Dumping Debt: Part 1

I’ve been a little hesitant to write this post, not because I don’t want to share this information with you, but because the Internet is swamped with this info. So, at the risk of sounding redundant, here goes…

When I graduated with my Bachelor’s in Communication Studies from UNCW in 2009, I left school without any school debt. I’d lived at home and worked my way through school; therefore, I paid off my small personal loans as I made money working through school. However, when I returned to school in 2011 for my Master’s in Human Services Counseling, I was working full time, and although I began while still living at home, I got a little rambunctious and prideful and moved into my own apartment while earning my M.A. I began to take out student loans for school, and even put a little on my credit card—books, new computer, a bloggie camera that I needed for a class—on top of this, during the summer I put a trip to Puerto Rico on my credit card, when a friend got married there. Yeah, I know, bad idea!

So, where am I going with this? Well, last year my mother gave me Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University Kit for my 30^th birthday. At first, I thought “really?!” Hahahaha, but once I started reading the book I realized the man made great sense! He breaks everything down into steps…

7 Baby Steps

Step 1: Save $1000 Emergency Fund
Step 2: Debt Snowball
Step 3: Save 3-6 months of Expenses
Step 4: Invest 15% of Household Income
Step 5: College Funding for Children
Step 6: Pay off House Early
Step 7: Build Wealth & Give!

So far, I’m still on Baby Step 2. I think I’ll be here for a little while, but I’m already proud of myself for creating and sticking to a monthly budget, not using my credit card for Christmas gifts (that was a big one for me, because I’d been doing it for the last couple of Christmases), and already having paid $446.48 towards lowing my credit card bill since I’ve started. I’m slowly but surely getting there. If you’ve never heard of Dave Ramsey or Financial Peace University (FPU) please be sure to check them out. I’ve added the book for FPU to my suggested reading list on my Resources link.