It has been an exhilarating ride throughout this year. I know it is not yet complete, and I have missed many opportunities to share some profound miracles throughout the process, however I must share at least where we are in the process:
We have now paid off all debt except for less than $2,000 on one card, which will be paid before the end of the year.
Additionally, we have purchased a 2001 Honda Odyssey that is in near perfect condition that has ended up costing us another $10,000 with all fees which are attached, however we have paid of $4,000 of that so far, and expect to be completely free and clear of that debt no later than March, but possibly sooner.
Many factors have contributed to this, but I stand by the fact that it stems from setting the goal, and going at it with all my strength. There have been moments of weakness, and I'm not saying that we are done yet, but I'm saying the progress we have made is extremely noteworthy. I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for the chance to see His mercy in action.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Another Mountain Climbed
NCO is done! We sent them a check a while ago, but they called saying that they hadn't received it. I'm sending another one today, and that's another debt off our back! YES!
A fight for the better
I have been struggling and fighting mentally to keep making progress on this goal. Life has thrown its best twists and turns, yet I'm hoping that through midst of it all the ending result will be the same.
We had the wonderful blessing of being able to throw an extra $1000 at our debt this month. It is amazing to think that just 2 months ago we seemed to be making ends meet, but not much more than that. We are making great strides and I'm hoping the momentum continues to build.
We decided to short sell our rental property. In an effort to put ourselves in a more secure financial situation where we are debt-free and have a solid savings, we didn't feel that it was worth throwing money into that house. It's too old and has too many potential problems, and we don't have the money to give out like that right now. I'm not saying that I would never own real estate and be a landlord, but right now it is not at the top of my priority list.
I just got a phone call this morning from those who were taking my ballroom class. They have decided to "take a break" from the classes we've been taking. It was a real disappointment, but I am learning to take it all in stride.
I have been working on adding a class to each studio, but I'm finding my efforts aren't yielding quite what I was hoping for. I thought, for example, that I would have 5 students in a class in Meridian. However, when I showed up last week for the first class, only 2 students arrived. That was very frustrating. I'm spinning my wheels to try and squeeze out enough students for a class in Nampa, but the most that I can seem to get committed is 2. It's a process that I know I just have to find the right way to approach people and ask for referrals, or get in public to perform and say the right things. I'm trying to keep my patience and quiet endurance through this effort, and moments like these remind me that there will be resistance in achieving this end.
My thoughts have been focused in the last year or so on how to create systematic approaches to as many situations as I can involving the business. For example, one big push was to separate what steps we learn in each level, and what requirements there are for students to move from one level to the next. I would love to have a system set up for costumes, because that is a big hassle, but also communication (which is improving) collecting tuition (which we're having a greater problem with this year), educating our parents and students about complex things like competitions, etc. I know that bringing systems into play as much as possible will simplify my working "in" Idaho Rhythm. That way I'm not trying to constantly reinvent the wheel, and I'll have more time to work "on" Idaho Rhythm by bringing in new students, and bringing new things to the table.
We have met with 2 unrelated individuals from Rexburg in the last few weeks. Both would like to teach for us, and I'd love to have them as teachers as far as I can tell. One has a lot of experience in other styles of dance aside from clogging. I'd really love to get some of those going.
We had the wonderful blessing of being able to throw an extra $1000 at our debt this month. It is amazing to think that just 2 months ago we seemed to be making ends meet, but not much more than that. We are making great strides and I'm hoping the momentum continues to build.
We decided to short sell our rental property. In an effort to put ourselves in a more secure financial situation where we are debt-free and have a solid savings, we didn't feel that it was worth throwing money into that house. It's too old and has too many potential problems, and we don't have the money to give out like that right now. I'm not saying that I would never own real estate and be a landlord, but right now it is not at the top of my priority list.
I just got a phone call this morning from those who were taking my ballroom class. They have decided to "take a break" from the classes we've been taking. It was a real disappointment, but I am learning to take it all in stride.
I have been working on adding a class to each studio, but I'm finding my efforts aren't yielding quite what I was hoping for. I thought, for example, that I would have 5 students in a class in Meridian. However, when I showed up last week for the first class, only 2 students arrived. That was very frustrating. I'm spinning my wheels to try and squeeze out enough students for a class in Nampa, but the most that I can seem to get committed is 2. It's a process that I know I just have to find the right way to approach people and ask for referrals, or get in public to perform and say the right things. I'm trying to keep my patience and quiet endurance through this effort, and moments like these remind me that there will be resistance in achieving this end.
My thoughts have been focused in the last year or so on how to create systematic approaches to as many situations as I can involving the business. For example, one big push was to separate what steps we learn in each level, and what requirements there are for students to move from one level to the next. I would love to have a system set up for costumes, because that is a big hassle, but also communication (which is improving) collecting tuition (which we're having a greater problem with this year), educating our parents and students about complex things like competitions, etc. I know that bringing systems into play as much as possible will simplify my working "in" Idaho Rhythm. That way I'm not trying to constantly reinvent the wheel, and I'll have more time to work "on" Idaho Rhythm by bringing in new students, and bringing new things to the table.
We have met with 2 unrelated individuals from Rexburg in the last few weeks. Both would like to teach for us, and I'd love to have them as teachers as far as I can tell. One has a lot of experience in other styles of dance aside from clogging. I'd really love to get some of those going.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Needing a boost
It is the 4th of January, and I'm feeling a little discouraged. After the news of our tenants, and feeling a little bit of lag, I'm needing a little boost.
Some great things happened that I can't overlook. For example, I'm in need of getting a lot of work done on my teeth. Kara and I thought it would be good to do one cavity per month. I got a certificate in the mail from Willow Tree Dental saying that I have $100 credit on my account. I set an appointment for the 11th to go in and get a cavity filled.
I also was successful in putting together that class over Christmas break. We had a fairly decent turnout, but the best part was that the parents paid more than they were supposed to because they appreciated how hard I worked. I made $250. Unfortunately, we had some other bills come up, and we went to dinner and a movie, so that cut it down some. Hopefully, at least some of it will go to debt.
Today, I got an email from Jennifer Fogg who has a 4 year old who wants to start dancing really bad, but we don't have enough for a full class. She also has a friend in the same boat, so we're hopefully getting them signed up immediately for classes in January. That is fantastic news as well.
I just spent a wonderful Christmas break with my little family. My wife and I were able to go on a couple of dates without the kids, mom got married, and I was able to catch up on some projects around the house I've been putting off.
I know that I need to develop faith that endures. My faith is fueled by adrenaline, and as soon as that runs out after a loss or just time, my faith begins to falter, and fear and discouragement settle. I have to fight past it. I gave a lesson in Sunday School this week about Moses and his confrontation with Satan. Satan began to intimidate Moses, and Moses began to fear. His fear was causing him to see the bitterness of Hell. However, once he began to pray, he gained strength and was able to defeat Satan.
This is what I hope to accomplish. I hope that my prayers will reach Heaven and that I will find strength to defeat fear when it comes to finances. I do know that Heavenly Father is all-powerful and can take away my financial stress. I also know that I must have the faith needed for that to happen. I know that this is an opportunity for me to grow spiritually, and to mature. I'm hoping I'm doing the right things. I'm praying that I'm doing the right things. There isn't any sense in setting a goal like this without Heavenly Father's help, and there isn't any sense in asking for help, if I'm not making decisions by following the Spirit.
Some great things happened that I can't overlook. For example, I'm in need of getting a lot of work done on my teeth. Kara and I thought it would be good to do one cavity per month. I got a certificate in the mail from Willow Tree Dental saying that I have $100 credit on my account. I set an appointment for the 11th to go in and get a cavity filled.
I also was successful in putting together that class over Christmas break. We had a fairly decent turnout, but the best part was that the parents paid more than they were supposed to because they appreciated how hard I worked. I made $250. Unfortunately, we had some other bills come up, and we went to dinner and a movie, so that cut it down some. Hopefully, at least some of it will go to debt.
Today, I got an email from Jennifer Fogg who has a 4 year old who wants to start dancing really bad, but we don't have enough for a full class. She also has a friend in the same boat, so we're hopefully getting them signed up immediately for classes in January. That is fantastic news as well.
I just spent a wonderful Christmas break with my little family. My wife and I were able to go on a couple of dates without the kids, mom got married, and I was able to catch up on some projects around the house I've been putting off.
I know that I need to develop faith that endures. My faith is fueled by adrenaline, and as soon as that runs out after a loss or just time, my faith begins to falter, and fear and discouragement settle. I have to fight past it. I gave a lesson in Sunday School this week about Moses and his confrontation with Satan. Satan began to intimidate Moses, and Moses began to fear. His fear was causing him to see the bitterness of Hell. However, once he began to pray, he gained strength and was able to defeat Satan.
This is what I hope to accomplish. I hope that my prayers will reach Heaven and that I will find strength to defeat fear when it comes to finances. I do know that Heavenly Father is all-powerful and can take away my financial stress. I also know that I must have the faith needed for that to happen. I know that this is an opportunity for me to grow spiritually, and to mature. I'm hoping I'm doing the right things. I'm praying that I'm doing the right things. There isn't any sense in setting a goal like this without Heavenly Father's help, and there isn't any sense in asking for help, if I'm not making decisions by following the Spirit.
The rental
It's been a while since I've posted, largely because of the holiday season and my work schedule has been limited. However, goal to be out of debt hasn't been uneventful.
I just got off the phone with Jim and Donna Rae Tuller. They were renting our basement out for $475 per month, and just called to give us the 30 days notice that they were moving. This came 2 weeks after we got a call from our upstairs tenant that said she was moving out at the beginning of January.
Needless to say, I have been on the phone with someone to help us short sell our house. I'm feeling that this is Heavenly Father's way of telling us to get out of that money sucking investment so that we can work on getting our lives in order financially.
I can't say that I'll never be a landlord again, but I'll definitely be in a better position financially and own a piece of property worth renting before I do.
This comes partially as a discouragement, knowing that I'm essentially giving up on something, but I'm trying to look at the big picture that this is all part of the process to become debt free.
I just got off the phone with Jim and Donna Rae Tuller. They were renting our basement out for $475 per month, and just called to give us the 30 days notice that they were moving. This came 2 weeks after we got a call from our upstairs tenant that said she was moving out at the beginning of January.
Needless to say, I have been on the phone with someone to help us short sell our house. I'm feeling that this is Heavenly Father's way of telling us to get out of that money sucking investment so that we can work on getting our lives in order financially.
I can't say that I'll never be a landlord again, but I'll definitely be in a better position financially and own a piece of property worth renting before I do.
This comes partially as a discouragement, knowing that I'm essentially giving up on something, but I'm trying to look at the big picture that this is all part of the process to become debt free.
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