How We Stay Motivated While Paying Off Debt

The hardest part of paying off debt is staying motivated while doing it. All of us debt-free wannabes start off with our heads full of dreams of being debt-free, the amount of money we will be saving, and how awesome our future is going to be. These thoughts alone keep us going for a while but eventually, the steam is gone. That moment when you start to lose momentum and feel like you will never get out of debt is the exact moment that you must dig deeper and find a reason to stay the course. Paying off debt is not easy but it is doable with a little grit and determination. We have struggled many times over the course of this year to continue but we have found that these things kept us going.

1.) Debt Binder: You can find all the details here.

2.) List of reasons why we want out of debt: When we first began this journey, we discussed our dream life and wrote out a list of why we wanted to get out of debt. We included everything, even the stuff that may seem mundane and silly to others. This list was not for anybody but us. We had the big stuff like having more choices, not struggling to pay our bills each month, being able to travel more, and being able to be charitable. We had the little stuff like not having to remember to pay so many people each month. The biggest thing at the top of this list was a feeling. We wanted to feel less stressed out all the time and more content in our daily life. It is hard to feel like that when you are being crushed by so much debt.

3.) Planning for our future: It is so much easier to save money and work hard when you are looking forward to something. We are leaving to travel long-term in 2020. We have been discussing where we want to go and what type of things we want to do when we get there. Cooking rice and stir-fried vegetables for dinner when you really want to go out for sushi is easier when daydreaming about visiting Japan.

4.) Reading Blogs and Watching Vlogs: I have read so many blogs and watched so many vlogs about saving money, paying off debt, and being debt-free during this year. I have also read/watched a lot of things about minimalism and mindful living. It all goes hand in hand.

5.) Talking/Blogging about it: Talking about it helps keep us going. We talk to each other about it. We talk to friends and family about it. It makes a difference to celebrate with the people we care about. A high five goes a long way. Blogging has helped me immensely with staying motivated while on this journey. If I’m tempted to mess up, I remember that I will have to confess that to all of you. I love hearing from readers that we have inspired them in some way. That was the entire reason that I chose to blog about this portion of our journey.

How do you keep motivated while working on big goals?