If you’re trying to get out of debt, you know what a difficult road it can be. You want to put as much money as possible on your debt to get out of debt as quickly as possible, but after awhile, all the scrimping and saving and doing without can lead to burn out.
Paying off debt, especially a lot of debt, is hard. It’s a long journey, and it’s easy to give up.
Inspiring Bloggers Who’ve Paid Off Debt
When you’re deep in the trenches of debt repayment and looking for inspiration, check out some of these bloggers who’ve paid off debt, sometimes quite a bit of debt.
Kyle Taylor, author of The Penny Hoarder:
For the last three years, Kyle has been sharing his weird and wacky ways to make extra money at ThePennyHoarder.com. He’s paid off more than $30,000 in student loan debt and now blogs full-time. Some of his most popular posts are those that share companies that are giving away free money.
Joe Mihalic, author of No More Harvard Debt:
Mihalic graduated from Harvard with a boat load of student loan debt. By September, 2011, he had $90,000 in debt remaining and vowed to pay it off in a year. However, his perseverance helped him pay it off in just 7 short months. Yes, he has a high paying job, but his job at the time only paid a bit more per year than his total debt load, so his accomplishment is inspiring. His archives are full of posts that detail his struggle to be debt free.
Blonde on a Budget:
This blog author paid off $28,000 in various loans and credit card debt in 2 years. She made big sacrifices such as moving back in with her parents for 6 months and going on what she calls crazy “financial fad diets.” Even more exciting, she just paid off her debt in May, 2013. In addition to reading her archives to see how she did it, you can also read her journey as she begins to live her life debt free.
Dave Ramsey’s We Did It Section:
Dave Ramsey is the original advocator of gazelle intensity to pay down debt. On his website, there is a section called “We Did It” where readers share how much debt they paid off, how many months (or years) it took, and what strategies they used. This is an excellent place to get inspired.
Inspiring Bloggers Who Are Still Paying Down Debt
Those bloggers who’ve paid off all their debt were once right where you were, deep in the trenches, paying it off. If you want to be inspired by others who are still paying down their debt, consider these bloggers:
Erica, author of Newlyweds on a Budget:
Erica and her husband were $40,000 in debt in April, 2010. At first, their debt free journey was slow as they struggled through periods of unemployment and injury. Now, however, their debt snowball is tumbling faster and faster! They currently only have $13,000 in debt. Even more inspiring, they’ve paid off two student loans in the last two months!
Joan, community manager at Man Vs. Debt:
Man Vs. Debt was originally Adam Baker’s blog about his family’s journey to live an alternative lifestyle by becoming debt free and traveling the world. Now that Adam has begun to pursue other interests, his community manager, Joan, shares her journey to become debt free. She started with $90,000 in debt, and now her family’s debt is down to $56,779. Joan’s story is inspiring because she didn’t pay off her debt in 7 months like Joe Mihalic. Her journey is slower, but equally inspiring and perhaps more relatable than those who whip through their debt in no time.
Paying off debt can be difficult and feel isolating. Take solace by reading some other bloggers’ journeys and know that with perseverance, you, too, can be debt free one day.
Which blogger inspires you on your debt free journey?