Omg THANK YOU! I have a similar story - not with the garnishments, etc, but with walking away from college mid-semester and being so off the grid where neither my credit cards nor student loan people could find me. That was 1999 (I dropped out school to join an environmental movement). I think Uncle Sam found me in 2004. Anyway…I just discovered your book and am blown TF away!! Thank you. It is exactly what I was looking for, as a GenX anti-capitalist who has struggled to use YNAB effectively for probably 15 years….
You effectively gave me the permission I sought to make an investment that I knew would make my life better but would put me in much deeper debt. And then right after I made that decision, a recruiter started hounding me about a position that would have - net of taxes - offered me a little bit more than what I needed! We'll see where that takes me and whether working for a company that includes nonprofits in its client roster (vs working directly for a nonprofit that compensates me pretty fairly) is a good fit for me. But it's like the Universe listened and offered me an option that I hadn't been able to predict.
Thank you so much for sharing your debt stories so openly, Dana. It feels like a permission slip to accept our humanity and to make decisions that work *for us*, questioning all the proverbial *right choices*. I find it extremely helpful and wish there were more honest conversations about money like this (and safe, supportive spaces to hold them.)
There is so much SHAME in our culture around debt. Thank you for sharing your story. It resonates with my soul.
💖💖💖
Omg THANK YOU! I have a similar story - not with the garnishments, etc, but with walking away from college mid-semester and being so off the grid where neither my credit cards nor student loan people could find me. That was 1999 (I dropped out school to join an environmental movement). I think Uncle Sam found me in 2004. Anyway…I just discovered your book and am blown TF away!! Thank you. It is exactly what I was looking for, as a GenX anti-capitalist who has struggled to use YNAB effectively for probably 15 years….
Thank you! I appreciate you sharing your experience, too — it can feel like I’m the only one out here not doing debt perfectly :)
You effectively gave me the permission I sought to make an investment that I knew would make my life better but would put me in much deeper debt. And then right after I made that decision, a recruiter started hounding me about a position that would have - net of taxes - offered me a little bit more than what I needed! We'll see where that takes me and whether working for a company that includes nonprofits in its client roster (vs working directly for a nonprofit that compensates me pretty fairly) is a good fit for me. But it's like the Universe listened and offered me an option that I hadn't been able to predict.
Thank you so much for sharing your debt stories so openly, Dana. It feels like a permission slip to accept our humanity and to make decisions that work *for us*, questioning all the proverbial *right choices*. I find it extremely helpful and wish there were more honest conversations about money like this (and safe, supportive spaces to hold them.)
Thank you so much for this, Claudia! This is exactly why I think it's important to share these stories.