One of my goals this year was to try and make more money so that I can accelerate my debt repayment. I’ve been chugging along rather nicely so far, however I’m just getting impatient with the whole process, so I’ve been doing a bit of planning over the holiday season on how to achieve this. In her show Till Debt Do Us Part, Gail Vaz-Oxlade always gives her debtors tasks to complete. One of them is invariably “earn more money”, so I thought I’d start brainstorming on how I can do that, as it’s a reasonable request.

Idea 1: Start Freelance Writing

This one’s an idea I’ve been trying to get kick-started over the last 6 months, so it’s not a strange idea. And by “freelance writing”, I mean everything from guest blogging to actual technical writing for companies on contract from home. So I’m still exploring some ideas, and have a few options.

Idea 2: Win the Lottery

Okay, so this one’s not a really feasible idea, however I figure I can never win if I never buy a ticket. So I only buy one if the prize is over $10 million.

Idea 3: Get a Better Paying Job

I batted around this idea for a few days, however I do like my current job, the people I work with, and the things I write about, so it would be pretty difficult to find a better paying job with the same ‘fringe’ benefits. Plus my current employer actually pays me the current “correct” salary for my experience, so I can’t really complain too much.

Idea 4: Move to a Cheaper Apartment

This one was achieved already, but was something I really batted around seriously in the fall. Like “I’m going to move into a bachelor/studio apartment, put all my stuff in storage and do nothing till my debt is paid off.” But then I realized that I was making a dent in my debt living the way I am now, so if I just tighten the belt a bit, then I could pay off more each month. I’m of the mind that life should be lived for the now, not for too much in the future. (And I don’t mean that in the “I’ll spend all my money now because I won’t be alive in 20 years” sense, but rather, in the “I don’t want to have to live like a poor student anymore because I’m not a poor student” sense.)  So I’ll be saving between $70-110 each month in the new place, which will be going directly to my debt.

Results:

I found out last week that Idea 3 was already in the works, because my boss told me that he’s giving me a raise! And more than just the usual cost of living increase that all employers are supposed to give. Very cool. I calculated roughly how much my take-home increase would be, and it’s about an extra $80 or so a month, after taxes, but then again, that’s a rough calculation, so I’m hoping my math is a little incorrect. At any rate, more money is always good, right?

So I’m going to keep researching the freelancing idea, as I’ve always liked that idea, plus I’ve always wanted to branch out my writing styles. At heart I was always a fiction writer, so I’d like to get back into that. I discovered a few really good writing blogs that I’ll be following for tips and tricks, and inspiration, so hopefully I’ll be able to kick-start things.

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