Dreams And Wishes and Fears.

[Justin24]

I have wished and dreamed lately of my childhoods past dreams of wanting to be a marine biologist. I read up on sharks and knew everything about sharks when I was younger. I sit in my room sometimes listening to music and wishing I could quit my job I am at right now and hop on a boat with scientists and go out onto the ocean and explore. Oh the memories of going to the Aquariam when I was a child (going every week).
Now I sit here M-F on the computer everyday in a sea of debt, cause I have no self control when it comes to money and my dreams are that of the mind only and not reality. I want to get out of debt and complete school. But my biggest fear that is holding me back is Math. I could never understand it. Like the song "Where the Streets Have No Name" I want to Run, I want to Hide I want to tear down these walls that hold me inside.

I want to break free of my fear of math (thanks to my ADD and other learning disabilities and the thoughts of my mean Spec Ed teacher who called me stupid and not amount to anything) I want to break free of debt. I am in debt due to a new car, Credit Cards and a dental bill. I want to run away with my degree and jump on that boat and explore the oceans I dream about nightly now.

God Listen to Me now, your child is crying now.

 

[Bonochick]

I know how hard it can be to get debt down. Being able to control your spending is the first thing to wrangle though. Chipping away at debt will do no good if you keep racking up more.

I can relate...I'm sure many people can. At one point, I had medical bills, dental bills, my student loan, and my credit card to pay off. I also bought my dad's car last year after mine got wrecked, so I started making monthly payments to him.

Little by little, I whittled things down. When I wasn't making much money, that sometimes meant only sending $10 a month to my medical bills...it wasn't much, but it was something! I also have put my entire tax refunds for the past two years towards my debt. As my debt got paid off, it was tempting to think of that as extra cash being freed up every month for whatever...but I put it towards my car instead, to get it paid off ASAP. The car is all I have left that I'm paying on now, and that should be paid off in a month.

I'm not a total penny pincher, mind you. I LOVE buying stuff. I never cut out luxuries completely. But I decided what was important. I love music magazines...so those were my top priority when it came to fun purchases. I get things like a CD or a video game here and there too...but many times I have had to just tell myself no. I know...it sucks saying no to fun stuff...but you'll feel better and be able to say yes more often (and with less guilt) once you get your debt in order.

I've also found that writing your debt down on paper is helpful, especially when you start budgeting how much you can pay every month and begin to calculate how long it will take for the debt to be gone. When you can actually see a way to reach your goal, it can gear you up a bit more.

I had problems with math too. Don't let memories of one nasty teacher get you down, and don't let problems with one subject stop you from pursuing your chosen degree. I was awful at computer programming, but I still got an associate's degree in computer science. I spent a lot of time crying in frustration over my programming homework, but I got through it! Surely the school you'd attend would offer some sort of tutoring service where you could get some help, or perhaps your teacher would be willing to help you out. Schools don't want people to fail, schools want people to succeed.

Decide what is truly important to you and find a way to have your actions reflect that decision.