A Little Background
I’m a 30 something married guy living in the Pacific Northwest. My wife and I combine our income and share all of our expenses so if I ever refer to “my finances” I really mean “our finances”. We have no kids at this time so I guess we are considered DINKs (Dual Income, No Kids). We both have good jobs but we do have some debt. Mostly in the form of student loans.
I have had an interesting relationship with money which I plan to write about in subsequent posts. For now, I’ll just say I have not always managed it well. I was brought up thinking, if I can afford the payments on credit, then I’m doing fine. It wasn’t until about 2003 when I started realizing I was becoming trapped by my debt. I didn’t like the feeling at all. Actually, I think I’ve always felt trapped but it was always covered by the high that came with buying whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. Thinking back on how much credit card debt I accumulated, it just makes me cringe. I always managed by debt well but still, there is no excuse.
Luckily I changed my ways and I’m moving ahead. Once I started reading personal finance blogs, I started figuring out what was possible. I never imagined living without debt. I just thought it was normal to always carry a balance. I never thought about actually using a budget or building an emergency fund or saving up to pay for a car using cash. I have definitely learned from my mistakes and I have changed my ways. And I’m still learning about what is possible. I’m inspired daily by what people can do when not burdened by debt and I cannot wait until my burden is finally lifted off my shoulders.
In a later post, I’ll outline my financial goals, but in a nutshell, I want to live without debt. Living without debt represents complete freedom for me and my wife. I’m not there yet, but I’m well on my way. I’m no expert, but I feel pretty confident with my plan for financial freedom and my ability to get me there but I wonder if I had not accumulated so much debt, would I be as financially aware of what my money is doing? Would I be as open to learning as I am now? I don’t know, but in a way, it makes me appreciate the road I’ve taken. Yes, in hindsight I still cringe. But looking forward, I’m completely motivated by the possibilities.
“The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.” – Arthur C. Clark
