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StitcherWe don’t often give much credit to our teachers that they get paid less than what they deserve. Many of them are struggling to pay off ballooning debts and are forced to live paycheck to paycheck. In this episode, Jen and Jill are joined by Megan to share her debt free journey including creative strategies to save money and mindset shifts as a teacher.
When you have a singular focus goal, it wakes you up to things you could be doing and knew but never had the motivation to do it.
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- Losing. If you don’t want to lose where you’re going, then sign up for the Friendletter. We send it out 3x a week. We got tips on where to find free food, how to save money where it really counts in high-impact areas, and also helped with your values-based spending journey.
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Finding Community in Debt Freedom
Megan, a 3rd-grade teacher from South Florida, has been teaching for 18 years. Following a divorce in 2018 and realizing she was living paycheck to paycheck despite her teaching tenure, she was inspired by a friend to pay off her debt in 2019, achieving it in just six months.
With the importance of community support and her teaching skills, she used them to gamify her debt payoff process. By tracking expenses and cutting costs, such as doing her own nails and saving on food, Megan stayed motivated with small extra payments.
Financial Flexibility and Future Goals
Megan had around $19,000 in debt, including her car loan and student loans, which she had been paying off for 18 years. There is freedom and reduced stress that comes with being debt-free, as it allows for more financial flexibility. Megan’s debt-free journey focused on cutting expenses and becoming aware of her spending habits. Looking ahead, Megan was set to achieve new financial goals, such as paying off her mortgage and saving for home improvements, to maintain her momentum.
✨ Update on Megan
Due to a shift in values regarding spending after her debt payoff, Megan was able to save for the right emergency fund for her and bravely leave her teaching career. Remaining debt-free, this decision and the effort she put in to achieve it allowed her the freedom to change careers and improve her happiness.
The most creative thing you’ve done to lower your expenses
Jen’s husband, Travis, invested six hours on the phone with T-Mobile to get two free iPhones and lower their bill—a time-worthy effort for substantial savings. Meanwhile, Jill’s unconventional method of living in an RV and house sitting have made the most significant impact on reducing her expenses.
Bill of The Week
Thank you Cloud for sharing your bill about US! And the changes you made to eat at home, lower car insurance, better health insurance, Roth IRA!
Thanks so Much for Listening!
Thanks so much for listening. We love love love reading your kind reviews and we especially loved this one from:
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Amazingly Fun and Informative
This podcast is a treasure trove of information and insights on so many aspects of living frugally. And it’s all delivered in a very fun and engaging way. Jen and Jill are great to listen to and speak about the topics in a relatable and inclusive way, which is always refreshing. This is one of my favorite podcasts!
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