What I've Learned The Most From Debt Snowballing
I'm approaching retirement - and getting barraged by co-workers and friends as to how I pulled this off in a somewhat short amount of time.
After explaining my approach - and watching the life drain from their eyes - I find myself coming back to some very simple concepts that got me (and several other people I know) this far.
No more dumb decisions, especially financial ones. Once I got to BS3 the race was on. But along the way I started getting pretty picky about where I spent my money. Brand new toys became a thing of the past, clubs & subscriptions started to dwindle, I started driving a REAL commuter car to save gas money, and overpriced trips were cancelled. This saved me more money than I ever could have imagined at the time. And the flood gates opened!
My job played the largest role in wealth building (not real estate). Being gainfully employed without ever being laid off took some luck. But given the fact aerospace workers were needed everywhere it didn't take that much luck. My job allowed me to pay the bills and invest. And, yes, investing in 2009 was kind of tricky - initially.
Emergency fund. Murphy is alive and well - even in the year 2026! Since he's never going away, neither would the emergency fund. Roofs, car repairs, septic system repairs, siding, etc. I cringed when writing checks to cover those costs - but I never went back in debt. And I rebuilt the emergency fund - every single time.
This said, it still took me almost 19 years (to the day) to get to this point. Its not trivial, but its not impossible either - even after making some investing mistakes along the way.
Case and point: A co-worker living with her parents until she gets out of debt AND has her emergency fund in place PRIOR to moving out. To say she is NOT a brick would be an understatement. She has gotten fanatical about debt snowballing and will be throwing a debt free party right around Christmas THIS YEAR.
She is 24, will be better off when she retires than I was, and is deep diving into investing already.
Props to her. I was age 39 before I stated getting it right.
Ladies and gentlemen, GET FANATICAL!!
Don't lock yourself into a bad scenario because of debt, living in a high cost of living area, or whatever comes your way. Keep your options open, your decision making sharp, and your focus narrow.
.............and don't look back.
