Welcome to a new week! As you know, I am working on an idea I have regarding a reality series here on Enemy of Debt. I am completely overwhelmed by ALL OF YOU who are seriously interested and I’m super excited about the potential this idea has for a variety of reasons.
Thank you for the enormous response I received from last week’s post!
Here’s why I am so excited!
- Enemy of Debt will get some extra exposure, which will in turn lead to more people getting out of debt! š
- The contestants will be motivated by their very real desire to get out of debt, my over the top enthusiasm and encouragement, and of course, the GRAND PRIZE! (I am currently working this detail out, and hopefully I will know something by early next week!)
- The readers will be motivated by what they see happening throughout the competition and strive to become debt free themselves!!
- MORE PEOPLE in general will become excited about paying off their debt!
I am hoping that this will turn into a regular series every year here on Enemy of Debt, so if you are not selected for this competition, do not worry. You’ll have another chance to participate in the future if you haven’t already paid your debt off by then.
As I said, I am working out many details right now. This part is hard because every part of me wants to just DO IT RIGHT NOW!!! I really want this to be BIG, and in order to make it BIG, I need to prepare and iron out the details. Just like with anything else, including your financial plan, this idea is NOTHING without a well thought out plan in place.
Here’s what I have decided so far:
- The competition will cover six months, instead of the 9-10 I mentioned in my original post.
- There will be 8 contestants selected for the competition.
- The grand prize will be $1,000!
- There will be a prize given to the winner of each financial challenge which will happen monthly.
- I am considering the idea of selecting one member of the “audience” — a reader — each month to win a prize.
- I will be picking four additional people that will act as stand-ins should any of the main eight people selected drop out or something beyond someone’s control happens to force them out.
That’s all the details I can mention at this time, but this is shaping up to be SO VERY AWESOME! I can’t wait for this to get underway!
Now comes the hard part of choosing the FINAL EIGHT! Now I could just go through the list of comments and choose the eight, but I would rather not be put under that kind of pressure. š PLUS, there are some things — stuff that will be relevant to the competition — that I need to know about each of you before I can make my decision.
So I hope if you are seriously dedicated and determined to pay off your debt, taking the time to answer these questions will not deter you from your initial desire to be a contestant. All of you have to know that, just like with reality television, there will have to be a level of transparency.
Your goal: GET OUT OF DEBT!
My goal: TO HOLD YOU ACCOUNTABLE!
The only way to do that is for you to be willing to reveal basic financial information that will possibly be shared with the “audience”. What you need to know is; I am not looking to exploit or sabotage any of you during this process. I will not do anything during this competition that will undermine what you are hoping to accomplish. I only hope to encourage and “lift up” each contestant so that they may reach their debt free goal!
This will be quite different than your typical reality show.
Now let’s get to business! š
The Questionnaire
In order for you to be considered eligible for this competition, you will HAVE TO answer these questions. Consider this your official entry to be selected for this competition. I said in the beginning that I was only looking for serious contestants. If you are not serious about seeing this ALL THE WAY THROUGH, then perhaps you should just watch from the virtual “audience”. Also, keep in mind that, I will be giving away a $1,000 GRAND PRIZE! That’s not small change, so the verification questions below are necessary.
I need a commitment from those selected. This isn’t just a month long project where 3/4th of those who start it, fall off the radar after the first week.
VERY IMPORTANT: These questions will need to be answered by the end of the week — Saturday January 29th by midnight — to qualify! Post answers in the comment section of this post OR send me an email to the address posted at the bottom of this article.
- Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? (six months) Yes or No
- Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? (If you can’t do this, there is no need to continue on. In order for this idea to work there has to be something that I can post weekly to outline your struggles, accomplishments, feelings and so on.) Yes or No
- What is your “best guess” of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house?
- What is your annual household income? (At this point this can be your “best guess”, but will need to be more exact before the competition begins.)
- If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Yes or No
- VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount owed, and a visible date on the document.) Yes or No
- VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount paid, and a visible date on the document.) Yes or No
- Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? (This will be my way of getting to know each of you as friends, help you out where I can, encourage you, and hold you accountable so that your efforts are successful. These conversations will be confidential, unless of course I ask your permission to share something we talked about.) Yes or No
- Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes or No
- How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt?
Now for the BIG QUESTION!
I want you to tell me why I should choose you for this SUPER AWESOME DEBT ELIMINATION REALITY CHALLENGE! Your answer must be no more than 200 words. REMEMBER I have to read all of the entries myself. šĀ (You could write in word and copy to the comments section to keep track of the word count.)
You might want to include things like: (just examples)
- What’s your story?
- Why you want to get out of debt so bad?
- How long you have been in debt?
- Are you a single parent?
- What you like about the prospect of becoming debt free?
Those are just examples of what you could include but don’t let that keep you from being creative with your responses. The more creative you are or the more I think you want to seriously do this, the more likely I am to select you as a contestant.
I am sure I will have some people complain about the requirements, especially the verification questions. Did you really think I was going to just blindly give up $1,000+ in prizes to just anyone? This is a blog. For that reason, anyone could pretend to participate and even pay off debt just to win the BIG prize.
I want this to be a REAL reality series, with REAL effort, and REAL debt paid off!
I can’t wait to get this show underway! If any of you have any questions about this post that you would rather ask me in private, please email me at FREEDOM@ENEMY OF DEBT.COM. I will respond to any and all questions in a timely fashion and good luck to you all!
1. Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? YES
2.Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? – YES
3.What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house? $11,177 EXACTLY!
4.What is your annual household income? $42,300 before taxes
5.If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Yes
6.VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe?YES 7.VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month? YES
8.Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? YES
9.Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes
10. How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? about 6 months
I think you should pick me because I want show everyone that if I can pull through ANYONE can pull through and I want to provide hope for people who think it can’t be done or struggle with the idea of winning!
Alrighty! Decided to post the answers here to show you I’m ready to be “balls out” about this competition. So let’s get to the answers.
1. I’m committed to participate the entire time, no matter how long it takes.
2. I’m willing to get on camera and make it official. YouTube, here I come!
3. I owe about $12,000 in debt. $4500 in credit cards and the rest is a personal loan that was supposed to be debt consolidation, but silly me, ran my credit cards back up and got another one to finance car repairs.
4. My household income went from $78,000 to $40,000 since I was recently laid off and my fiance is now the one bringing in the income.
5. I’m more than willing to give you the details. Just let me know what you need. Heck, I’ll give you my creditors’ numbers! lol
6. I’ll send you any scanned proof you need.
7. I’ll definitely provide proof of how much has been paid off. It’ll feel like an accomplishment.
8. Of course I’ll talk to you! Friends are great to have. It’s better to have a friend help you through than a complete stranger.
9. If you additionally hold me accountable for my weight loss goals (I have less than 7 months to lose 25 pounds by my wedding!) I’ll hold you accountable too.
10. It may take me at least a year to take care of my entire debt, but I’m hoping to eliminate my credit card debt by the end of the contest.
I’m a 20 year old fiance who wants to start my marriage (in August) relatively (if not completely) debt free. I want me and my future husband to not have the burden of debt hanging on us. It’s already going to be hard enough to keep a marriage together this young. Most marital issues revolve around money. I want to eliminate that aspect altogether. I’ve been in debt since I was 18, starting off with paying for my college books via credit cards. When my mom got sick, I quit my part time job to take care of her, and lived off my cards. Now that she’s healthy again, it’s time to take matters into my own hands. Most people are trying to get out of debt to improve their life. I’m trying to get out of debt to avoid the problems I know it will cause if it continues.
Choose me! š
hey 20 and engaged, congrats to you getting married soon!! what a great way to start out a marriage š I am cheering for you! glad another brave soul showed up, I was getting worried lol.
So far there are three super serious individuals officially entered. I got an email from one of the others and there should be some more entering today! š
Not as many will sign up that commented on the very first post but we should still have eight people! EIGHT PEOPLE that want to get rid of their debt once and for all…and win $1,000! š
Let’s do this!!
here goes nothing!
1. I am committed-hey it took me 7 years to graduate from college so i don’t give up on anything-ever!
2. I’m super creative and I like to see my name and myself in lights (just check out my silly videos on my facebook page)!
3. I owe around $14,000 on my car and around $20,000 in student loans.
4. currently $85,000 with a promotion coming up the first week of March.
5. I will provide any details that are needed.
6. I can actually have them send any and all future statements to you =)
7. I keep track already so sending this wouldn’t be a problem.
8. hello facetime! (warning! my iPhone drops 80% of my phonecalls) I’m single with no kids or pets so I have plenty time for chatting.
9. I lost 30 pounds so I feel I can offer lots of help and support!
10. I hope to pay my car off by the end of 2011. I’ll be honest and say that i’m not as gung-ho about paying off my student loans because my interest rate is 1.85% and as a former day trader, I can make better use of that money while earning a much higher interest rate.
I am a naturally competitve person but this is a great competition because everyone wins in the end by paying off some debt (and having fun while doing it). I am normally disciplined when it comes to money but every day is a challenge and I know I would do better if I had an audience-we all do better when we know someone else is watching. Especially since the audience is full of like-minded individuals. I think I have lots of good ideas and information on how we can all succeed and do better-one day at a time!
Wooohooo! Welcome Crystal! I can’t wait to go through all the entries this weekend!
I forgot to add that my main reason for becoming debt free would be to be able to totally pay for my moms living expenses. I currently pay a big portion but without a car payment i’d be able to pay them all!
1.Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? (six months)
Yes
2.Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? (If you canāt do this, there is no need to continue on. In order for this idea to work there has to be something that I can post weekly to outline your struggles, accomplishments, feelings and so on.)
Yes
3.What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house?
As of today I have debt of $24,795. That includes one credit card, a car loan, a student loan, and a personal loan to my parents.
4.What is your annual household income? (At this point this can be your ābest guessā, but will need to be more exact before the competition begins.)
~$66,000
5.If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt?
Yes
6.VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount owed, and a visible date on the document.)
Yes
7.VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount paid, and a visible date on the document.)
Yes
8.Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? (This will be my way of getting to know each of you as friends, help you out where I can, encourage you, and hold you accountable so that your efforts are successful. These conversations will be confidential, unless of course I ask your permission to share something we talked about.)
Yes
9.Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes or No
Yes! Iāve already lost 21 lbs and Iād be happy to hold you to your goals. Itās a great feeling!
10.How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt?
The credit card and car I think I can pay off by August or September 2011. The student loans may take another year or so after that. The personal loan I hope to pay off by the end of 2012 but since the interest rate is 0% and I currently make a monthly payment, that may be less of a priority than things like a bigger emergency fund.
I am a goal-oriented person who loves budgets and finance and I am ready to tackle the challenge of getting rid of debt. I want to free up all that money I spend on debt each month so I can start giving back to my community and church, afford my first house, and visit my family, who all live several states away, more often. Iām in my 20s and single so social activities like dining out and entertainment make it harder to keep my expenses in line. I know I would do better with the extra support and I tend to do best when I have a little healthy competition. When I set out to do something, Iām committed. Iāll be committed to making your first reality show a great one!
Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? Yes
Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? Yes
What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house? 14,000
What is your annual household income? 50,000
If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Yes
VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins?. Yes
VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? Yes
Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? Yes
Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes
How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? Iām hoping to start 2012 debt free!
My name is Alicia and Iām a single mom to two children, having my first when I was only 16. Obviously, I had to grow up fast, and my parents never taught me about handling finances. Looking back, they didnāt have it together themselves. Iāve been in debt for at least the last 9 years, and Iām tired. I should have an emergency fund, and extra money at the end of the month, but I donāt. I know that once my debt is paid, Iāll be free – to go back to school, to find a job that I actually enjoy doing, instead of feeling āstuckā because the pay is decent. I hope to actually save not only an emergency fund, but for a down payment on a home. Itās sad that every dollar I make, besides basic living expenses is going to pay unnecessary debt.
1. Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? (six months) Yes Iām very committed.
2. Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? (If you canāt do this, there is no need to continue on. In order for this idea to work there has to be something that I can post weekly to outline your struggles, accomplishments, feelings and so on.) Yes
3. What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house? $35, 000 (24k student loan and 11k car loan)
4. What is your annual household income? (At this point this can be your ābest guessā, but will need to be more exact before the competition begins.) $32,000
5. If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Yes
6. VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount owed, and a visible date on the document.) Yes
7. VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount paid, and a visible date on the document.) Yes
8. Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? (This will be my way of getting to know each of you as friends, help you out where I can, encourage you, and hold you accountable so that your efforts are successful. These conversations will be confidential, unless of course I ask your permission to share something we talked about.) Yes
9. Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes
10. How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? It will take me 12 months to pay off my debt
The big question and the reason you should choose me.
Iām 26 years old, married and I have a 3 yr old daughter. Student loan I couldnāt avoid but I got a car loan because I was naĆÆve, maybe. I got a car when my daughter was a couple months old. Hereās my reasoning. I already had a car āHonda accord. I was having difficulty getting her stroller in and out of the car and thought hey I need a bigger car. Not a good reason but thatās the truth. Went into the car dealership with no intent on buying a car and drove home in a new (used) car. This haunts me every month I write a check for payment so I got fed up and decided to pay it off a year ahead of time. This is my car, my loan, MY RESPONSIBILITY. No help from hubby. I took a second job so I could send in an extra payment every month; Iāve been doing this since December 2010 and I just sent Januaryās extra payment a couple days ago. I want this loan to be ZERO soooooooo bad. I started my journey before your competition so I KNOW I CAN DO IT and I WILL ACCOMPLISH MY GOAL!
1.Yes, I am committed the entire length of the competition. I am willing to stay at it until all of the debt is paid off.
2.Eeekk, Yes I will come out of my comfort zone to post videos on youtube.
3.a guess, the horrible number is $ 11,745.63, hopefully by the start of the competition it will be $ 11,109.22. This includes almost every kind of debt ā furniture, car, store credit, hospital, credit card, loan from parents and a loan for the wedding.
4.Best Guess for annual income is $ 81,000
5.Yes, Iāll provide more details information about the debt.
6.Yes, I can send you verification for all but the loan to my parents.
7.Yes, I can send you verification at the end of the month of what I have paid.
8.Yes, I am not much of a phone person but I will do what needs to be done to get the help I need to pay off the debt.
9.Yes, I will be with you along for the ride. I am in the process of losing the weight I wanted to lose before I had my baby 3 months ago.
10.Hopefully the furniture debt will be paid before we start the competition, the rest should be should be paid by the end of the year except for the hospital and loan to my parents.
BIG QUESTION:
A little background on me, I used to be a single mother but 3 years ago married a wonderful man and 3 months ago I gave birth to our sweet baby boy. Before having my baby I wanted to stay at home or work part time. Now that I had my baby I really would like to be home or work part time. The way to accomplish that goal is to pay off the debt. Iām tired of having this weight hanging over our heads. I canāt wait to have our extra money go to our savings or our family time instead of going towards debt. For a couple years I have said that I wanted to be debt-free but I have done a half a$$ed job at getting it done. I have budgeted and had my spreadsheets but when it came to having extra money I spent it on things I wanted. Now is my time to quit messing around and to get down to business.
I love it Money Momma! Until last year at this time, my wife and I both worked. We became debt free the previous year and because of it, we were able to make some big changes!! We didn’t really like the idea (or the cost) of putting both our children in day care, so we didn’t! My wife has an awesome job as a critical care nurse making really good money and the benefits are super, so after a little consideration, we decided I would stay home with the kids. We gave up $30-35K a year, but because we were debt free it was more than doable!
You can do it too! š Debt freedom makes so many things possible!
I would love to participate, but I need to find a job first. Was recently laid off and all I want to do is throw all my money at my debt. Probably not good for a contest, because I don’t have extra income to throw at my debt.
No problem LB, although I wish you the best in finding employment. It’s got to be tough out there right now. All I can say is keep looking and do extra and you’re going to get through it. š
Wow Brad, looks like you have your work cut out for you picking the final 8! Wish everybody the best.
I wanted to comment on all the comments about staying at home. Quiting my job while we were still in debt, preparing to build a house and expecting a 3rd child was a bit of a leap in faith. The amazing thing was our bills actually went down a lot when I wasn’t trying to balance work and home. I was finally able to really take stock of what we were spending and make adjustments. We are eating a lot better since I have time to menu plan and cook. We are able to take advantage of a lot of sales because I have time to research and prepare. Clothing costs have dropped as I don’t need “professional clothes” and again, I have time to watch sales and plan ahead. Finally, we dropped a tax bracket which means we are paying less taxes. It was really hard to pay off my college debt while I was no longer using my college degree, but the best thing we did financially was for me to stop working. I know it won’t work the way it did for us for everybody, but wanted to remind all those who dream of staying at home that there can be financial benefits to staying at home.
It’s that the funny thing, when you make less you find a way to spend less and the bills happen to be less. But when you make more it seems like there are more things to spend the money on. While I was on disability it seemed like our bills went down and we made better use of the little money I was bringing in. Now that I am back to work and bringing in more money it seems as though the price of EVERYTHING has gone up.
1. Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? (six months) Yes
2. Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? Yes
3. What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house? (Deep breath here …) $37,600
4. What is your annual household income? $82,000
5. If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Yes
6. VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? Yes
7. VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? Yes
8. Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? (This will be my way of getting to know each of you as friends, help you out where I can, encourage you, and hold you accountable so that your efforts are successful. These conversations will be confidential, unless of course I ask your permission to share something we talked about.) Yes
9. Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? Yes
10. How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? By my estimate, based on a strict budget, I will be debt free by mid-2013.
I was debt free and newly married, with 2 teenagers and 2 step-teenagers just 3 short years ago. Now I have a husband with a chronic illness, a mountain of debt thanks to medical bills, and 4 ever-growing teenage boys with their associated appetites.
I want to get out of debt for my family, and for myself. I need to be rid of this weight. I need to wake up in the morning with plenty of money in the bank, and not having to worry about what will happen to my family if I get hit by a bus.
But do you know what? As much as I would like to be chosen for this competition for the benefits it will bring me, it will happen with or without you. By July 2013, with or without the help and support of people here, I will have no more credit card debt, no more student debt, and be well on the way to saving a massive downpayment for the gorgeous little house in the mountains I crave.
So pick me, or not. I would love it, but this will happen regardless.
Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? (six months)
Absolutely
Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube?
Yes
What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house?
Beginning of March $14,000
What is your annual household income?
$50,000
If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt?
Yes
VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount owed, and a visible date on the document.)
Yes not a problem at all
VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? (Personal account information will need to be blacked out before copied or scanned. All I need to see is; Company owed, amount paid, and a visible date on the document.)
Yes will do
Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? (This will be my way of getting to know each of you as friends, help you out where I can, encourage you, and hold you accountable so that your efforts are successful. These conversations will be confidential, unless of course I ask your permission to share something we talked about.)
Yep, always great making new friends.
Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals?
Absolutely!
How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt?
Hopefully it will be gone ASAP!!! My goal is to have it all gone except the house payment in Feb 2012
Now for the BIG QUESTION!
I want you to tell me why I should choose you for this SUPER AWESOME DEBT ELIMINATION REALITY CHALLENGE!
To put it simply I’m just sick of being in debt and willing to do what it takes this year to get out of it. I’ve been in debt since I started college (so for a little over 8 years ago). I want this weight lifted off my shoulders once and for all.
I would love to be able to donate more money to causes and organizations that are close to my heart and a few of which I have found online once I started following different blogs.
1.) Are you committed to participating for the entire length of the competition? Absolutely!
2.)Are you willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube? I think I look like a complete doofus on camera, but what the hell, let’s rock this thing.
3.) What is your ābest guessā of how much debt you owe, NOT including your house? $110,000
4.) What is your annual household income? ~$118,000
5.) If selected, are you willing to provide more details about your debt? Sure – I’ll be like an open book.
6.) VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? YES
7.) VERIFICATION: Are you willing to provide proof (via mail or email), at the end of each month, of the amount of debt you paid off? YES
8.) Are you willing to talk with me regularly throughout the competition via phone, webcam, etc.? YES
9.) Are you willing to hold me accountable in my own weight loss goals? YES (I expect the same – looking to lose 35 pounds this year)
10.) How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? 3.5 years
Why should you pick me?
I believe I would bring a unique perspective to your challenge as I have a high household income, but also a very high amount of debt. I would love to share the story that even households with a good income can rack up seemingly insurmountable debt. My situation may also be a bit different from others because I am also currently enrolled in a debt management plan. This is a plan where each of my creditors have agreed to lower my interest rates, in return I agree to a.) close my account and b.) pay them a negotiated monthly payment until my account is paid in full. If I don’t make my monthly payment, my creditors would kick me out of the program, my interest rates and monthly minimum payments would skyrocket, and I’d end up in bankruptcy. My story would be the day to day struggles of a family of four that is ONE missed/late payment from losing absolutely everything.
1. Yes Iām committed to participating for the entire 6 months
2. Iām willing to record and post short videos, related to the competition, on youtube. I added my very meager blog site to show Iām willing to put myself out in the world. Youāre on my blogs I followā¦
3. My best guess of how much I owe is $32, 000. This includes CC debt, student loans and misc. unpaid bills.
4. My annual household income is $60,000 until the end of June when my contract ends. This is what makes my life interesting is not knowing what shall followā¦hopefully another contract. Iāll probably work the same summer job I did last year for at a considerable pay cut.
5. If selected, yes Iām willing to provide more details about my debt. Itās terribly embarrassing but maybe someone can relate. Iāve read quite a few Debt Free Fridays looking for someone like me for some inspiration.
6. VERIFICATION: Are you willing to send (via mail or email) scanned proof of the debt you owe before the contest begins? You mean you want me to open my mail! I guess this is part of the accountability Iām in need of!
7. VERIFICATION: Yes, Iām willing to send proof at the end of each month, of the amount of debt I paid off.
8. I would look forward to regular contact, encouragement and scoldings if need be!
9. Iām willing to hold you accountable for your weight loss goals.
10. How long do you think it will take you to pay off your debt? Wow, I havenāt even allowed myself to dream of this possibility. 2 years may be possible with disciplineā¦if I got a permanent job hopefully faster.
Iām 32, a newly single parent and a teacher. Iāve been in debt since graduating from university! I had a great paying job with subsidized housing farther north where I was paying just above minimum and accruing some new debt. Between maternity leave and an ailing relationship things got worse financially. We made the move south 2 years ago. Itās been difficult finding work and Iāve taken significant pay cuts at times. When times were tough I was using my credit cards to get by and other debts built up! My ostrich method (basically ignoring it) of dealing with things isnāt working! I tried living on cash for a while but I live in one of the least safe areas of the city and felt anxious about losing it all. While I have been doing a lot of reading about personal finances, I havenāt tried being accountable to someone who has been successful. I want to be a better example for my daughter and be able to teach her how to save. I want to be free to have my money, that I work hard for, work for me!