2018 Goals

I've been reading the debt dumpers, destash thread on here, etc. and praying to try and figure out what some of my "attainable" goals can be. I want to put them here to make me somewhat accountable. I've never been one to make goals, much less keep goals.. But I'm 42 and have zero retirement, bills up to my nostrils and a college loan I will probably never get paid off. Plus, I eat bad and never exercise. So I'm wanting to get somewhat organized and start trying to make a future for myself. Hence why I'm trying to make goals and hopefully keep goals.

For starters, my college loan has been paid down to $19k...I've paid more than $40k into it, so about 1/3 of the way left. I know I won't be able to pay it off completely. But I want to keep making substantial headway on it. Right now I pay $300/month on it. So, it should be paid off in about the next 4-5 years.

Our biggest problem for the past few years has been eating out. We spend about $1,500 PER MONTH eating out. When we do go to the grocery store, we start eating out again and eventually throw tons of food out. I live about 30 seconds from work but would drive another minute further and get McDonalds for breakfast (usually a coffee and a biscuit or 2). Then I'd eat out for lunch and then eat out again for dinner. So I want to start eating at home more. I've set a budget of $700/month on food. That's $125/week at the grocery store plus a $50/week "allowance" to eat out. That's usually going to be either Friday or Saturday night and then Sunday lunch after church. I know it's still a large amount, but it's way down from where it has been. BTW, last week I spent $53 eating out. I at 1 breakfast (Friday) out, ate lunch at home every day except Friday (payday) and we only ate out twice. One of the times, we got it paid for by our friends. So, I've started out much better.

Next goal is to get ahead of some bills. Right now, we're paying at least a month behind on car payment, house payment, cable, cell phones, our other loan and bills and credit cards. I can't imagine the late fees I'm paying right now. That said, I want to try to get back in line (or possibly ahead) on all of my bills. Being able to eat at home and save money that way will help that cause I believe. We've been stretched so thin by eating out so much that we've fallen behind our bills.

I've been working on getting things cleaned up and organized and have been throwing stuff out or selling it. I want to continue to do that. Right now, I've got an old video camera, some old gaming systems, magazines and clothes on eBay. I don't do much Facebook (I have one for my job, but I never check it). I'm also not one to meet in person as I fear I'd be one of the types that would end up meeting with a serial killer. So I'd prefer to take little less to sell online. Trying to do that now.

I'm also wanting to start being some type of active. We walk at the parks (Disney) but that's only twice a year. So we don't exercise any other time. We joined a church over a year ago that has a weight room, basketball court and racquetball courts. I'm hoping to start playing hoops or racquetball or just getting by wife up there to walk around the upstairs track with me. We can both stand to lose a little weight and be more active.

Finally, my largest goal has to be some type of savings. Right now we put all of our change into our "Disney" jar. I also get 2 rolls of each coin when I get paid and put that change in the jar. So it's adding up quickly. I also want to start putting a little bit of money into a savings account. Whether it's $15/check or $50/check. I want it to go into that and STAY THERE! We've done that in the past, but then we pull it out when we run out of money. Hopefully, a budget will help keep us from running out of money.

Anyway, I'll try to keep things updated on a weekly basis to help keep myself accountable.
 
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I've been reading the debt dumpers, destash thread on here, etc. and praying to try and figure out what some of my "attainable" goals can be. I want to put them here to make me somewhat accountable. I've never been one to make goals, much less keep goals.. But I'm 42 and have zero retirement, bills up to my nostrils and a college loan I will probably never get paid off. Plus, I eat bad and never exercise. So I'm wanting to get somewhat organized and start trying to make a future for myself. Hence why I'm trying to make goals and hopefully keep goals.

For starters, my college loan has been paid down to $19k...I've paid more than $40k into it, so about 1/3 of the way left. I know I won't be able to pay it off completely. But I want to keep making substantial headway on it. Right now I pay $300/month on it. So, it should be paid off in about the next 4-5 years.

Our biggest problem for the past few years has been eating out. We spend about $1,500 PER MONTH eating out. When we do go to the grocery store, we start eating out again and eventually throw tons of food out. I live about 30 seconds from work but would drive another minute further and get McDonalds for breakfast (usually a coffee and a biscuit or 2). Then I'd eat out for lunch and then eat out again for dinner. So I want to start eating at home more. I've set a budget of $700/month on food. That's $125/week at the grocery store plus a $50/week "allowance" to eat out. That's usually going to be either Friday or Saturday night and then Sunday lunch after church. I know it's still a large amount, but it's way down from where it has been. BTW, last week I spent $53 eating out. I at 1 breakfast (Friday) out, ate lunch at home every day except Friday (payday) and we only ate out twice. One of the times, we got it paid for by our friends. So, I've started out much better.

Next goal is to get ahead of some bills. Right now, we're paying at least a month behind on car payment, house payment, cable, cell phones, our other loan and bills and credit cards. I can't imagine the late fees I'm paying right now. That said, I want to try to get back in line (or possibly ahead) on all of my bills. Being able to eat at home and save money that way will help that cause I believe. We've been stretched so thin by eating out so much that we've fallen behind our bills.

I've been working on getting things cleaned up and organized and have been throwing stuff out or selling it. I want to continue to do that. Right now, I've got an old video camera, some old gaming systems, magazines and clothes on eBay. I don't do much Facebook (I have one for my job, but I never check it). I'm also not one to meet in person as I fear I'd be one of the types that would end up meeting with a serial killer. So I'd prefer to take little less to sell online. Trying to do that now.

I'm also wanting to start being some type of active. We walk at the parks (Disney) but that's only twice a year. So we don't exercise any other time. We joined a church over a year ago that has a weight room, basketball court and racquetball courts. I'm hoping to start playing hoops or racquetball or just getting by wife up there to walk around the upstairs track with me. We can both stand to lose a little weight and be more active.

Finally, my largest goal has to be some type of savings. Right now we put all of our change into our "Disney" jar. I also get 2 rolls of each coin when I get paid and put that change in the jar. So it's adding up quickly. I also want to start putting a little bit of money into a savings account. Whether it's $15/check or $50/check. I want it to go into that and STAY THERE! We've done that in the past, but then we pull it out when we run out of money. Hopefully, a budget will help keep us from running out of money.

Anyway, I'll try to keep things updated on a weekly basis to help keep myself accountable.

To help you with your eating out challenge, try to figure out why you always ate out (even with groceries at home), so you don't backslide as the year wears on...
1. Did the groceries not match your desires (you bought all healthy food and were just craving a dang pizza or hamburger?). If that's an issue, make sure to pick up one or two items that can meet those desires. Even if you make a frozen pizza or frozen all-beef burger, it's almost certainly better for you that a takeout one, especially if you have it with a fresh salad or fruit.
2. Did you not have time or energy or desire to cook? Make sure you pick up one or two convenience grocery items, that will still be way cheaper than restaurant pick up. Pick up a rotisserie chicken or a baked wings container (dated fresh the day you buy it), and you'll have 2-3 days to eat it when you know you'll be your most worn out. Pick up some precut veg or fruits - these are more expensive than doing it yourself, but still cheaper and way healthier than the restaurant.
3. Does your grocery food just not taste as good as the restaurant stuff? Do you struggle to cook what you like? This is the hardest to overcome, so I'd suggest if this is an issue, figure out the easiest foods you eat out for and try to learn those (and remember, since you'll likely use less salt, sugar, and fat as restaurants, you might never perfectly replicate) while you continue to grab the hardest ones as your "takeout treat" until you work your way up to them:)...
 
Red text are my thought/ideas/questions for you

I've been reading the debt dumpers, destash thread on here, etc. and praying to try and figure out what some of my "attainable" goals can be. I want to put them here to make me somewhat accountable. I've never been one to make goals, much less keep goals.. But I'm 42 and have zero retirement, bills up to my nostrils and a college loan I will probably never get paid off. Plus, I eat bad and never exercise. So I'm wanting to get somewhat organized and start trying to make a future for myself. Hence why I'm trying to make goals and hopefully keep goals.
Admitting you have some problems/issues is the first step to fixing them!

For starters, my college loan has been paid down to $19k...I've paid more than $40k into it, so about 1/3 of the way left. I know I won't be able to pay it off completely. But I want to keep making substantial headway on it. Right now I pay $300/month on it. So, it should be paid off in about the next 4-5 years.
Student loans are such a pain! But as long as you keep plugging away at them it gets better and better. If your interest rate is lower than you CC's cut back to minimum payment and add the "extra" onto CC's with greater interest rates.

Our biggest problem for the past few years has been eating out. We spend about $1,500 PER MONTH eating out. When we do go to the grocery store, we start eating out again and eventually throw tons of food out. I live about 30 seconds from work but would drive another minute further and get McDonalds for breakfast (usually a coffee and a biscuit or 2). Then I'd eat out for lunch and then eat out again for dinner. So I want to start eating at home more. I've set a budget of $700/month on food. That's $125/week at the grocery store plus a $50/week "allowance" to eat out. That's usually going to be either Friday or Saturday night and then Sunday lunch after church. I know it's still a large amount, but it's way down from where it has been. BTW, last week I spent $53 eating out. I at 1 breakfast (Friday) out, ate lunch at home every day except Friday (payday) and we only ate out twice. One of the times, we got it paid for by our friends. So, I've started out much better.
The allowance will help you cut down as opposed to going cold turkey. Cutting back can be hard but it will be worth it in the long run. I really need to cut down on the eating out as our son is getting married in the fall and I do want to give him some money towards the wedding! In the past when I needed to cut back on expenses I was able to just drop my soda habit that was an instant 10/week savings. Is there something similar you can do?

Next goal is to get ahead of some bills. Right now, we're paying at least a month behind on car payment, house payment, cable, cell phones, our other loan and bills and credit cards. I can't imagine the late fees I'm paying right now. That said, I want to try to get back in line (or possibly ahead) on all of my bills. Being able to eat at home and save money that way will help that cause I believe. We've been stretched so thin by eating out so much that we've fallen behind our bills.
By cutting back on the eating out you will have some money to put towards the bills to try and get back on track and eventually ahead. Couple of questions: Can you cut back on cell phone plan? Can you either cut back on the cable package or eliminate the package completely? Can you cut back on credit purchases and go to cash only for things that you need regularly? Bring lunches to work is a huge savings, is it possible for you?

I've been working on getting things cleaned up and organized and have been throwing stuff out or selling it. I want to continue to do that. Right now, I've got an old video camera, some old gaming systems, magazines and clothes on eBay. I don't do much Facebook (I have one for my job, but I never check it). I'm also not one to meet in person as I fear I'd be one of the types that would end up meeting with a serial killer. So I'd prefer to take little less to sell online. Trying to do that now.
Can you put money from selling things towards a particular debt (especially CC's)? Will you get a tax refund that could be put towards some of the debt?

I'm also wanting to start being some type of active. We walk at the parks (Disney) but that's only twice a year. So we don't exercise any other time. We joined a church over a year ago that has a weight room, basketball court and racquetball courts. I'm hoping to start playing hoops or racquetball or just getting by wife up there to walk around the upstairs track with me. We can both stand to lose a little weight and be more active.
Being more active will also save you money. I know this will not sit well (I love WDW and would go more often if I could) but what about foregoing 1 or both WDW trips for a year while you catch up on bills.

Finally, my largest goal has to be some type of savings. Right now we put all of our change into our "Disney" jar. I also get 2 rolls of each coin when I get paid and put that change in the jar. So it's adding up quickly. I also want to start putting a little bit of money into a savings account. Whether it's $15/check or $50/check. I want it to go into that and STAY THERE! We've done that in the past, but then we pull it out when we run out of money. Hopefully, a budget will help keep us from running out of money.
Set up a savings account a bank or credit union that is a bit hard to get to (if hard to get to less likely to withdraw money fro things. Set up an automatic transfer and just set on autopilot. I would strongly suggest 10% savings rate. I know it might be hard especially with past due bills but if you don't pay yourself first then there is usually nothing left over to pay yourself. Is there time in your schedule (evenings or weekends) where you could pick up a part time job?

Anyway, I'll try to keep things updated on a weekly basis to help keep myself accountable.

Please keep things updated it is so important to, one having accountability but also two having a support group. Many people have been where you are and are willing to offer suggestions/help.

I highly suggest using the SMART Goals method

Specific - what is to be accomplished? ex. Pay off CC #1
Measurable how to measure goal? ex. CC#1 has 0 balance
Achievable - Can the goal be accomplished? ex. Is it actually possible to pay off CC#1
Relevant - How does this goal fit in with your entire picture? ex. will paying off CC#1 help you in the future
Time-Bound - What is the duration? ex. What time frame will you work within 2 weeks, 1 month, 1 year
 
Week 2 update:

Goals for 2018

Financial Goals
Eliminate last 900 dollars of student loans

Increase DRIP stocks value to 5000
1/1 2507

Increase my 403b value to 75,000
1/1 60,000


Increase wife’s 403b value to 50,000
1/1 40,000


Decrease eating out budget to: (1 morning and 1 evening per week + a few special occasions) Currently eating out 4 mornings and 2-3 evenings per week - NO MORE!!!!!
1/1 - 1/7 1 breakfast and 1 dinner out
1/8 - 1/14 0 breakfast and 3 dinners out (2 of these we because we were out of town for robotics competition)

Start bringing lunches to work regularly - no more eating at school cafeteria (food not great and it is 5 dollars for teachers)
1/1 -1/7 Out of the 4 school days this week I was able to bring lunch all 4 days!!
1/8 - 1/14 Out of 5 school days this week brought lunch all 5 days

Continue saving 50/ week for vacation
1/1 50/50
1/7 50/100
1/14 50/150

Cut Discretionary Spending by 20%

Eat out of pantry/freezer for January to use up as much as possible
1/1 - 1/7 used up 15 items from pantry and freezer
1/8 - 1/14 used up 9 items from pantry and freezer

Not buying any office supplies for personal use (have enough to stock a small business!!)

Life Goals
Declutter 2018 items in 2018
1/1-1/7 23 items decluttered
1/8 - 1/14 40 items decluttered

Lose 30 pounds (starting at 300 lbs)

Personal Goals
Read 20 books
1/7 Book 1 completed

Get the upstairs bathroom and spare bedroom fully remodeled (needs to be cleaned/organized, needs estimate, needs contractor start date, needs to be completed)

Start leaving work at work! (cut down conversations about idiot/lazy/incompetent coworkers)
 
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Update...

1) no more McD's for breakfast (it is soo close and easy)
2) eat at home during the week (DH works out of town so he enjoys eating out on weekends when he's home but if I can eat at home during the week it will help)
3) gym 5X week--I was really getting back into in until the flu hit last week
4) less random spending (okay this doesn't conform to the SMART method at all but I know what I mean-not going to Target and coming out with 20 things vice 2; not getting an Amex offer and spending $50 unnecessary to get $10 back).
5) hoping 1, 2, and 3 will assist in getting BMI back to "healthy" window

1) actually pretty good since I was in bed for a week getting over my funk

2) ditto, see above

3) didn't accomplish d/t above

4) much less time spent on computer OR in stores so so far so good

5) while I don't recommend the starve a cold method, I can happily report NO weight gain :)

I've figured out that I really dread my Thursdays so I will likely eat out that am as well as meeting with a couple of girlfriends for lunch once a week. I agree with @comicguy that going cold turkey probably isn't best psychologically or ensure long term success so try the small steps approach.

I made the executive decision to not use my 5X credit card bonus for Disney Gift Cards and instead buy Gift of College gift cards (DD is a junior in high school) so feel like saving (more) for college is more responsible than saving for a(nother) vacation at this point.

Working on my DD's school clothes closet and so far have 2 bags of items to donate-this week have scheduled time for more.

Definitely have room for improvement but as they say in AA "progress not perfection!"
 
Week 3 update:

Goals for 2018

Financial Goals
Eliminate last 900 dollars of student loans

Increase DRIP stocks value to 5000
1/1 2507

Increase my 403b value to 75,000
1/1 60,000


Increase wife’s 403b value to 50,000
1/1 40,000


Decrease eating out budget to: (1 morning and 1 evening per week + a few special occasions) Currently eating out 4 mornings and 2-3 evenings per week - NO MORE!!!!!
1/1 - 1/7 1 breakfast and 1 dinner out
1/8 - 1/14 0 breakfast and 3 dinners out (2 of these we because we were out of town for robotics competition)
1/15 - 1/21 1 breakfast and 1 dinner (anniversary) out


Start bringing lunches to work regularly - no more eating at school cafeteria (food not great and it is 5 dollars for teachers)
1/1 -1/7 Out of the 4 school days this week I was able to bring lunch all 4 days!!
1/8 - 1/14 Out of 5 school days this week brought lunch all 5 days
1/15 - 1/21 out of 4 school days this week brought lunch all 4 days

Continue saving 50/ week for vacation
1/1 50/50
1/7 50/100
1/14 50/150
1/21 50/200

Cut Discretionary Spending by 20%

Eat out of pantry/freezer for January to use up as much as possible
1/1 - 1/7 used up 15 items from pantry and freezer
1/8 - 1/14 used up 9 items from pantry and freezer
1/15 - 1/21 used up 11 items from pantry/freezer

Not buying any office supplies for personal use (have enough to stock a small business!!)
1/10 Used up pack of 5 insertable page tab separators for stock statements
1/14 Used up 1 roll of scotch tape
1/15 1 pkg of loose-leaf paper to school


Life Goals
Declutter 2018 items in 2018
1/1-1/7 23 items decluttered (23)
1/8 - 1/14 40 items decluttered (63)
1/15 - 1/21 129 item decluttered (172)

Lose 30 pounds (starting at 300 lbs)

Personal Goals
Read 20 books
1/7 Book 1 completed

Get the upstairs bathroom and spare bedroom fully remodeled (needs to be cleaned/organized, needs estimate, needs contractor start date, needs to be completed)

Start leaving work at work! (cut down conversations about idiot/lazy/incompetent coworkers)
 
week 3 update:

  • Average $1000/month in long-term savings: on track for January
  • Put at least $2400 in each kid's 529 accounts: $100/2400 each
  • Deposit $1000 of found money: $240/1000
 


I don't have a SMART Goal plan yet, but here are some of my thoughts.
  1. I lost 35lbs in 2017, and one goal is to keep that off.
    • Keep eating healthy
    • Start walking (again) - I want to build up to being able to run 5-10 miles.
    • Start doing strength training - building my core, to lower my body fat %.
  2. I plan to spend less and save more, and build up our budget for some big ticket home items.
    • Spending less by packing lunches & not eating out/getting takeout as often
    • Not going shopping because I'm bored.
    • Saving more by destashing my stuff, and selling what's sellable to earn $.
  3. I want to build a veggie garden (one of the big ticket home items) to save some $ eventually on the foods we eat a lot of. (I WISH I could have a chicken coup, but I don't think my HOA would approve.) :rolleyes:
  4. I don't know if I can do it, but less screen/tech time (not including work). At the moment, I only watch two shows, and both are on hiatus right now, but I tend to surf the net a LOT.
  5. Start looking for another job. I love my current job (for the most part), but I haven't gotten a raise in years, and it's getting unsustainable.
 
I've been reading the debt dumpers, destash thread on here, etc. and praying to try and figure out what some of my "attainable" goals can be. I want to put them here to make me somewhat accountable. I've never been one to make goals, much less keep goals.. But I'm 42 and have zero retirement, bills up to my nostrils and a college loan I will probably never get paid off. Plus, I eat bad and never exercise. So I'm wanting to get somewhat organized and start trying to make a future for myself. Hence why I'm trying to make goals and hopefully keep goals.

For starters, my college loan has been paid down to $19k...I've paid more than $40k into it, so about 1/3 of the way left. I know I won't be able to pay it off completely. But I want to keep making substantial headway on it. Right now I pay $300/month on it. So, it should be paid off in about the next 4-5 years.

Our biggest problem for the past few years has been eating out. We spend about $1,500 PER MONTH eating out. When we do go to the grocery store, we start eating out again and eventually throw tons of food out. I live about 30 seconds from work but would drive another minute further and get McDonalds for breakfast (usually a coffee and a biscuit or 2). Then I'd eat out for lunch and then eat out again for dinner. So I want to start eating at home more. I've set a budget of $700/month on food. That's $125/week at the grocery store plus a $50/week "allowance" to eat out. That's usually going to be either Friday or Saturday night and then Sunday lunch after church. I know it's still a large amount, but it's way down from where it has been. BTW, last week I spent $53 eating out. I at 1 breakfast (Friday) out, ate lunch at home every day except Friday (payday) and we only ate out twice. One of the times, we got it paid for by our friends. So, I've started out much better.

Next goal is to get ahead of some bills. Right now, we're paying at least a month behind on car payment, house payment, cable, cell phones, our other loan and bills and credit cards. I can't imagine the late fees I'm paying right now. That said, I want to try to get back in line (or possibly ahead) on all of my bills. Being able to eat at home and save money that way will help that cause I believe. We've been stretched so thin by eating out so much that we've fallen behind our bills.

I've been working on getting things cleaned up and organized and have been throwing stuff out or selling it. I want to continue to do that. Right now, I've got an old video camera, some old gaming systems, magazines and clothes on eBay. I don't do much Facebook (I have one for my job, but I never check it). I'm also not one to meet in person as I fear I'd be one of the types that would end up meeting with a serial killer. So I'd prefer to take little less to sell online. Trying to do that now.

I'm also wanting to start being some type of active. We walk at the parks (Disney) but that's only twice a year. So we don't exercise any other time. We joined a church over a year ago that has a weight room, basketball court and racquetball courts. I'm hoping to start playing hoops or racquetball or just getting by wife up there to walk around the upstairs track with me. We can both stand to lose a little weight and be more active.

Finally, my largest goal has to be some type of savings. Right now we put all of our change into our "Disney" jar. I also get 2 rolls of each coin when I get paid and put that change in the jar. So it's adding up quickly. I also want to start putting a little bit of money into a savings account. Whether it's $15/check or $50/check. I want it to go into that and STAY THERE! We've done that in the past, but then we pull it out when we run out of money. Hopefully, a budget will help keep us from running out of money.

Anyway, I'll try to keep things updated on a weekly basis to help keep myself accountable.



I became active on the debt dumpers board in 2013 when I finally came to the conclusion that sticking my head in the sand wasn't working.
After years upon years of not really following a budget, spending more than we earned, barely reading my cc statements-just sending more than the minimum to various cards but not really making any progress, and knowing that we already cashed out some equity in our home to pay off cc's once before, I FINALLY sat down and decided for our family's financial stability it's time to grow up, hunker down and start behaving responsibly with our money. Over the years we made so many excuses for our spending: enjoying our kids while they're young, making memories with our parents while they're alive, the "we work hard and deserve some fun time" attitude, guilt for working FT and missing out on so much time with our kids, etc. etc.
I added up the total and was shocked but didn't really know how to set a plan in place to handle it all.

That's when I found the Debt Dumpers thread and Dave Ramsey. I didn't buy any of his books but I did watch some YouTube videos and visited his website. His Baby Steps/Debt Snowball program just seemed so logical I had to try it. I knew that throwing some extra beyond min payments in 6 directions wasn't working. Some of his ideas seemed too drastic, such as cancelling cable, cell phones, retirement savings, etc. I felt that if I go too extreme I would be miserable and give up. It had to be a lifestyle change without feeling like a starvation diet.
We had already given up buying breakfast & lunches years back when we had 2 kids in day care costing $1300+/month. Once our kids were done day care, we suddenly had more of our paycheck we could keep but we didn't use it responsibly. In fact, we went a little hog wild for a while.

Once we dedicated some time to just sitting down and studying where money goes in great detail (just finding the time to sit down wasn't easy either) but we knew we made decent money, we bought a reasonably-priced home in line with our income, we didn't spend on expensive designer purses, clothes & sneakers. So why were we so broke? (hint... see my avatar)

After starting the snowball and going on to bill #2, my enthusiasm & motivation soared! It was so much easier to cut out unnecessary spending just to watch the numbers drop more. I was actually excited to pay bills! I became even better at seeing where money goes and was so excited to simply have $10 left in our "cushion" the day before payday. Yes, that $10 went to whichever bill was being attacked by my snowball. Since x dollars were still going out, just as before, except it was going to different bills than before, it didn't feel that drastic. I simply had to pay more attention to be sure that once a bill was paid off, I had to keep pretending I was still paying that bill except instead it would go to the snowball goal instead of the original bill.
Every time I could cross another debt off my list, I couldn't wait to start on the next one. By then the snowball was getting huge. Instead of $40/month extra going to debt, it was more like $1000! Suddenly a $10,000 cc bill didn't feel like a mountain to climb. Sure, it did when I was picking at it with a spoon but now I had stacks of dynamite that would make Wile E. Coyote envious. I paid off multiple large cc bills that I thought we'd never get to. :cheer2:

It truly works. I can't say enough good things about the snowball method, and starting with the smallest amount. Probably all together at least $60k of debt gone!! If I ever get the chance, I'd like to shake DR's hand.

As some was eliminated, I ended up taking on more such as a $15k Parent Plus loan for ds for college but you guessed it; with no other debt I could bang it out in like 6 months. We also took on a $35k home equity loan to convert a back porch into an office, which dh had pleaded for over the past 20 years. I also signed for a car loan for ds21 2 years ago which he is paying just fine but he is in the process of joining the Navy and will probably end up selling it.

We did still travel (and cruise) some along the way but not nearly as often as before and I jumped right back where I left off, not letting anything derail me. Each summer, I funnel around $5k of our snowball to a savings account for Christmas. In the fall when I start shopping, it's easy to just transfer from one account to the other to pay for it. Holidays are so much less stressful than before, when we'd wonder how the heck are we paying for all of this?

We are now almost at a point of zero debt except our mortgage. We have about $4k left on a home-equity loan that will be eliminated when dh receives the remainder of his inheritance (which has all gone to this HE loan) so probably 1 more regular monthly payment on that. That will also add another $360/month back to our snowball. yay!

I had $12k set aside for a big fall vacation but instead put $10k a Vanguard account and started saving for a new car. :thumbsup2 I'd like to be able to put 50% as a down payment. After that I'll start adding to the Vanguard to save up the suggested 6 months of living expenses. I have never been so excited to save money before in my life. :hyper:

It's been a long road but I finally feel like I'm no longer walking along the edge of a cliff (financially) where one wrong move could make us fall so low we'd never recover. I know you didn't ask for my life story but I just had to give you hope. If I can do it, ANYONE can! ::yes::

A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step!! :goodvibes :hug: Just go for it!!
 
I became active on the debt dumpers board in 2013 when I finally came to the conclusion that sticking my head in the sand wasn't working.
After years upon years of not really following a budget, spending more than we earned, barely reading my cc statements-just sending more than the minimum to various cards but not really making any progress, and knowing that we already cashed out some equity in our home to pay off cc's once before, I FINALLY sat down and decided for our family's financial stability it's time to grow up, hunker down and start behaving responsibly with our money. Over the years we made so many excuses for our spending: enjoying our kids while they're young, making memories with our parents while they're alive, the "we work hard and deserve some fun time" attitude, guilt for working FT and missing out on so much time with our kids, etc. etc.
I added up the total and was shocked but didn't really know how to set a plan in place to handle it all.

That's when I found the Debt Dumpers thread and Dave Ramsey. I didn't buy any of his books but I did watch some YouTube videos and visited his website. His Baby Steps/Debt Snowball program just seemed so logical I had to try it. I knew that throwing some extra beyond min payments in 6 directions wasn't working. Some of his ideas seemed too drastic, such as cancelling cable, cell phones, retirement savings, etc. I felt that if I go too extreme I would be miserable and give up. It had to be a lifestyle change without feeling like a starvation diet.
We had already given up buying breakfast & lunches years back when we had 2 kids in day care costing $1300+/month. Once our kids were done day care, we suddenly had more of our paycheck we could keep but we didn't use it responsibly. In fact, we went a little hog wild for a while.

Once we dedicated some time to just sitting down and studying where money goes in great detail (just finding the time to sit down wasn't easy either) but we knew we made decent money, we bought a reasonably-priced home in line with our income, we didn't spend on expensive designer purses, clothes & sneakers. So why were we so broke? (hint... see my avatar)

After starting the snowball and going on to bill #2, my enthusiasm & motivation soared! It was so much easier to cut out unnecessary spending just to watch the numbers drop more. I was actually excited to pay bills! I became even better at seeing where money goes and was so excited to simply have $10 left in our "cushion" the day before payday. Yes, that $10 went to whichever bill was being attacked by my snowball. Since x dollars were still going out, just as before, except it was going to different bills than before, it didn't feel that drastic. I simply had to pay more attention to be sure that once a bill was paid off, I had to keep pretending I was still paying that bill except instead it would go to the snowball goal instead of the original bill.
Every time I could cross another debt off my list, I couldn't wait to start on the next one. By then the snowball was getting huge. Instead of $40/month extra going to debt, it was more like $1000! Suddenly a $10,000 cc bill didn't feel like a mountain to climb. Sure, it did when I was picking at it with a spoon but now I had stacks of dynamite that would make Wile E. Coyote envious. I paid off multiple large cc bills that I thought we'd never get to. :cheer2:

It truly works. I can't say enough good things about the snowball method, and starting with the smallest amount. Probably all together at least $60k of debt gone!! If I ever get the chance, I'd like to shake DR's hand.

As some was eliminated, I ended up taking on more such as a $15k Parent Plus loan for ds for college but you guessed it; with no other debt I could bang it out in like 6 months. We also took on a $35k home equity loan to convert a back porch into an office, which dh had pleaded for over the past 20 years. I also signed for a car loan for ds21 2 years ago which he is paying just fine but he is in the process of joining the Navy and will probably end up selling it.

We did still travel (and cruise) some along the way but not nearly as often as before and I jumped right back where I left off, not letting anything derail me. Each summer, I funnel around $5k of our snowball to a savings account for Christmas. In the fall when I start shopping, it's easy to just transfer from one account to the other to pay for it. Holidays are so much less stressful than before, when we'd wonder how the heck are we paying for all of this?

We are now almost at a point of zero debt except our mortgage. We have about $4k left on a home-equity loan that will be eliminated when dh receives the remainder of his inheritance (which has all gone to this HE loan) so probably 1 more regular monthly payment on that. That will also add another $360/month back to our snowball. yay!

I had $12k set aside for a big fall vacation but instead put $10k a Vanguard account and started saving for a new car. :thumbsup2 I'd like to be able to put 50% as a down payment. After that I'll start adding to the Vanguard to save up the suggested 6 months of living expenses. I have never been so excited to save money before in my life. :hyper:

It's been a long road but I finally feel like I'm no longer walking along the edge of a cliff (financially) where one wrong move could make us fall so low we'd never recover. I know you didn't ask for my life story but I just had to give you hope. If I can do it, ANYONE can! ::yes::

A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step!! :goodvibes :hug: Just go for it!!

My story is pretty much similar to yours. I remember taking a spreadsheet and writing down every debt we had. That JCPenney credit card bill was the smallest at $600, but it was never getting paid off, since we were only paying the minimum. It really helped that we all went on a 1 year no new clothes.

I think it has been 7 years, and we are debt free except our mortgage and I am paying triple the amount more than we need to. We built a new home, but I am trying to convince my husband to sell and not live in such an expensive house. Plus we have 2 acres to mow and take care of and I would rather have street lites and sidewalks.

I told my husband, I am going to start helping my adult kids pay off student loans. I had 4 kids go,to school and we contributed $10,000 to each if not more and they are all still struggling. I could contribute another $2000 to each and put off buying furniture.

Still waiting to see how much we will get in our paychecks with the tax cut. I will budget that money and save it into our vacation account or our savings.
 
The funny thing is, when we went throught it all the first time, and borrowed some equity to pay off 99% of the cc’s, we vowed we’d never go through that again but still we had no real plan to prevent history from repeating itself. We didn’t come to grips that we were still over spending. Well some things you only learn by doing it the hard way, the old-fashion way. There is no quick fix, no magic. The only way to get it under control is to spend very carefully, less than you earn, learn to delay gratification and even find a different source for it. It’s truly life-altering by the time you're done.
 
The funny thing is, when we went throught it all the first time, and borrowed some equity to pay off 99% of the cc’s, we vowed we’d never go through that again but still we had no real plan to prevent history from repeating itself. We didn’t come to grips that we were still over spending. Well some things you only learn by doing it the hard way, the old-fashion way. There is no quick fix, no magic. The only way to get it under control is to spend very carefully, less than you earn, learn to delay gratification and even find a different source for it. It’s truly life-altering by the time you're done.
True. It was an eye opener, not shopping for new clothes. To me, I needed a new outfit if I had a special all day meeting to attend. I would buy new clothes for vacation, it was some kind of gratification I felt I needed. I was shocked how much clothes I really had. I really felt I needed a ton of khaki capri's, because if I didn't buy them, they would stop making them and I would never find any again. So yes, I agree this was my life altering choice, I was a hoarder of clothes and I am glad I stopped.

We also stopped going out to eat. We meal prep and plan menu's. It is nice that my dh can come home and look at the chart and he knows exactly what to make. He loves cooking after work, I hate it. I do all the prepping and meal planning and the dishes.
 
Week 4 update:

Goals for 2018

Financial Goals
Eliminate last 900 dollars of student loans


Increase DRIP stocks value to 5000
1/1 2507
1/28 3011

Increase my 403b value to 75,000
1/1 60,000


Increase wife’s 403b value to 50,000
1/1 40,000


Decrease eating out budget to: (1 morning and 1 evening per week + a few special occasions) Currently eating out 4 mornings and 2-3 evenings per week - NO MORE!!!!!
1/1 - 1/7 1 breakfast and 1 dinner out
1/8 - 1/14 0 breakfast and 3 dinners out (2 of these we because we were out of town for robotics competition)
1/15 - 1/21 1 breakfast and 1 dinner (anniversary)
1/22 - 1/28 1 breakfast and 2 dinners (both worked late one evening)


Start bringing lunches to work regularly - no more eating at school cafeteria (food not great and it is 5 dollars for teachers)
1/1 - 1/7 Out of the 4 school days this week brought lunch 4 days
1/8 - 1/14 Out of 5 school days this week brought lunch all 5 days
1/15 - 1/21 Out of 4 school days this week brought lunch all 4 days
1/22 - 1/28 Out of 4 school days this week brought lunch all 4 days

Continue saving 50/ week for vacation
1/1 50/50
1/7 50/100
1/14 50/150
1/21 50/200
1/28 50/250

Cut Discretionary Spending by 20%
Tracked our entire spending for the month of January so now can see where we actually spend money and make some adjustments!!

Eat out of pantry/freezer for January to use up as much as possible
1/1 - 1/7 used up 15 items from pantry and freezer
1/8 - 1/14 used up 9 items from pantry and freezer
1/15 - 1/21 used up 11 items from pantry/freezer
1/22 - 1/28 used up 13 items from pantry/freezer

Not buying any office supplies for personal use (have enough to stock a small business!!)
1/10 Used up pack of 5 insertable page tab separators for stock statements
1/14 Used up 1 roll of scotch tape
1/15 1 pkg of loose-leaf paper to school


Life Goals
Declutter 2018 items in 2018
1/1-1/7 23 items decluttered (23)
1/8 - 1/14 40 items decluttered (63)
1/15 - 1/21 129 item decluttered (172)
1/22 - 1/28 88 items decluttered (260)

Lose 30 pounds (starting at 300 lbs)

Personal Goals
Read 20 books
1/7 Book 1 completed
1/28 Book 2 completed

Get the upstairs bathroom and spare bedroom fully remodeled (needs to be cleaned/organized, needs estimate, needs contractor start date, needs to be completed)

Start leaving work at work! (cut down conversations about idiot/lazy/incompetent coworkers)
 
This is great. I'd love to join in!

Here's my story. Like others, I have gone on mindlessly for years overspending (on credit cards) and paying the minimum. Now I have credit card debt to go along with my student loan debt. DS is going to college in August so now I'm freaking out and trying to pay down as much as I can. I'm using a combination of smallest balance/highest percentage to pay off in an order that makes sense to me.

Here are my 2018 (and a bit beyond) goals in order of how I'll complete them:

Financial:
1. Pay off Disney Visa. I've been working on this and almost there! I'll continue to use it for groceries and gas only and pay it off weekly. I love the Disney Rewards!
2. Pay off Discover card by end of April
3. Pay off 2/3 of my smaller student loans by end of May
4. Pay off Capital One card by end of October. This may be lofty. I'll have some spending to do to get the boy to college!
5. Pay off Bank of America by early spring 2019
6. Make final payment on last student loan.

I have really changed my spending ways so I really think I can do it! I don't buy anything we don't absolutely need, no more wasted food and I've really cut down on the grocery bill. I use Swagbucks, Shopkicks, Fetch, Ibotta and just started Bing to earn some extra cash (mostly in the forms of Target gift cards that I use for groceries).

Personal:
Eat cleaner
Be more active
Declutter the house

Well, that's it! Thanks for reading. I look forward to updating my progress as I go!
 
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Week 5 update:

Goals for 2018

Financial Goals
Eliminate last 900 dollars of student loans


Increase DRIP stocks value to 5000
1/1 2507
1/28 3011

Increase my 403b value to 75,000
1/1 60,000


Increase wife’s 403b value to 50,000
1/1 40,000


Decrease eating out budget to: (1 morning and 1 evening per week + a few special occasions) Currently eating out 4 mornings and 2-3 evenings per week - NO MORE!!!!!
1/1 - 1/7 1 breakfast and 1 dinner out
1/8 - 1/14 0 breakfast and 3 dinners out (2 of these we because we were out of town for robotics competition)
1/15 - 1/21 1 breakfast and 1 dinner (anniversary)
1/22 - 1/28 1 breakfast and 2 dinners (both worked late one evening)
1/29 - 2/4 1 breakfast and 1 dinner


Start bringing lunches to work regularly - no more eating at school cafeteria (food not great and it is 5 dollars for teachers)
1/1 - 1/7 Out of the 4 school days this week brought lunch 4 days
1/8 - 1/14 Out of 5 school days this week brought lunch all 5 days
1/15 - 1/21 Out of 4 school days this week brought lunch all 4 days
1/22 - 1/28 Out of 4 school days this week brought lunch all 4 days
1/29 - 2/4 Out of 5 school days this week brought lunch all 5 days

Continue saving 50/ week for vacation
1/1 50/50
1/7 50/100
1/14 50/150
1/21 50/200
1/28 50/250
2/4 50/300

Cut Discretionary Spending by 20%
Tracked our entire spending for the month of January so now can see where we actually spend money and make some adjustments!!

Eat out of pantry/freezer for January to use up as much as possible
1/1 - 1/7 used up 15 items from pantry and freezer
1/8 - 1/14 used up 9 items from pantry and freezer
1/15 - 1/21 used up 11 items from pantry/freezer
1/22 - 1/28 used up 13 items from pantry/freezer
1/29 - 2/4 used up 7 items from pantry/freezer Now having to start buying some grocery staples again as we have done a great job of using a lot up!

Not buying any office supplies for personal use (have enough to stock a small business!!)
1/10 Used up pack of 5 insertable page tab separators for stock statements
1/14 Used up 1 roll of scotch tape
1/15 1 pkg of loose-leaf paper to school
2/4 1 binder used for some semi important documents


Life Goals
Declutter 2018 items in 2018
1/1-1/7 23 items decluttered (23)
1/8 - 1/14 40 items decluttered (63)
1/15 - 1/21 129 item decluttered (172)
1/22 - 1/28 88 items decluttered (260)
1/29 - 2/4 6 items decluttered (266)

Lose 30 pounds (starting at 300 lbs)


Personal Goals
Read 20 books
1/7 Book 1 completed
1/28 Book 2 completed
2/4 Book 3 completed

Get the upstairs bathroom and spare bedroom fully remodeled (needs to be cleaned/organized, needs estimate, needs contractor start date, needs to be completed)

Start leaving work at work! (cut down conversations about idiot/lazy/incompetent coworkers)
 

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