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Debt Free Climb

One Millennials journey from debt to debt free

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Recommendations

This page is where you can find all of the resources that I have used personally and recommend as they provided me value.

Financial Tools

 

  • Mint.com mint

All my financial accounts in one place. Can easily tag purchases, create budgets, see net worth, set up text/email alerts, and all sorts of trending analysis. I check my Mint account religiously and best of all its free and secure!


  • PersonalCapital.com*

personal capital debt free climb

PersonalCapital complements Mint well but I mainly use it for tracking my net worth and investments. Personal Capital aggregates all my accounts and has awesome features like “Retirement Fee Analyzer”, “Retirement Planner”, and my personal rate of return across all my investments. I don’t know any other free tool that does that!

 


  • Capital One 360 Savings Account *360-savings

Capital One 360 Savings was something I picked up reading “I Will Teach You To Be Rich” by Ramit Sethi. No Fees or Minimum balance required, .75% interest rate, Setup multiple Saving Accounts, Savings goals, set up automatic deposits, and spend less time on your finances.

I started my savings accounts in June and automatically make two electronic deposits a month. I have four different savings accounts (Emergency, Travel, etc.4) and four savings goals. They say when you create separate savings categories you are less likely to touch the money as you invest in the specific savings goal. I found that to be true for myself.

Capital One 360 also has excellent customer support that has helped me with questions along the way. (Also connects great with Mint!). Sign up through my link and get $25 free!


  • Root Car Insurance*

debt free climb root car insuranceRoot is app-based, and it tracks your driving through the app for two weeks before giving you a quote. I saved over $240 by switching my car insurance to Root from Geico in 2019 and actually gained more protections in the process. Check it out and see if its right for you!

 


 

  • Debt Reduction Calculator – Vertex42.com

There are two common ways to pay off debt:

Debt Snowball – Pay off the lowest balance first. Advantage – Quick Wins and fewer creditors owed.

Debt Avalanche – Pay off the lowest Interest Rate first. Advantage – Pay less interest

This calculator was a key motivator for me as I knew how much I needed to pay and exactly when I would pay everything off (as mentioned in About Me). In the calculator, there is a custom view where you can compare and contrast different options. Check out the demo video in the link for a detailed overview of how to use the spreadsheet. Feel free to contact me with any questions.


  •  Vanguard

     

My favorite place to invest my money. I have an IRA, Roth IRA, and taxable investment account at Vanguard and invest in low-cost index funds. Vanguard investments debtfreeclimb

 

 

 

 


Productivity

 

 

  • Meditate with Muse  muse

I found out about this product while watching a Youtube video of Pat Flynn showing his office. I’ve been reading about how so many successful people meditate, and I’ve never been able to do it until now consistently. I enjoy my Muse headband because it gives me feedback when my mind is drifting. I am pretty competitive and like to keep track of my results and try to beat my best scores. I’ve been building up from 3 minutes to 7-minute sessions

The headband connects to the Muse App via Bluetooth. The app has themes (Beach, desert, rain forest, etc.) that go louder if your Brain is active or quieter (birds chirping) when to a calmer state. I enjoy seeing my session ratings and identifying when my brain is more active. This information and analysis help me improve each session.


  • Goal setting using White Board

No link for this one. I bought a whiteboard at Walmart a year ago. It provides me great value as I use it for my Monthly and Yearly goals. It is located right next to my desk at home. Having the Whiteboard right next to me keeps me on track to meet my goals.

I have a section with my student loan balance information, A section for monthly goals (including the “One Most Important thing” to accomplish for the month) and a section for my yearly goals.

Goal setting is important to prevent drifting and wasting time on insignificant things. Get a Whiteboard and start setting Goals!


Earn Extra Money


  • Grindabuck * grindabuck

Earn money completing surveys and other activities. Similar to Swagbucks but I have found it pays out better. Payments in Bitcoins, Paypal, Giftcards, and more! I enjoy the website as it is interactive with chat, leaderboards, personal stats, and promos.


  • Sell your Stuff

Facebook Marketplace /Craigslist/OfferUp are great ways sell your stuff locally. Smaller items I can ship cheaply, I will list on Ebay.


My Favorite Books

  • “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” By Ramit Sethi
  • “The Wealthy Barber” By David Chilton
  • “The Millionaire Next Door” Thomas J Stanley
  • “Cant Hurt Me” David Goggins
  • “Set for Life” Scott Trench
  • “The Simple Path to Wealth” JL Collins
  • “Financial Freedom” Grant Sabatier
  • “Your Money or Your Life” Vicki Robin
  • “The Latte Factor” David Bach

My Favorite Podcasts

  • Afford Anything Podcast – Paula Pant
  • Choose FI – Jonathan Mendonza and Brad Barett
  • FIRE Drill Podcast – Millennial Boss
  • The FI Show – Cody & Justin
  • Bigger Pockets Money – Scott Trench & Mindy Jenson
  • The Tim Ferriss Show – Tim Ferriss
  • Financial Independence Podcast – MadFinestist
  • The Side Hustle Show – Nick Loper
  • Radical Personal Finance – Joshua Sheets
  • His and Her Money Show
  • Miles to Go
  • What’s Up Next – Paul Thompson & Doc G

Please note: * indicates affiliate links. I appreciate your support! Please see the disclaimer page for more information.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ms. Montana says

    February 1, 2017 at 4:32 pm

    Love the whiteboard! I used on for years, but now have switched to a planner for goals. I still keep a ton of lists on purpose whiteboard: shopping, areas to purge/organize, things to sell, ect. Best $10 spent. 🙂

    Reply
    • Gary says

      February 1, 2017 at 8:55 pm

      For sure! I currently keep track of my debt, goals, and website related spending on my whiteboard. Funny you mentioned the planner because I just got one today! Lol 🙂

      I like the idea of adding area’s to purge/organize and things to sell to my whiteboard. Thanks for the tips!

      Reply

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Zion National Park DebtFreeClimb My name is Gary, I graduated college overwhelmed by my $55k in student loan debt. It took 3.5 years to climb out of debt and officially debt free in April 2017. I created DebtFreeClimb to share my story and help others in the process. I'm passionate about helping people live intentionally, pay off their debt, build a side income, and travel the world. Check out my full story Here

Student Loan Payoff Progress

My Wife’s Student Loan


Student Loan Paid: $32,500
Student Loan Total: $62,000
Remaining Balance: $29,500
Projected Payoff March 2021

Gary Student Loan


Student Loan Paid: $55,267
Student Loan Total: $55,267
Remaining Balance: $0
Paid off April 2017!

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