Financial Health Leads to Physical and Mental Well Being July 19, 2018

One of the big reasons why many of us are not doing as well as we should in terms of physical and mental well being has to do with our money situations. I've personally made it a goal to be debt free by the age of 50. What exactly does that mean to me? That means that aside from my large nut of a student loan, I want to be debt free of any credit cards, loans and other lines of credit that don't involve something like a mortgage. Like many of you out there, I'm choked by debt.

Let's be frank, I have more debt now at the age of 45 than I did when I turned 40. Now, I have no one to blame but myself for doing so. Situations in life called for increasing credit and thereby debt in order to survive. Now that I find myself in a better place these days, I can try and focus on killing that debt. What people don't realize is that owing money can be a tremendous strain on your health and wellbeing. The constant reminders in the form of monthly bills, minimum payments and if you are really doing badly the constant phone calls from debt collectors can be down right debilitating. But you can get through it. This is how I was able to do so.

First off own up to it. I accrued the debt. I needed to own up to it. The best way to do so? Put it down in writing. Write it all out: What you owe, what your credit limits are and how you intend to pay it off. Then go take a walk to clear your mind and go back to your numbers later on. Take a second look at them with a fresh set of eyes.

Secondly get to work. Many a financial expert will tell you that in order to live comfortably and without major debt, you need to have multiple revenue streams. Which means that you will have a harder time getting out of your debt by just relying on the weekly/biweekly check that you live on pay period by pay period. In order to truly make a dent on that mountain of debt that you have, you need to get a second or even third job. I can hear some of you now: But I'm already tired working a full time job, I don't have the time or energy for a second or even third job. Don't we all. Shit, I work a minimum of 50-hours a week between my two jobs and that doesn't even consider commuting time which I can conservatively estimate at being roughly 15-hours. But I know that just trying to pay my bills and everything else with just my main paycheck isn't going to cut it. That brings me to my next point.

Thirdly, pare down your expenses and try to live frugally. What's the use of having extra revenue if it just goes to paying for probably an excessive lifestyle. Figure out what you really can live without and stop spending money on that. Live within your means. Enjoy your coffee in the morning? Make it yourself. Same thing goes for lunch. Not only will you save money on what you eat, but since you're making your food, you know what you're putting into your body. Love books? Keep loving them, but instead of buying them, borrow them from the library. Same thing goes for movies. I can go on and on about ways to save money. We all need to find what works for us.

Lastly, dont get discouraged it it takes some time to get to where you want to be. Remember, it took time for you to accrue the debt. It's going to take longer to get out of it. Especially with those interest payments. There are smarter people than me out there with advice on how to tackle specific debt. All I'm going to say is this: pick which debt you want to focus on and hit it...HARD!!! Pay it off (without neglecting your other debt) and hit the next one just as hard. You'll see daylight soon enough.

Take it from the guy who paid off five cards and closed three of them.

Bye Bye

Surely, if I was able to do it. So could you.

Drop me a line in the comments box. Let me know how it's going for you. We might be able to trade helpful tips.

Until Then Keep Stepping
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