Around this time last decade, I was pretty much screwed. My debt was more than 100% of my annual income and I was having trouble keeping up with it. It really looked like my whole future was on the line.
Did I cut my spending? Sure. I’m naturally a miser anyway, and under pressure I can easily live like a college student. At a certain point there isn’t much to cut though. What am I gonna do, switch to an all-rice diet to save that last $50 a month? Nah.
What really did it, without going into all the details, was jacking up my income. I have just about tripled my income since those days and have paid off most of the bills. Technically I suppose I am still in debt for carrying a credit card balance, but I’m only doing that because I have been making more on investments than I lose on interest payments. I *could *pay it down to 0, it just hasn’t been the best option.
So today I consider myself out of debt. I did it all on my own- I certainly didn’t get bailed out. So, does that make me some kind of bootstrapping, modern-day Galtian analogue? If so, the wisdom of this Incarnation of Galt is: Increase Revenue to Get Out of Debt.
A few things. For one, it was starting to feel a little ‘do or die’ and I was quite motivated. Another, I greatly increased my athleticism, which made me dramatically more energetic and less in need of sleep, such that I could work two jobs. Eventually two jobs really sucked, so a long term campaign for a better job ultimately set me up for… modest success. I’m not rich, I’m just out of debt.
Yeah, I had that kind of thing in mind when I wrote this. I don’t really expect anyone in government to take me seriously enough to follow my example. I just get annoyed with the scene I hear painted by politicians: “When ordinary folks gather 'round their kitchen tables to figure out how to make ends meet, they talk about what to cut. Government ought to follow the common sense of these ordinary folks.”
Well that isn’t reality. In reality I was planning how to increase my income when at my kitchen table.
Brilliant idea! You should write a self-help book. I bet all those other people in debt didn’t realize all they had to do was triple their income, and all their problems would be solved.
Congrats! Getting out of debt is almost as hard as losing weight.
My wife and I, just this morning, made our final payment on our biggest credit card balance. Nearly $9k paid off in just under a year. It took a lot of sacrifice and will-power but we got it done. Feels pretty damned good too!
We’re not totally out of debt, but this was the biggest and it won’t be hard to clean up the rest of our smaller debts. Also, we’ve both increased our incomes significantly over the last six months so we’re doing better in both directions.
I did it all on my own- I certainly didn’t get bailed out. So, does that make me some kind of bootstrapping, modern-day Galtian analogue? If so, the wisdom of this Incarnation of Galt is: Increase Revenue to Get Out of Debt.
