Hey there stranger fellow badass. You’re probably wondering who is this babe? What makes her a badass? Why does she love budgets so much? What kind of girl loves six inch heels and spreadsheets on the same level? These are all excellent questions and you’re in the right place for answers. Maybe not on this page, but at some point, I’m sure an answer will come up.
So where do I start? Let’s try…
This is a story all about how my life got twist turned upside down… Actually, that sounds familiar….
Maybe I’ll try…
Not for the first time, an argument had broken out over breakfast at number four, Privet Drive… Oh wait, that doesn’t sound right either.
I know, let’s just start at the beginning, and when I get to the end, I’ll stop.
Once upon a time, there was a little curly haired girl who loved to read books and be the center of attention. She was raised in a loving home with 2 sisters and parents who worked hard every day and taught her the value of a good education. With a financial planner for a dad, her favorite books were books on finance. Instead of morning cartoons, she preferred to watch the Nasdaq do its thing. So, she went to school every day, determined to be the best in her class. She had lots of friends, but due to the fact that she loved books, was a bit of a teacher’s pet, and was rather petite for her age, she got teased. But, at least she was smarter than everyone else, so she had that going for her.
Then she got older. She was still undersized, loved books, loved school, and loved cheerleading. However, she was still teased and struggled to be “cool”. To make matters worse, growing up made her come to the realization she was no longer the smartest person around (shocker, right?).
*Insert existential crisis here*
Even though she wasn’t #1, she knew she would attend college and get that all too important degree. She chose to go to Southern California’s top liberal Christian school, Azusa Pacific University and studied accounting (which she didn’t care for) and leadership (which was just a minor, but changed her life). Her senior year, she fell in a cheer stunt and this is the moment everything changed.
After suffering a (supposedly) minor concussion, she got sick. Migraines came incessantly, weakness and fatigue took over her body, focus was a thing of the past and fog was no longer just for mornings by the beach. Work hours got cut to the bare minimum, as it became clear she might not even graduate. To supplement the loss of income and to keep up expectations appearances, she made the decision she swore she would never make. She opened her first credit card *gasp*
Before graduation, that was maxed out.
So she picked back up a normal hectic work schedule and somehow managed to graduate on time. Stepping out into the real world, she knew she could be great at… something. Still didn’t know what. But she was bright, she was kind, and now she was educated! She landed a job in accounting after graduation and thought she was well on her way.
Little did she know. One month later, the first bill came. Student loans were officially in repayment. Just how much did that important piece of paper cost? Turns out, it was the cost of a small house. Yes, even here in California. Holy cow.
Why did nobody explain to the reality of this debt to high school her? Who knows, it didn’t matter. The bill came either way. So here she was with a lot of student loans and a credit card that was doing “okay”. And then the bank told her “Hey, if you sign up for another card, we’ll give you a few hundred dollars!” Free money? Sure! Why not??
And there was that. She had (but hated) the highest paying position she’d ever held and had a few steady consulting clients for her side hustle. Her money was fiiinnneee. She could run around and buy clothes. And go on vacations. And eat at nice restaurants. And have the Disneyland pass. As long as the bills were paid on time, it was fine right?
As her OT at the office increased, her side hustle grew and her illness continued to plague her. Then the burnout hit. The stress of her finances stayed where it was no matter how much she made. She started thinking on all the potential she had to be her own boss. All the finance knowledge she had in her head.
And it hit her – until she could get her finances under control, she will ALWAYS be stressed and subject to a paycheck from someone else. There was no way to keep up as she’d been doing. Something had to give. And thus a decision was made to get her finances in order in a different way. A job switch with a pay cut and a new financial mentor, and she was ready to become the badass budgeter she knew she was destined to be.
So that brings us pretty close to today. The debt is still a process, but over the last few months, I have changed. This blog is all about not only my personal journey to becoming debt free, but to experiencing bliss during the process. Some of it is my experience, most of it is what I’m learning from books and mentors, some of it is just for fun. Either way, if you made it all the way to the end of this post, I promise they won’t all be this long. I am happy you’ve decided to join me on my journey. I can’t wait until we can all live in financial freedom.