Being Broke is Expensive
On finding my way to financial empowerment
I’ve always had a lot of hang ups around money. My parents were self-employed freelance copywriters when I was growing up. I never felt I had to go without things, but there was a definite atmosphere around money in our house. As an adult, I now understand that - the stress of unpaid invoices, dry spells of work etc - it was a constant worry.
I’ve spent a fair amount of my adult life as a self-employed freelancer too. Having a steady, regular source of income has been a rarity for me until the last year. There have been times I’ve had serious concerns about if I’d be able to pay rent. I’ve absolutely gone without food on occasion, travel hasn’t been particularly accessible for me financially and there are many experiences (concerts, movies, dining out etc) that I’ve had to do without because I just didn’t have the funds.
The part that no one really talks about is that once you do get full-time employment, digging yourself out of the hole that is brokeness, takes a long ass time.
It’s expensive to be broke.
There are things you need that you can’t buy because you can’t afford them, so when you do get money, you’re constantly playing catch up. The money’s gone before you ever really had it. It’s an exhausting cycle.
While I am absolutely very relieved to have a regular, full-time income now, realistically, it will be a couple of years before I can actually enjoy it. I’m in what I’m referring to as ‘Broke Recovery Mode’ for the foreseeable.
Credit cards to pay down, loans to pay back. I sold my car but was in negative equity on that so I’ll be paying that off for the next year and a half (paying for a car you no longer have definitely stings). Eventually, I’ll reach a point where I experience this ‘disposable income’ thing I hear people talk about. Right now though, my income is very…sposable.
However, having told myself a story of brokeness all my life, I’m ready to break up with it. I’m ready to experience abundance. I’m ready to plan and learn and be responsible. I’ll be 45 at the end of this month, but I’m determined to prove it’s never too late to turn a corner financially and change your story.
Here are some things I’ve been doing recently to get my finances in order:
