2689: How We Paid Off $17,000+ in Student Loan Debt in Just 54 Days by Dave Cahill with JackieBeck.com

[00:00:00] Have you ever noticed how a calm mind can really set the stage for a good night's sleep?

[00:00:05] That's the idea behind our new podcast, Good Sleep.

[00:00:09] Greg, our host from Optimal Relationships Daily, is here to help ease you into a peaceful night's

[00:00:14] rest with some positive affirmations. And these affirmations aren't just comforting.

[00:00:19] They can help ease anxiety and nurture positive thoughts, setting you up for true good sleep.

[00:00:26] So, press play on Good Sleep Tonight because a good tomorrow starts with a good night's sleep.

[00:00:32] Just search for Good Sleep in your podcast app and be sure to pick the one from Optimal Living Daily.

[00:00:40] This is Optimal Finance Daily, Episode 2689, How We Paid off 17,000 Plus in Student Loan

[00:00:47] Debt in Just 54 Days by Dave Cahill with JackieBec.com and I'm your host and personal finance

[00:00:54] enthusiast, Diania Merriam. Now let's get right to today's post and start optimizing your life.

[00:01:04] How We Paid off 17,000 Plus in Student Loan Debt in Just 54 Days by Dave Cahill with

[00:01:11] JackieBec.com Money can be emotional. Few experiences compare to the joys of earning

[00:01:18] a long-awaited promotion or receiving a raise. Sometimes those experiences teach us that the

[00:01:24] grass isn't always greener on the other side. I learned this lesson the hard way.

[00:01:29] In June 2015, I earned a promotion as a public school administrator. Two weeks later,

[00:01:34] my wife Megan secured a new job as a teacher in the same school district.

[00:01:39] Our new jobs came with significant raises. I thought we had it made.

[00:01:44] Before starting our new jobs, my wife and I celebrated with a vacation and spent a week

[00:01:48] basking in glory. Life finally seemed perfect. Getting a wake-up call.

[00:01:55] But everything wasn't as perfect as it seemed. Like many millennials, I found myself sitting on

[00:02:00] over $17,000 in student loan debt at 6.5% interest. I was horrified when I read a

[00:02:06] statement which showed that the typical 10-year repayment plan would cost us $10,000 in student

[00:02:12] loan interest over $27,000 in total. The facade of our perfect life began to crumble in early 2016.

[00:02:20] One cold February day after much soul searching, I came to the conclusion that I hated my new

[00:02:26] job. I wanted out even more than my supervisor wanted me to leave. But our debt was

[00:02:31] suffocating and it limited my options. From that day on, I was completely consumed by paying off

[00:02:37] student loan debt. Nothing could stand in our way. Our payoff strategy. When my wife and I decided to

[00:02:44] pay off my loans, we decided to do it quickly. We knew we could sacrifice for a short while,

[00:02:49] even if it hurt, as long as it freed up cash in our budget to make large payments.

[00:02:54] We cut out almost every unnecessary expense. Eating out, non-basic groceries, movies,

[00:03:00] clothing, and unused subscriptions and memberships. We ate very simply and spent many quiet evenings

[00:03:07] at home. Much to our surprise, few people noticed our extreme frugality. Most who did were surprisingly

[00:03:14] supportive and understanding of our sacrifices. But we still had our detractors. A few people

[00:03:20] suggested that we were going overboard with our new plan. Others told us to lighten up a bit

[00:03:25] and have some fun. We stopped spending time with those friends for the duration of our payoff plan.

[00:03:32] Our frugality alone propelled our financial plan forward and allowed us to pay off nearly $2,400

[00:03:38] in February, our first month of our journey. I don't remember seeing the inside of a restaurant,

[00:03:43] target, or banana republic during this time. We encountered a few unexpected expenses over

[00:03:49] the next several weeks that followed, but we were still able to pay off an additional $1,100

[00:03:55] in March. April was a dream month for our monthly budget. My wife and I each received three paychecks.

[00:04:02] Even our modest educator salaries, when combined with our ongoing frugality, allowed us to pay off

[00:04:08] over $4,000 that month. Yet the finish line seemed like a faint mirage in the horizon.

[00:04:15] After over a month of sacrifice, we still owed $10,166.37.

[00:04:22] I became discouraged around this time and thought about giving up. My wife urged me to keep my eyes

[00:04:27] on our goal and suggested I finally start my own website to share about our journey and help

[00:04:32] others who were struggling to make sense of life's money problems. I officially launched

[00:04:37] FinancialSuperhero.com on April 1, 2016. Reaching the Finish Line

[00:04:44] In my discouraged state, I reviewed our financial big picture and found a glimmer of hope.

[00:04:50] Some quick math revealed that we had more than enough money in our emergency fund to wipe out my

[00:04:54] remaining student loan debt. We faced a dilemma. Our large emergency fund was our security blanket,

[00:05:01] gave us peace, but neither of us could shake the uncontrollable urge to wipe out our debt.

[00:05:07] We knew that if the situation were reversed, we would not take out a loan at 6.5% to

[00:05:12] build an emergency fund. And we knew that even after spending this money,

[00:05:16] we would still be in a position to protect ourselves against unexpected emergencies.

[00:05:21] Moments later, my hand trembled as I submitted a payment in the amount of $10,166.37

[00:05:30] and ended our 54-day journey towards freedom from student loan debt once and for all.

[00:05:36] Lessons Learn During The Journey

[00:05:38] I'll always remember the day we made our final student loan payment. We learned so much

[00:05:43] during our 54-day journey. Paying off my student loan so quickly was a big challenge,

[00:05:48] but the resulting freedom and opportunities to pursue my passions are benefits I wouldn't

[00:05:53] trade for anything. I'd be lying if I said it was easy to focus on the finish line for

[00:05:58] 54 straight days. Our methods may not be realistic in your circumstances,

[00:06:03] but don't be afraid to bet on yourself and take reasonable risks to achieve debt freedom.

[00:06:08] It may be uncomfortable, even scary, but it's worth noting that sometimes the biggest risks

[00:06:13] are those which you don't take. Living frugally did not come natural to us. Each day was a new

[00:06:20] battle which tested our resolve, but we were willing to do nearly anything to break free

[00:06:25] from our debt as soon as possible. In the darkest moments, our vision for a better future

[00:06:31] was what kept us moving forward.

[00:06:37] You just listened to the post titled How We Paid Off 17,000 Plus in Student Loan Debt

[00:06:42] in Just 54 Days by Dave Cahill with JackieBeck.com and I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:06:49] Have you been using Mint to manage your finances? First, the bad news.

[00:06:54] Mint is shutting down. And now, the good news. There's a better alternative, our sponsor,

[00:06:59] Monarch Money. Mint users are turning to Monarch Money and loving it. Maybe you're saving for a

[00:07:05] down payment, a wedding, a dream vacation, your kids college? I've found that Monarch makes it

[00:07:10] easy to help you reach your financial goals, whatever they are. I definitely wouldn't be able

[00:07:14] to allocate my finances or plan as clearly without help from Monarch. In fact, Monarch is

[00:07:20] the top-rated all-in-one personal finance app. It gives you a comprehensive view of all of

[00:07:25] your accounts, investments, transactions and more. Create custom budgets, set goals and collaborate

[00:07:31] with your partner. And now get an extended 30-day free trial when you go to monarchmoney.com

[00:07:37] slash OFD. After trying out Monarch for myself, I understand why it's a top-rated personal

[00:07:43] finance app. And right now get an extended 30-day free trial when you go to monarchmoney.com

[00:07:49] slash OFD. That's M-O-N-A-R-C-H-M-O-N-E-Y dot com slash OFD for your extended 30-day free trial.

[00:08:01] This episode is brought to you by ShipStation. If you run an e-commerce business,

[00:08:06] you know how much work it takes to produce something great while dealing with complicated

[00:08:11] shipping issues. That's why over 130,000 companies have turned to ShipStation,

[00:08:16] an innovative tool that allows you to focus less on shipping and more on building your brand.

[00:08:22] With ShipStation, you can manage orders, label printing, reporting and customer service on one

[00:08:28] easy-to-use dashboard. You'll reduce warehouse costs with reliable enterprise solutions

[00:08:33] and save thousands on shipping costs with discounts up to 89% off. Plus, you can effortlessly

[00:08:40] import orders from everywhere you sell online. So, turn your shipping challenges into opportunities

[00:08:46] for growth. Go to ShipStation.com and use code POD to sign up for your free 60-day trial.

[00:08:52] That's ShipStation.com Code POD. Reading this article was like a trip down memory lane,

[00:08:59] because getting out of debt has been the best part of my financial journey.

[00:09:03] I made my last payment on August 16th, 2016. And I know this because a friend of mine made

[00:09:09] a video of me sending off the final payment and documenting how I felt about it. I look

[00:09:14] like I'm high in this video. I'm so overjoyed. If you want to see the exact moment of debt freedom,

[00:09:20] just Google the day Diana Merriam paid off 30 grand of debt. Embrace yourselves, my friends.

[00:09:27] Getting out of debt takes a lot of hard work and the weight off your shoulders is well worth the

[00:09:32] effort. The process helped me learn to live within my means and solidify the frugal habits

[00:09:37] that still serve me today. Someone mentioned to me recently that they were thinking of

[00:09:41] selling some of their investments to enable them to get out of debt quicker. I'm sure there are

[00:09:46] scenarios where this might make sense, especially for high-interest debt. But I wondered how this

[00:09:51] might affect this person's ability to stay out of debt. Debt repayment is typically the

[00:09:56] first order of business when cleaning up our finances and it can set the stage for all

[00:10:00] of our other financial wins. The experience of ticking away at that debt over time allows

[00:10:07] us to get used to living below our means and that's the skill we need to make sure we don't get back

[00:10:12] into debt. But that'll do it for today. Thank you for listening, have a great rest of your day

[00:10:17] and I'll see you on tomorrow's show where Optimal Life awaits.