As I start my new job, I’m learning how to budget my finances. I have a steady income now. I know… Finally! This is what I’ve been waiting for – but the only catch now is that I have way more adult responsibilities which includes finally paying off my student debt. It’s something most of us new college graduates are going through and although it’s a pain in the a**, I’m thankful I have a good income to tackle it.
I made my first payment a few days ago and I told my mom I was sad when I paid because my money was going to debt… not wealth investment. She responded by telling me I shouldn’t be sad, and instead I should be happy that I had a good education and that I’m able to pay it off. It may seem subtle, but her response made me realize that the way you think can really change how you feel and go about things. At first I was super sad that I had to pay off my student debt, but now I’m really happy and motivated that I’m decreasing it paycheck by paycheck. It motivates me to spend my money wisely. I also just get really excited seeing the balance decrease. Mindset is really everything.
My principal balance of loans is about $20k which isn’t bad. The biggest question now is HOW am I going to tackle it? As I get used to my new income, I know one thing for sure and that’s paying as much as I can with each paycheck that I get. For the most part, that’s how I’m going about it – nothing too complicated… There are just some lifestyle changes that I have to keep in mind. First, I have to create a budget so I spend my money wisely. Once that’s established, it’s how I choose to spend my money.
Shopping
What I’ve learned is that when it comes to materialistic things, quality over quantity is the motto. In the long run, if I spend a bit more money for a product that’s nicer, it’ll last me longer. I also go on sporadic shopping sprees which need to stop… but if I have a budget at least I can see how much I can spend during the month. I just have to control myself.
Food
Consulting is not only a career, it’s also a lifestyle. What I mean by this is that I travel a lot so there’s not really a routine that I could follow every day. This makes it hard to food prep so I’m kind of scared about how I’m going to go about this in the future. I’m still in training right now, but even now I’m not food prepping (I get per diem so this is an exception). Once I get the ball rolling and get on a client project, I definitely have to work something out so that I’m still able to save money.
Saving
Although I’m paying off my student debt, I still want to save money. I’ve set up a 401K through my work and have a Roth IRA, Smart Savings, and Safety Net with Betterment. At first I was saving my money in a traditional savings account through my bank, but I learned that that’s not the most efficient way to save which is why I have investments through Betterment. This section is definitely a whole new blog post. Basically, I still want to save my money wisely while simultaneously paying off my debt.
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There’s no one-size-fits all solution of tackling student debt, but this is just a brain dump of how I plan to go about it. Finances, budgeting, and money are all sensitive subjects because who wants to admit they’re in debt?? As I get more comfortable writing, I want to open up more and share my experiences and what I’m going through. For now, I hope you enjoyed reading and can somehow relate. See ya in my next post!
