This is my debt free story. I hold nothing back.
If you are in debt, you are not alone. There are thousands of people across the country in your same shoes, but that is not who I am referring to. I am talking about myself. Me. I’ve been there. I know what you feel.
Part of any change to your life is to get inspiration and help from others. The truth is that I made a lot of mistakes over the years. These have molded me into the woman I am today. These are mistakes I never want to see others make.
I am sharing my own story with you below. My hope is that you can learn from what I’ve done. I would love to be the reason you are inspired to change your own financial situation. It will mean a lot of hard work, but it will be worth it. I promise you.
WHERE I BEGAN
Back in 2001, I was living my life as a twenty-something single woman. I was in a relationship with someone who I thought was “the one.” This was the time when I was simply enjoying my life. I bought what I wanted. A budget?? Pfffttt….that did not even exist.
I continually robbed Peter to pay Paul and lived paycheck to paycheck. While I was making a decent wage, I still struggled. It was because I did not manage my own finances. My spending was out of control.
Credit cards were used to pay for nearly everything. I used them to pay for my gas, my groceries and my clothes. Heck – there were even months when I used them to pay other credit card bills!
REALITY CHECK
In December 2001, my relationship came to a screeching halt. I was now responsible for myself. There was no one else to help me cover my expenses.
I put a pencil to the paper and crunched the numbers, and built my budget. In that moment, I realized just how financially unstable I was. I was shocked (and very sad) at what I had done to myself. I could not believe I had accumulated such a large amount of debt. And, when I looked around, I had absolutely nothing to show for it.
It was an eye-opener. I knew that something had to change, but being young and a bit naive, I did what I thought was the only answer. Filed for bankruptcy.
THE LOW POINT
In August 2002, I walked into the courtroom and declared bankruptcy. It was one of the lowest moments of my life. However, at the same time, it was life-changing. At that moment, I vowed never to allow myself to get into that situation again – no matter what curve ball life might throw my way.
With that, I left the bankruptcy and my life behind me and moved to Kansas City. It was time for me to take complete control of my life and ensure that it was headed in the direction that I wanted.
…..continue onto Part 2 of my journey.