Confession: I am dramatic. Sometimes, I have extreme anxiety and due to my personality type, I get overwhelmed pretty easily. I’ve always been tight with money but of course, I could not control the fact that I experienced unemployment for 4 years (working odd jobs here and there).

Guess what?

These circumstances did not prevent me from comparing our journey with others. I felt discouraged during our debt free journey due to things I had no control over. It felt like things would never get better and that we were stuck…

Unemployment and health issues put pressure on our financial situation, but today I’m proud to say that things eventually turned around for the better! Of course, our progress happened slower than I would have liked, but the key is that it happened. I’m writing this simply to let you know that you can turn your finances around regardless of your struggle.

In the graph below, I have shown our progress over the last year or two. I did this to illustrate just how rocky (and slow) the journey to debt freedom can actually be.

But hey, what’s life without a few hills and valleys?

Whether you’ve been on your journey for 5 years, 5 months or 5 seconds, just know that it is not a race or competition. You don’t have to be let down or discouraged. Just remember that everyone’s financial journey is unique. Variances in income, responsibilities, and ambitions lead us down different paths towards the same goal: DEBT FREEDOM!

Good luck and just know that I’m rooting for you!

— Dannie