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Finances

January 2018 Debt Analysis

February 1, 2018March 1, 2018 Leila Leave a comment

All over the internet I see people posting about how long January has been. While it did feel long, it also went kind of fast!

It’s been quite a decent start to 2018 for me which I’m quite happy about! I’ve enjoyed working towards my goals but I did have a few set backs. I got sick for a few days, then a couple of weeks later I got the flu! That was my first time ever getting the flu and it was not fun. Following the flu I fell into a huge rut for several days, but I’m feeling SO much better now!

I had some writer’s block, felt a lot of frustration, I lacked motivation, and I just didn’t feel like myself. Some down time and a few Gary V. videos did the trick though!

Without further ado, here’s my January 2018 debt analysis:

DEBT PAYMENT/INCOME SPREADSHEET

*This spreadsheet does not include payments for my car (a lease) or my insurance (life, health, vision, dental)*

CURRENT FICO SCORE: 653

THE GOOD NEWS

My credit score went up again

I’m up 32 points since my last debt analysis!! That’s crazy and awesome! Each time my debt decreases I watch the “percent utilization” go down and it’s so addicting. I’m still in the red for credit utilization (about 51%), but I think by next month I’ll be in the yellow!! YAY!

My debt is continuing to decrease

Baby steps toward financial freedom! I just got to keep at it. I didn’t pay as much toward my debt but I’ll explain why under the bad news.

I didn’t use my credit cards

I can’t believe how often I used to use my credit cards. Now it’s like a huge no, no and I love that! Just like last month, I only use my Bank of America cash rewards card for gas (because I get 3% cash back), but then I pay it back on the same day or within the same week

My savings is increasing

I transferred $150 to my savings account and I also still use the Qapital app which rounds up every purchase to the nearest dollar and saves it. My total in accessible savings is about $255.

Extra income/side hustles are always a plus

I meal prepped for a nurse practitioner 3 weeks in a row ($30 for only 3 meals/week), which actually helped me out a ton! I also reached the payment threshold for Google Adsense from my blogs and YouTube channel. The last time I got paid from Google was August. I want to really work on reaching that $100 each month! Lastly, I received “front desk of the month” so I received a $25 Target gift card. It’s nice to be appreciated and Target is my favorite store. 🙂

THE BAD NEWS

I worked even less hours than last month

I was supposed to work overtime 3 out of 4 weeks of January but it ended up being only one of the weeks. There were some schedule changes and then we got some snow here in Georgia so my job didn’t even open one day. Neither of my paychecks had overtime hours so it’s literally been the lowest work income month since I’ve started here!

I didn’t pay as much toward debt

After interest I only paid about $236 toward my debts. My Care credit minimum payment used to be close to $200…last month it changed to a minimum of $27 so I only put about $50 toward it. This is because I really want to increase my savings to at least $1000 (which is why I put $150 in my savings), then I’ll increase my payments!

I don’t know how I’m going to come up with attorney fees ASAP

I’ve got to pay my attorney (read my court story here) $750. Luckily she’s a friend of mine and she’s not nagging me for it at all, but she did a job for me and I need to pay her. I would like to pay her $750 all at once but that’s not possible for me right now. I’ve been trying to figure out the best way to increase my income for this. I guess this is another debt I should add huh? :/


While things are looking up and getting a bit easier, money is still really stressful for me. One thing I’m looking forward to is March because it’s going to be a 3 pay check month for me and I should get my tax refund (fingers crossed it’s a decent amount). Maybe then I can get my savings to $1000 and pay off that last 10% of my Care credit!!

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December 2017 Debt Analysis
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I've been vegan for 5 years as of yesterday. It's I've been vegan for 5 years as of yesterday.  It's still the best decision of my life.  I've gained the most strength and look my best as a vegan.  It's also worth mentioning I was vegetarian for 13 years before going vegan, which is why I had to bust out a double bi in photo 3 lol  So yes, I do get enough protein despite not eating animals 😏  As a vegan I've also learned to cook better, eat more types of foods, and have discovered amazing restaurants, recipes, and vegan alternatives all without harming animals.  I never want to push veganism on anyone, but I encourage everyone to explore this lifestyle.  Personally, having an animal suffer for my food, clothes, and products just isn't worth it. Being a perfect vegan isn't necessary, but even small changes can make a large difference.  My sister (@loka1089) made this shirt for me for Christmas by the way!!  #vegan #bekindtoeverykind #veganfortheanimals #veganweightlifting #vegangains #strongvegan #veganwoman #vegananniversary #GoVegan #veganbodybuilding #anythingyoucaneaticaneatvegan #LivinglikeLeila
Happy March!  An update on my February goals:
▪️Pay off my car ✅✅✅🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️  ▪️Jump rope for at least 2 minutes daily ✅ (Well, I missed ONE day but otherwise I enjoyed this challenge a lot)  ▪️Start 'Phase 2' of my training program ✅ (it's more intense than I expected but my strength and body are improving!)  ▪️Finish reading 2-4 books ❌ (I finished 0. I stopped reading a fiction book because it was boring. I've been taking my time reading The Brain That Changes Itself because it requires focus lol)  ▪️Stick to my usual habits better ❌ (Feb was tough for me honestly. Sometimes I have bouts of intense fatigue and lack of motivation which I believe is associated with PMDD. Idk honestly)  March is usually a pretty transformative month for me, so here are my goals:  ▪️Put at least $600 to student loan savings
▪️Make over $1K online
▪️Finish The Brain That Changes Itself
▪️5 minutes of abs daily (new challenge!)
▪️Walk 10K steps daily again
▪️Stick to my habits/routine (for real this time!! I'm feeling better 😊)  #NewMonth #debtfreecommunity #debtfreejourney #blogger #youtuber #goals #february #habits #march #personaldevelopment #strong2021 #fitness #vegan #fitnessgoals #health #healthy #LivinglikeLeila #DebtOverIt
I just wanted to say a big thank you for all the l I just wanted to say a big thank you for all the love and kind words on my previous post ❤🥺  It amazes me that I have this growing community of support and I'm so grateful for it.  I know paying off a car and paying off debt isn't a big thing for everyone, but it's a huge part of my life and I genuinely appreciate that everyone is proud of me and celebrating with me!!  I do hope my progress and my openness on my finances encourages more people to look into theirs and improve it. Improving my finances has made a HUGE difference in my life.  No, money may not buy happiness. But when shit is in order you have less stress, more clarity, and more faith in what's to come👌  These blue light glasses are from @tijneyewear 👓 (gifted)  #thankyou #financialindependence #finance #debtfreecommunity #debtfreejourney #DebtOverIt #blogger #financialcoach #debtcoach #personaldevelopment #neverstopimproving #LivinglikeLeila
I paid off my car today 🙂 27 months EARLY!!! T I paid off my car today 🙂 27 months EARLY!!!  This car should have cost me about $22K, but it ended up being about $30K!!! I'll break down why that is in a future video.  But for the first time in my adult life I am paying $0 in interest right now 😭  I started my debt free journey in June 2018 with $82,200 of debt... I'm now down to ONLY my student loans of $36,200. Which are in forbearance and at 0% interest right now.  This is like a little preview of the debt free life 🥺  Not to mention, my minimum car payment was $382.55 and if I invested that monthly, it would grow to over $200,000 in 20 years.  You may be able to afford that car payment, but it comes with a HUGE sacrifice.  My debt free journey has changed my life and I'm so, so excited for my financial future. 🙏💰  #cardebtfree #finances #debtoverit #cardebt #debtfreecommunity #debtfreejourney #money #finance #studentloandebt #financialfreedom #financialindependence #firemovement #financialindependenceretireearly #TransferTuesday
'Living like Leila' will always be my first born b 'Living like Leila' will always be my first born baby business, but as my personal finance business has significantly grown I've realized I just want LLL to encompass Me.  If you haven't noticed, I am VERY multi-passionate. I love fitness, finance, personal development, veganism, plants, books, food, planning, habits, business. I literally lose sleep at night because I CONSTANTLY have ideas lol  So I know this IG and my LLL YouTube covers everything under the sun, but that's exactly what I want it to be. It's just a digital journal of my life and even though it can be a lot, it's just a reflection of my life and the things I value.  This has allowed me to put less pressure on myself for the content I create, and I truly just enjoy it all as a hobby now.  So I understand that some of my content may not resonate with everyone, but I appreciate ya'll being here 😊❤  And as a side note, if you decide to start an online business...niche down to ONE topic. It will go a lot further, at least from my experience 👀  #multipassionate #livinglikeleila #vegan #personaldevelopment #books #debtfreecommunity #finance #debtfreejourney #business #onlinebusiness #habits #fitness #life
Post-filming, pre-workout selfie ✌ hence the mes Post-filming, pre-workout selfie ✌ hence the mess.  My January finance update and February budget will be up Friday 😊  Also these are the best leggings ever from @ptulaactive  #ptulafamily #ptulaactive #ptula #youtuber #health #fitness #vegan #fit #igfitness #blogger #debtfreecommunity #debtfreejourney #debtoverit #budget #finance #livinglikeleila
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