Debt management

Good info in general👍

Just a few thoughts/hindsight from content I have gathered, in Podcasts/Books including (JL Collins/Ramit Sethi/Choose Fi/Dave Ramsey/The mad Fi-entist/The money guy show/Chris Hogan/John C. Bogle) Who all have fantastic and unique angles on personal finance/investing.

1.   Save a Mini-Emergency Fund

Absolutely a cornerstone.Not one of the experts stated above will disagree.As Uncle Dave would put it "it keeps murphy from knocking on the door". It was also in my case, the spark/challenge for me to actually "save" and alter my professional spending lifestyle.I worked to play,and burn up every paycheck on the next venture.Believe me there were a lot of bogus things that I just couldn't live without!!

EMERGENCIES ONLY!! I know that your favorite band is important too and need some support..Draw the line in the sand...

During this time, I also took the plunge to add up my total debt/net worth..Yikes.Needless to say,I also added up how much I paid in interest on "dumb debt"..And a spark turned into a small flame.No more!

Step 1 is a fantastic time to see where your at, good or bad..gather up every bill/cost/debt/headache.Bring it out of the darkness and lay it out.GET A PLAN to escape..Don't be like me,and wait until its a code red emergency!😥

2.   Refinance Debt

Ehhh..Sure.True,putting a bunch of small bags of debt into one big bag of debt,makes you less prone to forget or lose a debt bag along the way...Again True, a lower interest rate takes off a little weight on the consolidated ruck sack of debt.Nonetheless, you still have a bag of debt on your back.I targeted the "heaviest" little bags I could find..and made sure those left my bag first.The biggest takeaway I got from all this..I'm tired of packing a bunch of bogus weight on my back!

Now here's where the line gets drawn in the sand with #2...

"After you refinance, keep making the same payments you were previously. Doing so will shorten how quickly you pay off your debt without forcing you to make any changes to your lifestyle."

If your big and strong and you like packing heavy things around..Fantastic..But as you grow older..Its not all that fun anymore.This is the key time to alter your spending lifestyle and really question/challenge what is essential or not.

3.   Focus on Saving

All great things here..Dave Ramsey is big on 15%. savings..The FIRE guys are big on "as much as you can" so you can retire early.JL collins is "keep it simple" Ramit the same..John Bogle has forever changed and has been a blessing for us "average joes" with index funds.But my problem was..I owed everyone and their dog money plus interest.How can I invest!!?? Well if I could have invested what I paid in interest over the years into a Roth IRA...Sure would have been nice..😓Quit paying banks! Pay them off first.If you have a 16% interest credit card..Pay it off.Its a guaranteed ROI of 16% on your hard earned after taxes dollars that year with no capitol gains.Think about that one👍 Get your people paid off before you jump in head over heels investing.However if you company has a vested match...DO NOT leave money on the table.Although i'm not 100% out of debt..I will do whatever it takes to leave no "free money" on table. 4. Create a Debt Payoff Plan

I feel like this should be step #1..A PLAN! You cannot build/create or really do much without a plan.With a basic financial plan..Spending/Cutting costs/extra income are no brainers.. The debt snowball/avalanche is just a preference on how you would like to attack debt and win one cut at a time. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.This was also a fun time for me personally to listen to the various experts strategy's and decide what fit me best.

I am by no means a finance expert nor am I giving financial advise.I just started paying attention to the mud hole I was about to slide in. Sparks turn into flame,that turn into a large fire.Take control of your future! YOU are in control of more then you think..It took me too long to figure this out! Good luck👍