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No Spend Month

Is Being Debt Free Worth it?

I had a great talk with Millennial Money Man yesterday and my favorite piece of advice he gave me was to “write what you’re passionate about.” It took me literally five seconds to think of the one thing I’m really passionate about right now: Getting out of debt. A lot of people don’t understand why we’re doing this. They’re living great lives with money in the bank, shiny cars in the driveway, all with a six-figure negative net worth. So why would I deprive myself in my 20’s, the “best” years of my life, to sacrifice 60% percent of our monthly…

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Budget To Pay Off Debt

How To Improve Your Budget to Pay Off Debt

Making your first budget to pay off debt can be scary. It’s not as simple as assigning percentages because every person's finances are different. But the results are in and budgeting is a necessity to achieving your financial goals. Sure you can get by without a budget but you won't get ahead without one. My husband and I have been budgeting together since before we got married and it's set a foundation for us to be able to pay off over $64,000 over 18 months. There are a ton of methods, spreadsheets, printables, etc. to create a budget, but I…

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Best Personal Finance Podcasts For Millennials

10 Best Personal Finance Podcasts for Millennials

I used to not consider myself a big podcast person. While everyone else was hopping on the Serial train I was calling NPR like “Can I just hear some Justin Beiber?” But since writing about the best personal finance podcasts for millennials three years ago, I've become a podcast pro in my own right. This article started as a list of podcasts I wanted to try to save my readers the trial and error of finding them on their own and has led to me starting my own podcast about frugality with my friend Jill. It's called Frugal Friends Podcast and…

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Emergency Fund Tips

Tips to Help You Fund (and Keep) Your Emergency Fund

Everyone who’s ever had an emergency will tell you money is key to making good decisions. We make bad financial decisions when we're broke and desperate. That’s why having an emergency fund is vital to starting any personal finance journey. We currently keep a mini emergency fund of $1000 while we’re paying our debt and so far it’s worked out great. Now we have a five-month emergency fund because we're debt free! But it’s hard to save, hard to know how much to save, and hard to avoid the temptation of $1000 sitting in your bank account screaming to be used.…

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Marriage And Money

3 Habits for Blissful Money Matrimony

As of this month my student loan has a 1 in front of it. That started as a 5! I realize I couldn’t have done this without my amazing [frugal] husband. Through this journey, I am constantly reminded how important it’s been to be on the same page with our finances. Our shared goals and vision for the future have made the hard months bearable and the pitfalls easier to climb out of. By the time I met Travis I’d seen more couples divorce in my age group than I want to count. It was so significant to me that…

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Budget Myths Debunked

Budgeting is a B Word – Budget Myths Debunked

Everyone I talk to about debt tells me “I know, I need to get on a budget.” In my head, I’m like “duh!?!” But the truth is, I remember what it’s like to be single on a 36K income staring 60K of debt in the face. It’s horrifying, overwhelming, and seemingly impossible. So I just ignored it. I let the interest pile up and said I just can’t do this. Flash forward two years and the budget is a vital part of my life. I am by no means a master budgeter and I’m always the one that ends up…

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We Paid Off $45K In 11 Months!

How We Paid Off Over $45K of Debt in 11 Months

It seems pretty normal to me now but people still drop their jaws when I tell them we’ve paid over $45K on our loans in less than a year. We still have a year to go and most days I have mixed emotions of accomplishment for what we’ve done vs. annoyance for how far we have to go. UPDATE: As of August 31, 2017, Travis and I are STUDENT LOAN FREE! We paid off $77,646.54 in 23 months! We’ve made conscious decisions to hold off on things like buying a house, going on trips, and even getting a couch that’s not…

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5 Single Bloggers Who Paid off Massive Amounts of Debt

When I was single I was convinced there was no way I could tackle my debt on my own. Heck, I didn't even think I could do it when I got married. But my husband and I have since paid off $78,000 of debt and we did it in less than two years. I hear all the time about people, women especially, who think they can't pay off their debt for one reason or another... or ten reasons. I lived at home for 2 years after college under the guise that I was paying down my student loans but all…

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Myth Of Moderation

Why the Myth of Moderation is Keeping you in Debt – And How to Get Out

You’ve heard it said “Everything in moderation.” Like your brain will just know when it’s achieved maximum moderation and you'll be fine. Who actually achieves their ideal of moderation? I know a lot of people who think their addictive or impulsive personality means they can’t do moderation. While there’s something to be said for how genetics and personality affect the purchases we make, overspending and impulsive spending are problems for everyone, regardless of personality type. The idea that moderation must be organically practiced is a myth. Moderation is a skill that takes building and refinement. There are actual steps you…

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Budget Girl

Debt Free Stories: My Interview With YouTube’s Budget Girl!

Today I’m excited to share with you Sarah Wilson, aka Budget Girl’s debt free story! She’s an awesome millennial woman who paid off over $32K of debt on her own in three years. And along the way has built a community of 59,000 subscribers on YouTube! Sarah started her journey in 2014 making $26K as a journalist. Over three years she side hustled, lived frugally and made moves in her career to pay off her debt faster. Sarah’s story will empower you in whatever situation you’re in to suit up and attack your debt. Her YouTube channel is also a…

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