Friday, July 03, 2015

What we do with our extra money... disclaimer: it's pretty exciting!

Rob and I are living on a budget. Basically, we look at our income every month (which varies slightly depending on how many hours I am working at my part-time jobs), and we designate a place for each dollar. Then, we take the left-over money and . . .  TRAVEL THE WORLD!  Ha, I wish. Wouldn't that be the life?

No, we take the extra money (which ends up being about a half of our monthly salary) and we put it directly into paying off student loans. Pretty exciting, huh? It seems very adult-like and boring. But you know what? I don't find it boring at all. I find it liberating.  Each month that we sacrifice some luxuries  to pay off more student debt, we are getting that much closer to financial freedom in the future.

What does financial freedom look like to us?
It looks like saving up to 15% of our income for retirement.
It looks like me working one full-time job and loving it!
It looks like us not having to limit our grocery spending to $50 a week.
It looks like us not sweating bullets every time an unexpected bill pops up.
It looks like us living in a 2 bedroom apartment or even (gasp) a house.
It looks like us opening our home and cooking for people more regularly.
It looks like us not thinking twice about going on that week-end get-away.
It looks likes us being able to give above and beyond our tithe to causes that we feel passionate about.
It looks. . . pretty amazing! And it's within our reach.

How are you working toward financial freedom? Or, if you're on the other side of freedom, what was your experience?


1 comment:

Frugal Student said...

Financial freedom to me, is not relying on your job to pay minimum bills. I try to side hustle to get enough to save a large enough so that we happen before I am old but who knows. So for now, both my husband and I side hustle, keep spending down to just his income and keep looking for deals. Even if I was financial independent, I would not go hog wild because I want safety not wealth.