In other words, these stories dont teach us anything useful about money.
It took her several years.
And for several years,she was overworked and she battled depression.
Lockert tells the brutal truth: getting out of debt is a struggle.
Cait Flanderspaid off $30,000 worth of debt in two years.
Most realistic get-out-of-debt stories come down to a few habits.
Thats not to say everyone is good at following it, but instinctively we get it.
Weve had it beat into our heads since we were in Kindergarten.
Life, on the other hand, is less intuitive than simple subtraction.
Everyones situation is different, which is why blanket financial advice isnt always useful.
This is also much easier said than done, but there are specific ways to hone your resourcefulness.
For one, you’ve got the option to learn toseize opportunities.Windfalls are a perfect example of this.
Our natural inclination is usually to spend the windfall.
We didnt budget for it anyway, so whats the harm?
you could treat yourself, too, but its resourceful to acknowledge that the opportunity exists.
Learn to leverage your luck, in other words.
Heres how to work on it.
Creating small choices for yourselfcan help with this.
Charles Duhigg talks about this concept in his bookSmarter Faster Better(wereviewed it here).
The idea is to create a choice for yourself, then tie your actions to a larger goal.
No, one small choice wont magically get you out of debt, but thats not really the idea.
The idea is that, gradually, making decisions will help you feel powerful.
This way, all of your actions support that goal and ultimately serveyou.
When you first make a goal to get out of debt, the novelty is exciting.
Youre motivated and ready for a change.
After a while, you get tired of living below your means and the goal gets boring.
There are a few ways to combat it, though.
you could set smaller milestones, for example.
Thinking about your goals in the shorter term makes them more actionable and present.
Also, as writer James Clear points out, you have to be excited about the process.
Its their commitment to the process.
They fall in love with the daily practice, not the individual event.
Fall in love with boredom.
Fall in love with repetition and practice.
Fall in love with the process of what you do and let the results take care of themselves.
Ive found that, during any financial plateau, it also helps to research the next step.
If youre paying off debt, that might mean reading a little bit about investing.
Plus, it helps ensure youre ready when the time comes.
Paying off debt is not an easy feat and for most of us, it takes time.
