So how did it happen, your debt that is.

Good morning Dinks. We always read about how people are getting out of debt and how living debt free is the best feeling in the world.  But let’s, just for today, talk about how we got into debt.

Do you talk about your debt, past or present?

Some people don`t like to talk about their debt because they are ashamed of their past behaviour, but the truth is that our debt is a part of us. We should be proud of our accomplishment of becoming debt free and learning from our money mistakes instead of hiding our financial past.

Then there are those people who are the complete opposite.  Some people who have been in debt or who are currently in debt are more than willing to share their debt story because they want to help others avoid making the same money mistakes that they did.

I know how I got into debt and I want to know how it happened to you.  

When I was in debt I never talked about my financial troubles.  Actually my family didn’t even know how serious the problem was until I started writing about it once I became debt free.  I was ashamed of my debt, not while I was accumulating it, but when I realized just how serious it was when I woke up one day with over $50,000 in debt in my 20s.

When I tell my debt story I always say that I let debt happen to me, but that isn’t really true.  If we know that we shouldn’t do something and we do it anyways then yes, we let it happen to us.  But if we just don’t know any better then it’s an honest mistake.  Now I say that I let my debt happen to me because I know better,  but back then I didn’t know what I was getting in to.   I really didn’t know any better.  If I could go back to my early twenties with the knowledge that I have now I would definitely know how to not get in debt and why it’s important to stay out of debt.

Being in debt is not just paying off the debt

I am a financial planner and I tell people the textbook ways to pay off debt such as cutting costs and budgeting.  These methods do work and I did use them, but they were not the primary reasons why I was able to pay off my debt.  I chose to be more disciplined in my choices and earning more income was my choice as opposed to cutting expenses.

Debt is super easy to accumulate, I racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt in a very short period of time; and I did it all with 3 credit cards, a line of credit and a car.  I wish that I never got into debt, but now that it’s paid off I am glad that I lived to tell the story.

So tell us, how did you get into debt?

Photo by Dan4th

Kristina Tahnyak

Tahnya is a Certified Financial Planner and former Investment Advisor turned marketing and communications professional She holds a degree from Concordia University, is debt free and currently works in the field of digital marketing.