Let’s talk Debt for a minute. Dirty, Dirty Debt.

Debt makes you feel all kinds of negative things– shame, fear, anger, hopelessness, guilt, regret. You just wish it was gone, over, paid in full. Every day seems like a struggle just to make ends meet.

Every day you regret buying that two-seater that will be taking your fun-money for the next six years. It’s going to take 6 months to pay this diamond off, two years to pay off that credit card, five years to pay that medical debt. I feel you. I’ll be spending TEN years in high-output debt destroying mode, so we’re in this together.

What if I told you we could get to the debt-free goodness faster and more enjoyably?

OK, maybe just make it seem faster and less miserable. You and I both know that time passes at the same speed, regardless of how much attention you’re paying to it. And you know how when you’re watching the clock, time just creeps. (A watched pot never boils, and all.)

But when you’re really in the zone doing something you love, one minute it’s seven PM and the next, it’s midnight already!

1. Find time to GET & STAY BUSY doing something you enjoy.

When we get involved in a project, be it making memories, shaping sculptures, or a beautiful life in general, this debt repayment period will pass (dare I suggest it?) joyfully.

If you don’t have time for your passion projects, think about the things you DO make time for and evaluate whether or not they’re working for you.

• If your commute is two hours a day round-trip, maybe you can work remotely a day or two per week, or look for a different job entirely. Then again, you might consider working an hour away for a year while you build your skills to get a promotion. If you can take public transportation, you can also take advantage of that time to read, plan, visualize. Can you afford it? Can you afford not to?
• If you are working a second job, consider if it’s worth your time?  Would it be more profitable to work overtime at your first job? I worked a retail job for $9/hour when my regular rate of pay at my part-time day job was twice that. I quit after ten weeks of that nonsense.
• Maybe you are on a committee at work that really just seems to have meetings about meetings. Dude, I’ve been in some of those meetings. Really, you don’t have to participate. That group won’t shrivel and cease to exist if you decide you have more important work to do. Bow out and they’ll find someone else to pressure into it, believe me.
• Ditto for the PTA and cub scouts meetings. If they’re not your thing, another parent will have to step up.
• Do you do all the housework in a household of four people? It’s chore-chart time, baby.

You get the gist. Whatever you’re doing that makes you roll your eyes and think, this is such a waste of my time…I could be doing XYZ right now, is what you need to eliminate.

Once you release that work, you are going to swap out some of that unproductive time with something more productive & satisfying.

But if I get involved in something good, I might want time to slow down so I can enjoy it. But I also totally want to speed time up because being in debt is a real drag.

But, but, but, wait! We don’t want to wallow in our debt repayment period, but we’d love to spend time enjoying our passions. The trouble is, they’re both the same minutes in the day. What can you do?  You must choose your focus.

You can choose whether you focus on the great or the lousy in your life.

This is the Law of Attraction in action, folks. If you intentionally think about how grateful you are for your reliable transportation, your children’s health, your safe, warm house, you are going to attract more security. If you tell everyone how you never get any sleep, everything hurts, your spouse is a selfish jerk, well, you’re just going to get more of that.

2. There is power in your mind. Think Positively.

How can we get out of our heads, our “woe is me; I’m neck-deep in debt” negative thinking? How do we turn our thoughts toward positive changes we can make now? Stop thinking about ME. Let’s get involved in some good stuff with others. Try these on:

* Let’s volunteer at the animal shelter reading books to all the illiterate animals—you might just find love. Dogs don’t care if you have money or not. Frankly, they don’t even care if you can read. Walking, snuggling, and playing fetch is free. They can also teach you about living in the NOW. 

* Let’s coach some T-Ball where you might meet another parent who’s also struggling with money—you could become accountability partners and get out of debt together. Bonus: watching little kids play ball is hilarious!

* Let’s volunteer at the hospital rocking babies. Maybe you will see how strong you really are if you can be someone else’s rock for a little while. 

*Start a blog that explores, documents, and shares your passions with others. There’s a whole community of folks online you can connect with and you don’t even have to put on pants!

*Similarly, you can do all kinds of research & planning to host the big debt-free shindig you’re going to throw when you mail that last payment. (We’re totally having a debt-free blowout on Burton Farm in 2026 at Club Back Porch!)

* What’s your hobby? What’s your escape? What are you into? Is it an expensive hobby? Perhaps you can find a less expensive hobby that is just as fulfilling. Seriously, if you’re in debt, you don’t really have the money for pageantry or flying airplanes.

Having trouble picking an exciting focus? Ask yourself, what do I *NOT* want to miss while I’m paying off debt?

• Is there a baby or grandbaby coming?
• Is there a big work goal you could hunker down and achieve?
• An upcoming wedding?
• Are you an empty-nester who might want to re-connect with a spouse or old flame?
• Are you re-establishing yourself after a divorce?
• Are you building a business from scratch?
• Do you want to go back to school and get a degree?

3. Stay the course, financially.

That is, assuming you have a plan. You do have a plan, right? A budget? A spending plan? You know what’s coming in and out of your accounts, right?

Well, that’s where you start. Take a few days to marinate on your attitude and then we’ll get back together to talk about a budget.

~ Erica

Owning Burton Farm

Want to read more about your money? Tell me what’s going on with you. I read every email!