phrase can change your life. Hear me out: If you’re on some kind of diet that doesn’t allow cake, it’s only because they didn’t know about Laura’s cakes. (Like this Low sugar Strawberry Cream Cheese Cake or this Low Sugar Banana Cake.) But let’s pretend you’re not eating cake because a diet book told you not to. So now you’re sad about not eating cake, and you sigh and feel bad for yourself because you really want cake and it’s all somebody else’s fault for deciding that high sugar and processed fats and carbs are unhealthy and you struggle with attitude problems every time you are put in a cake situation.

Let’s not blame the cake.

What if you turned the whole thing around and told yourself, “I’m choosing this!” Nobody is forcing me to give up anything. “I am choosing to make better food choices. Eating healthier options is my choice! I don’t even want all that cake because I know what’s in it, and it’s nothing good!” And then you can use your freshly ground flour to make your own densely nutrient cake and you can choose to have your cake and eat it too.

What if you wanted a new car instead of cake?

Something my husband and I have embraced the last few years of paying off debt is “We’re choosing this!” We are choosing to not spend money so that we can use it for other things. We could choose to not pay our bills, but then the electric company could choose to turn off our lights. If we choose to ignore our mortgage payment, the bank will choose to take our house. See how this works?

There are exceptions to everything.

I do understand there are times when life spirals out of control and things you had carefully planned fall apart. My sister was in a car accident years ago and was left with over $40,000 in uncovered medical bills. Sometimes the job situation doesn’t work out, I get it. But for the vast majority of Americans we have put ourselves in our own financial messes. We made the choice to move out of our tiny apartment to buy a house we really couldn’t afford. And we had such fun in that house! But if you give a man a house he’s going to want a dog to go with it… and a lawn mower and snow shovels and two cars and another phone and the internet and a video streaming plan and a grill and… and… before you know it, the $9/hour secretary job just isn’t enough.

We absolutely love being debt free.

I haven’t always had a great relationship with money. I would get so mad at people who said, “I can’t afford…” and yet they lived a lifestyle that said differently. But then I found myself saying, “I can’t afford…” and I realized it’s all in perspective. We made a combined total of $8000 our first year of marriage. As we worked more and made more we bought more and being debt-free wasn’t as much of a priority because we didn’t even know where the money was going. When I sit down and look closely at the choices we’ve made the past 12 years of marriage I can see huge financial mistakes we made that put us back. With each raise we started living just a little more comfortably. And that’s okay! That was OUR CHOICE. But to then go and say, “Well, I can’t afford…” doesn’t really make sense.

Being debt-free sometimes means making the choice to nail shingles on your own garage.

I’m choosing this.

When I say, “I’m choosing this.” It brings ownership back on my shoulders. Playing the victim isn’t possible with that phrase. I am choosing to save money! I am choosing to pay extra on the mortgage! I’m choosing to do family birthdays differently. I am choosing to live beneath my means because I have something better in mind for later. Here are some choices we’ve made and continue to make because we absolutely love being debt-free: Paying the internet bill instead of keeping chips on hand. Putting gas in the car instead of going out to the movies. Finding extremely loved used vehicles instead of buying new clothes for everyone in the family. Living in a 600 sq foot home until we got a better paying job in another state.

Being debt-free sometimes means making the choice to watch the sunset on a beautiful date on the prairie.

You get to choose!

I am giving you a phrase that has the power to completely change your outlook on life and money whether you are debt-free or not. “I’m choosing this!” You get to choose and you don’t have to be ashamed about it either. I am (97% of the time) not ashamed about the vehicles I drive because we bought them on purpose. We used to buy them on purpose because it was that or nothing. Now we buy used vehicles on purpose because we have really exciting plans for our money.

What are you choosing? Are you pleased with your choices?

My intention is most definitely not to make you feel bad about yourself or your money, but the opposite! If you find yourself feeling sad and thinking, “I can’t afford…” try pepping yourself up with a little “I’m choosing this!” attitude change. It could rock your world. And then go make cake. Because cake is yummy and actually quite affordable.


Laura’s friend Tasha is passionate about encouraging women. She’s a homeschooling mamaX4 who loves to make silly faces in the mirror with her toddler. She and her husband Ben have worked hard to be debt-free (except for their mortgage) and try to choose people over things everytime. She can be found playing on Instagram @hackettacademy and @heavenlyhomemaker and has too many hobbies to name. Most recently she’s been making chocolate cake for breakfast and sending her kids out to pick asparagus for lunch.

 

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How Tasha Paid off $49,000 in Two Years on a Low Income!

February 9, 2020 by Tasha Hackett Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

You are going to be so inspired to read about how Tasha paid off $49,000 in two years!

Hi guys! It’s me, Tasha.

My Kentucky roots are urging me to say, “Hey y’all,” but I’m not sure if my northern friends could handle it. I’ve been budging in on Laura’s blog for a couple months now. I’m the one who feeds her kids a dry crust, likes to set goals, had an Amazon addiction, paid off all the debt and wants you to know that God really really loves you.

I can’t wait to share with you the wonderful things I’ve learned on this crazy Get-Out-Of-Debt journey! I’m going to start digging into how we paid off (for us) big debt with not-so-big income.

I’ve deleted nearly 10,000 words trying to get this out; you’re welcome. The problem is I keep getting distracted by all the things I want to tell you! I want to write the right story. I want you to hear what I’ve done here and see over the sea of words as I explain the sun to my son and teach him the joy of homophones. Sorry, what was I saying?

How Tasha Paid off $49,000 in Two Years on a Low Income!

No really. How did we live on half our income and give away $49,000 in two years? ($29,000 the first and $20,000 the second.)

  • BY NOT GETTING DISTRACTED
  • SETTING A GOAL AND STICKING TO IT

We decided what we wanted to do, we made a plan, we wrote it down, and we stuck to it. It was the theme of the year. For two years.

Deuteronomy 6:7-8 says, “Impress [the old covenant laws] on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

We were this intentional with our goal for financial freedom.

Ben and I lived and breathed financial freedom. “Ramsey says…” was perhaps the most used conversation starter at our dinner table. I was going to use the term, Laser Focus. But no, our focus was broad–it encompassed every facet of our lives for two years. We had floodlight intensity.

Our “drastic” first step was to cancel our internet service. Yes, Ben was taking online courses for his MA degree at the time.

As it turns out, the library has internet! For Free! Here’s the basic line-up of what we did:

Eating out? Nope. If we did it came out of the grocery budget. Yikes!

Groceries and Household? $200 a month, with $50 extra for buying All The Butter if it went on sale. Oatmeal was a staple. I could stretch a pound of beef for three meals, but mostly chicken was on the menu. Neighbors are always trying to offload extra garden zucchini and tomatoes. I didn’t buy blueberries. Cream cheese was a treat. I made use of Amazon Subscribe and Save to get 15% off many household items. Sometimes this may have actually cost $1 more than an off-brand at a store, but the time and gas it saved me was worth it. I read recently the average shopper spends $18 to $37 extra on impulse buys every time they go grocery shopping!

These three tagalongs did not eat much at the time.

Dates? One pre-planned show for a highly anticipated film. Many pre-planned home “dates” and free entertainment excursions.

Christmas? Saved $25 a month leading up to December to cover the special food and travel. Our two babies (4 yr and 2 yr) at the time enjoyed homemade gifts and were just as grateful.

Cell Phone? Just one.

Birthdays? Averaged $10. So many fun experiences!

Tithe to local church? YES. Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.

Coffee Shop? $2 once a month when I met with friends.

Vehicles? Paid for. Budgeted $50 a month covered yearly taxes and insurance for both. We drive the cheapest we can find that are still reliable. 1990 Buick is the way to go.

Vacation? Saved $150 a month, camped with the kids multiple times and took an adult only $1000 trip to Denver. Spent six nights in an Airbnb, hiked, relaxed, breakfasted at one delicious French Crepe restaurant, dinner at one 5-star restaurant, other meals from the grocery store.

Beautiful hike just the two of us! I thought I was suffering from severe altitude sickness for five days before taking a pregnancy test! Hello, Baby #4!

Other Gifts? This one was hard. When your kid gets invited to a birthday and begins to notice that other kid getting a bunch of presents when he had a perfectly happy birthday without the presents and now questions why he didn’t get a bunch of presents…. Our standard was to give a lovely hand-made card to the child offering a ONE DAY OF FUN for a playdate at our house. We would arrange afterward with the parents, we would pick up the kid, have special activities planned like a sprinkler or a trip to the park. Everyone had fun without feeling jilted.

Side Hustle? Yes! I took in sewing jobs and alterations for prom dresses, etc. Ben worked early mornings at another job.

Heart Change? Yes. God said, “I am Enough.”

You could take this action plan: Pay off $$ by a certain date. Don’t buy stuff. Don’t go anywhere. Don’t do anything. Work more. 

{Haha, I’m dying with laughter over here. I’m of the generation that doesn’t know how to have a written conversation without emojis so this is a struggle for me. I’m laughing-with-all-the-tears.} That plan sounds terrible! That’s what we did, but it was way more fun than it sounds.

We didn’t buy a bunch of stuff because God helped us see that He was enough and to find contentment in Him. We didn’t go places without intention. We did lots of things that were free and affordable. We did have a zoo membership and a pool pass and packed lunches on days we went. We did spend hours at the park and invited friends over to play and grilled hotdogs and danced in sprinklers and listened to music really really loud. We did work more, quite a bit more with multiple side hustles, but God’s peace permeated our financial goals those two years.

Is this the face of a boy who wishes his parents spent more money on him? I see pure joy and childhood bliss.

Don’t be Discouraged!

If reading through our story has brought you more discouragement than hope, chin up! If getting out of debt is something you yearn for please please please take this up with God. Ask him to show you how, ask him for his peace and discipline. Perhaps you really can live on $20,000 for two years and bust it out! But perhaps you are in a place where that is not possible. I really do believe that if you listen to God telling you that He is Enough and lean into him, you will find peace and perhaps a few extra thousand dollars. I have a friend that pays the minimum on all the loans and then an extra $50. That’s a great start!

What about you?

How can I encourage you in your journey? What questions do you have that I can address? What would you like me to cover? Would you like to know actual numbers for our current budget?

I want to hear from you!

P.S. No really. I want to hear from you. Comment below and tell me what’s the craziest thing you ever bought on accident. Mine is face cream for $145 from a mall kiosk during year two. After reading thousands of words of my financial journey, can you believe I spent $145 on a tiny jar of lotion? I don’t know what came over me. Your turn!

 

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Is it Really Possible to Pay off Big Debt with Little Income?

January 1, 2020 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Do you have big debt and little income, leaving you to wonder how you can ever get ahead? Tasha’s written for us before (here, here, and here). (Hey! Did you set your goals yet?!) Now here she is again with big wisdom and encouragement. (Spoiler: The debt? It IS possible to pay it off!)

Is it Really Possible to Pay off Big Debt with Little Income?

By Tasha Hackett

Doubt is seeping in. I browsed other personal finance blogs and thought, “Why would anyone read what I have to say when there are plenty of others saying it?” But the more I read, the more I found I do have something to say.

I have something to say to the mom who gives and gives and gives and then when she says, “Not right now,” her son complains. And it totally stinks because what you really heard him say was, “You’re not enough, Mom!” and it’s totally true. You’re not enough!! (But Jesus is enough. Laura and I can tell you all about that.)

You’ve been awake since 4:45 a.m. with the baby. You fed all of them, provided clean clothes for all of them, played (a little) with them, texted your sisters who live hours and hours away, nursed the baby a hundred gazillian times, and did all the things. 

I’m writing for you. 

While wiping the children’s toothpaste out of the sink at 10 p.m. the baby starts to cry again and you can’t even tag out because the husband is still out working in the garage trying to finish the project that has to be done before the weather happens.

I’m writing for you. 

When you went to the grocery store today you only had $95 left in your checking account and payday isn’t for another 12 days and milk is $3.75 a gallon and the prices are so overwhelming and you walk out of the store with a carton of eggs and a head of cabbage because you can’t handle it.

I’m writing for you. 

You have a glass jar in the closet that you’ve been putting extra dollars in for a vacation or a date or something. You counted and there is only $50 in the whole jar, and you wanted to cry, but you didn’t because you can do hard things and you put all the cash back into the jar and shoved it back in the closet. 

I’m writing for you. 

You worked eight days in a row at three different part-time jobs and this weekend you watched two full seasons of that show on Netflix and you don’t even know what investing means, you’re just happy you have a car that runs and a little extra for gas. 

I’m writing for you. 

To the me 13 years ago that wishes she knew what I know now. I wish I could reach back there and give her and hug and say, “You’re doing a wonderful job! And here are some tips to help you enjoy life more.” 

So what am I writing? 

I’m writing you some hope. Some humor. Some gut-wrenching truth. Some down-to-earth practical tips that just might save your sanity. And some thank-goodness-for-Jesus reminders. All wrapped around the theme of Personal Finance. 

To introduce my team: There’s me, Tasha, and the husband, Ben. We have four kids currently aged 7, 5, 3, and 8 months. And a pet rat, Tippy. Because aint-nobody-got-time-for-that – he is in the sole care of First Born. We live in a tiny Midwest town, 50 miles from malls and bulk food stores. And we are debt-free except for the house. Because of that last sentence, we are planning our very first take-the-whole-family-in-an-airplane not-to-see-family but-to-spend a-bunch-of-money-having-fun trip for this summer.

Hi, My name is Tasha. And I’m addicted to paying off debt. On a teacher’s salary of less than $50,000 a year, Ben and I paid off $40,000 in 24 months while cash flowing part of his MA, investing for retirement, and still enjoying birthdays, holidays, and traveling to see family who live hours and hours away. 

Within the series I am about to write and share, you will find how we keep plugging away at it, what we eat, how we play, and how we keep finding joy through it all. I have more to share in the coming weeks!

Drop a note here with questions, suggestions, or comments. 

Yours Truly, 

Tasha

Note from Laura: In the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing several posts from Tasha letting us know how she and Ben have knocked out so much debt so quickly! You are going to love reading these!! :) :)

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