There are so many people who make decent money but still live paycheck to paycheck. We grew up struggling financially, but mom made sure I had all I needed. I learned early on to limit what I wanted and if I focused only on a few things here or there then I mostly got everything I wanted. At a young age, I decided that I didn’t want to live my whole life this way.

I’m thankful that my mom was never one of those parents who ruined my credit before I was old enough to build my own credit. I know you’ve heard of those horror stories of people getting older and realizing that a parent had put bills or something in their name when they were a child. However, on the flip side, there never really was any guidance on financial matters. I was one of those kids who got a credit card as a college freshman BUT I knew to only use it for what I could pay for. I paid that card balance off EVERY billing cycle, because I refused to pay interest rates! When my mom found out she was upset that I had a credit card and thought that I would ruin my life because so many others held unrestrained relationships with credit. That was about 20 years ago. I’m proud to say that I have always used my credit cards responsibly (especially my travel benefits card now!!) AND I almost always pay off the balance.

But this post is to discuss my pursuit to be debt free. I’m thankful for the financial lessons that I’ve learned along the way. There have been lots of people who have poured money management advice into my life. Because of that, I’ve been able to begin retirement saving, buy a few stocks, and build a decent savings account. However one of the most rewarding moments was being able to pay off my student loans in less than the scheduled 10 year timeframe — I was tired of paying interest. The next moment was not long ago when I paid off my car in half the time of the loan — again, I was tired of paying interest. But both of these payoff stories were rooted in me just being frustrated with different situations that came up. That frustration pushed me to really deal with the debt.

I’m thankful that my frustration pushed me to action. I’m thankful that I’ve been able to make sacrifices over the last few years to position myself to be able to payoff debt. I’m thankful that this occurred despite times when I was unemployed or underemployed. But most of all I’m thankful for God’s Provisions that have enabled me to be free.

Debt freedom feels great,

Dr. Stassi