Total student loan debt in the U.S. comes in at about $1.56 trillion for 44.7 million borrowers. According to the U.S. Department of Education, women make up 56 percent of the college students in the U.S.. Fifty years ago, 58 percent of U.S. college students were men. 

Why am I sharing these statistics here? Because those statistics likely mirror the statistics among our Tirzah community as well, which means there’s a lot of us here that are either working on paying off debt, or will start paying off those loans upon graduation. 

I was incredibly blessed to receive enough scholarships and financial aid to pay for all of my undergraduate studies (I actually wrote about this for Forbes a few years ago!), but unfortunately, graduate programs - especially law school - are not only expensive but there are also not as many scholarship opportunities, so I graduated from law school with quite a bit of student loan and credit card debt. Contrary to what people think, most lawyers don’t immediately start making a ton of money straight out of law school. Like any career, you work your way up. So, when I first saw my starting salary and then added up the amount of debt I had and how much my living expenses in a big city would be, my life got really stressful. 

Now, four years out from graduation, I’ve made pretty good progress on paying down my debt, so I wanted to encourage those of you who are also on this journey.

Reframe how you think about debt

This podcast changed how I viewed my debt. The podcastor emphasized that you need to look at student loan debt as an investment, and that your debt doesn’t define you. Although I've always talked about my education as an investment, I also saw the accompanying student loans as a great burden. So, in reminding myself of at all the opportunities - financial and work wise - that my education has given me, I realize every penny of it was worth it. I am where I am in my career today thanks to the amazing educational opportunities I’ve gotten, and although I wish higher education wasn’t so expensive, I do think it was a worthwhile investment for me. 

Above all though, I’ve personally made every major life decision with God, including whether I should go to college and law school. I’ve turned down jobs and educational opportunities because I felt the Holy Spirit was leading me to say no (even if the opportunity was really tempting), and as a result, God always ended up providing something better later on for me. I know God has been with me on this journey and He is still with me, giving me wisdom and endurance to pay off this debt. Because I couldn’t have done any of that without Him.

Know your numbers

If you haven’t already, sit down and add up all of your debt in one place. List out the loans, the amount you owe, your interest rate, and your minimum payment. Then add it all up. I know seeing that number can be scary. For at least a year after graduation, I buried my head in the sand, ignoring totaling my debt and only making minimum payments, because seeing those amounts gave me anxiety. But living in denial doesn’t solve the problem or make it go away. Eventually, you’ll have to face the music, and as someone who has been there, the sooner you do this, the better. 

Make a budget and stick to it

Once I made a debt payoff plan based on my budget, it actually motivated me more than ever before to track my progress. I took an Excel spreadsheet, created a budget, and then after living expenses, I tried to allot my leftover income towards my debt payments. My goal is to pay off my student loans by the time I turn 30, God willing, so I mocked up a plan for what my monthly payments would have to be to get to that point. Just seeing that it was possible - even if it would be challenging - is already motivating! 

Then, I started tracking how much I paid each month, including putting every bonus and tax refund towards my debt. I’ll be honest - sometimes, it gets frustrating at how slowly that total number goes down, especially if you’re still paying off accrued interest or have high interest rates, but then I remind myself that little by little does add up. Each month, I get a little closer to my goal and every dollar I put towards that makes a difference. One day, I won’t have these debt payments anymore, which means I will have a huge portion of my income to hopefully give away and invest in others, and that is incredibly exciting for me to look forward to!

If you’re not an Excel person, there are a lot of apps and free Excel templates online that can help you plan and track your debt payoff journey. For visual people, there are printables where you can color in your progress (example here). Find the best method that works for you to track your progress and then try to stick to it as much as possible. 

Life will happen and there will be times when you won’t meet your targets or your payoff date may be delayed, but don’t let that stop you. Give yourself grace in those seasons and then get back on track as you’re able. Keep your eye on the end goal and remember, even slow progress is still progress.

Find inspiration and incentives

I got really serious about paying off my debt when I discovered Dave Ramsey’s seven baby steps. Since then, I’ve been following some of the #debtfree community posts and influencers, which has been motivational for me. Note, however, that there have been times when I had to unfollow some of those accounts because they were doing more harm than good for my mental health, but overall, this community has been helpful.

I’ve also tried to incentivize myself by treating myself (within reason) once I pay off a loan or reach a certain milestone. For example, the last student loan I paid off, I bought myself a pair of Birdies slippers which I’d been eyeing for a long time! Celebrating those small victories is truly so important because it helps keep your outlook positive, even if you still have a long way to go towards your ultimate goal. 

I hope this encourages you! Please reach out to me if you have questions or want more advice on paying down debt - I can talk about this for hours and these are just a few high-level thoughts.

If you’re paying off student loan debt (or other debt!) or have already paid off your debt, what advice do you have? 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Yelena is the founder and editor in chief Tirzah Magazine. Yelena works as an attorney in tax and in her spare time, she is working on her first book for unmarried twenty-something women in extended waiting seasons and running Tirzah. She has a passion for pointing young women to Christ, and enjoys reading, writing, traveling, and spending time with her family.