Stop Dreaming About Student Debt Relief: 6 Ways to Pay It Off Yourself Fast

You graduated. Great. Good job. You ended up with a degree and a pile of ugly student debt. You say it’s not your fault—you need forgiveness. Student debt relief has become your number one Google search. Painful, isn’t it. And now it’s time to get real. Can we talk?

None of those things are going to happen. It’s time to stop whining and feeling sorry for yourself.

Do not luxuriate in the six-month grace period. That is not some kind of gift. Interest is accruing every day (unless you have subsidized loans, which almost no one has these days).

That means every day, your debt is growing because the interest you owe—but are not paying—is being added to your principal balance.

Next month you will pay interest on that interest, too. Ever heard the word “compounding”? Bingo.

1. It’s your attitude

The way you choose to think about your debt will make all the difference in the world. Choose not to freak out but to take on this challenge the way you would train to climb Mt. Everest. Take on a positive mental attitude where failure is not an option.

2. Get a job

Any job. Then get a second job. Work like you’ve never worked before. Life is tough.

3. Create a plan

A plan not written is just a dream. Wake up, my friend. Get your plan down on paper in some manner for format. Excel is a good option. If you missed your federal student loan exit counseling, you can take it right here.

4. Live on a budget

This is simply determining ahead of time how much of your paycheck will be allocated to each of your expenses. Remember the envelope method.* Above all, begin your emergency fund. Money in the bank changes everything. It keeps you from feeling broke all the time. Just don’t spend it, or you will be broke.

5. Go frugal

It’s not a bad word. Frugality is the way to make your income stretch farther. It means getting the most for every dollar.

Ideas:

- Buy groceries instead of fast food.
- Learn to cook at home.
- Pay attention to everything you buy.
- Track your spending.
- Put away the plastic and use only cash for your day-to-day living.
- Do stuff yourself rather than hiring others to work for you like washing your own clothes instead of sending them to the cleaners. Changing your own oil, washing your own car.
- Find a thrift store nearby where you can buy the clothes you need. It’s not what you think.
- Ride your bike instead of driving. It’s so much cheaper.

And on and on it goes. There are thousands of ways not to spend money or to spend a lot less.

Life will not always be this tight. You’re paying now for the stress-free times you had in college, those times you felt carefree and entitled to live it up. The time has come to pay the bill.

6. Increase income

You are more able now than you will ever be again in your life to work multiple jobs. Do it. And as you increase your income, do not upgrade your standard of living. Stay at the level you are now, devoting more and more to your student loans each month.

While it will appear that you are not even making a dent in what you owe, just be patient. Soon you’ll begin to see movement, and then it will increase with the balance going down faster and faster until BAM! you are debt-free.

You will make it if you do not give up. Don’t ever give up.