Embracing Minimalism:
The journey to becoming debt-free
One thing was for sure, something had to change. The only way to pay off $70,000 in 13 months is to either earn more or spend less. I decided to start with the easier of the two considering I’m in the military.
I will spend less.
As soon as made this commitment I began noticing other people trying to achieve similar goals. Then one day while listening to Biggerpockets podcast someone said, “I gave up everything all at once” and at that moment the idea to become a minimalist for a year was born!
To make this simple I started with the question, “what do I need to live?” Like the question, the answer was also simple and probably similar to yours. A roof over my head, transportation, food, and maybe some toiletries and cleaning supplies.
Everything else has to go.
First, I started by canceling my gym memberships. Yes, that would be plural. Somehow, I had convinced myself that I needed three. These memberships included spin, yoga and Classpass just in case I wanted more variety (cue eye roll).
After canceling my gym memberships, I picked up running instead which is, you guessed it, FREE. The surprising result has been I have exercised every day for the past three weeks, instead of only the 15 days a month I was exercising with three gym memberships. You would think the more memberships you have, the more you would exercise but, in fact, the opposite was true for me.
The biggest reason I found this to be true was that there was less of a barrier for me to go running. All I had to do was throw on clothes, a hat, running shoes and sunblock. Boom, done!
I didn’t even have to drive anywhere! I simply walked out the front door and I was running. I even managed to get up an hour before work to exercise and before I knew it, it had become a habit. I accomplished all of this as someone who used to say,
"I hate running."
Savings: $350/month or $4,200 annually.
What has been the impact?
Before this challenge, I thought I couldn’t live without my yoga, spin classes, and occasionally barre. Without them, I have discovered I am in less of a rush to get to places, and as a result less stressed and anxious. Now, I'm able to slow down and enjoy my days off.
I have also become more active. In fact, now I'm exercising every day. That’s more than a 50% increase in the number of days I exercise per month with a savings of $4,200 annually. Not a bad deal.
On a more personal note, I have a skin disorder known as keratosis pilaris and one of the things that makes it better is sunlight. Not only did I save money and exercise twice as much but I also improved a chronic skin disorder.
Let's just say something I thought I couldn't live without has actually turned out to be a really good change in my life.
Other Memberships
Next, I made a list of all my memberships and one by one canceled them. This included Spotify, Hulu, Audible, and Ancestry. For now, I have decided to keep Amazon Prime and Netflix but my husband has agreed to split the price with me. Savings: $66/month or $792 annually.
Total Savings in Membership Cancellations:
$4,992 annually
That's $49,992 in 10 years!
Now imagine if you were investing that money instead in a low-cost index fund with Vanguard. You would have just spent the last 10 years having your money work for you. Assuming the average annual rate of return is 7%, at the end of the 10 years you would have $83,590.
The Shopping Ban
After canceling memberships, I started looking for other ways to save more and spend less. I shared my ideas with a friend and she recommended a book called, A Year of Less by Cait Flanders. I listened to it in about a week and was completely on board with her shopping ban idea and decided to focus on living a minimalist lifestyle. So, here are my rules for the shopping ban: (Note: keep in mind that this list is personal and will be different for everyone).
Yes:
- Toiletries, only when I run out (consider finding cheaper brands, buying in bulk if the price is better, and shop around).
- Groceries
- Gas
- Makeup if I run out and, on a budget
- Things that break and absolutely have to be replaced
- Travel on a budget (ex. Camping)
- Books, exchange on audible
- Haircuts (2-3 times a year)
- Pet supplies, buy in bulk on chewy
No:
- Clothes, shoes, and accessories
- Furniture (we have too much anyway)
- Coffee to go (make it at home instead)
- Fresh cut flowers or plants (who am I kidding, I don’t have a green thumb)
- Ulta visits (staying the F*ck out of ulta)
- Impulse buying on Amazon
- Getting nails done
- Sparkling water
- Whole Foods and Trader Joes
- Organic Produce
- Vacations, exceptions include going home for Thanksgiving and camping
There you have it! Those are the rules for the next year. I'm challenging myself to live life as a minimalist for a year in order to pay off all my student loans and become debt free. For me, this means leaving the military debt-free and with a positive net worth.
I will continue to share my journey and progress on my student loan early repayment. My goal is to keep myself accountable by sharing my story and inspire others to free themselves from debt too. The next update will be on August 14, 2018, when I make another large payment on my student loan.
I will continue to share my journey and progress on my student loan early repayment. My goal is to keep myself accountable by sharing my story and inspire others to free themselves from debt too. The next update will be on August 14, 2018, when I make another large payment on my student loan.
See you soon,
Kristine
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