January 2013, my husband and I flew to Tampa, Florida to attend the It Works! Global Freedom Conference. That year the theme was "Mission: Possible." We heard testimony after testimony of people who had paid off debt since joining this opportunity. To hear where people came from, how they were changing their lives, the obstacles they were overcoming...it was very moving to say the least.
We heard not only from people who were paying off debt, but from financial experts, one in particular was Dave Ramsey's daughter Rachel Cruze. I was really moved by what she shared and how we should break the social-norm living a life of being a slave to debt. Then our CEO Mark Pentecost challenged us to make a goal to change our life...to pay off debt...so we could live like nobody else. I dream of the day I reach financial freedom. They passed out stickers at conference and asked us to write a goal on the sticker. Then we were to place that sticker somewhere on these 4-5 foot tall green letters that spelled out FREEDOM (sorry you can't see it in the picture...there were 6,000 people lined up to go paste their goal onto one of the letters. Mine ended up on top of the "D"). I knew how much credit card debt we had...a whopping $17,000 that was strangling us. That was my goal that I wrote out. I wanted to pay off that debt.
I started out strong when I returned from Tampa. I was able to pay off and close 8 credit card accounts in a 2 week period. There's nothing like calling a creditor and telling them you want to close your account. Each one asked, "Is there a particular reason why you're closing your account with us? Were you not pleased with our services?" And each one I replied to, "It's nothing you did...I'm just paying off debt and will no longer need you." Typing that out still gets my blood pumping faster because it felt amazing each time I closed another credit card.
Then life happens. Unexpected expenses come up, or we'd make a purchase that wasn't planned for. We never did without, but I just kept pushing my debt to the side and told myself that I'd get it tackled with the next paycheck. Fast forward to June. My husband said, "What ever happened to us paying off our debt? You haven't paid off any credit cards in a long time." He was right. Time seemed to have flown by without me paying anything down or off. I was motivated again and paid off $2000 worth of debt with some of my commission check from It Works. And that's pretty much the effort I put into my goal. I'm disappointed in myself for not doing more. I always try to pay extra on my monthly payments. And we stay current on our expenses and bills. But more could have been done.
So, now a turn in this post. The end of December 2013...I'm starting to reminisce over everything that had happened over the year. A few days later, I post a collage of some of my favorite memories of 2013. It was so full with amazing moments surrounding my It Works business. We started the year in Tampa at conference. A few months later, we joined over 3,000 teammates in Dallas for the first bootcamp of the year.
In May, I found myself for the next bootcamp in Atlanta, GA. I was honored to be interviewed on stage by our CEO's wife, Cindy Pentecost. She is an amazing woman. You can tell she has a gift and desire for blessing others. I was asked to be a part of a panel of 4 to give product testimonies. I shared with over 3,500 people how my life is forever changed because of It Works. This is one of the highlights of 2013...
June was my one-year anniversary with It Works. That month I double promoted to Diamond rank. That was a big accomplishment for me. All my hard work, hours, and effort...paying off in more ways than one. July took us to St. Louis, IL for the next bootcamp. Since I'd promoted the month before, I was back on stage in the "Diamond parade." Once you get the taste of being on that stage, you crave more. I'm ready to be up there again. Also in July, I had 2 of my teammates promote to Diamond and both of them earned a $10,000 G.O.O.D. Bonus (Get Out Of Debt). September took us a few places...first Seattle, WA for the final bootcamp of the year, and then my husband and I made a trip to Jonesboro, AR to present our products to brides-to-be. And I honestly can't even recall all my travels around Texas. I go everywhere, so there's too many to name...and you probably would lose interest half way through what I could remember.
Wow! 2013 was so full of travels, adding new members to my team, helping them launch and grow their business. Trainings, events, get-togethers...I feel like I live It Works. And I love it! I may have got off track with my goals that I'd set in the beginning of the year, but I lived a year full of unforgettable moments. And because of all those experiences, I couldn't wait to return to Tampa this month for Freedom Conference 2014. Being a mom, it's so much fun to get to take trips like this.
That leads us to what I did yesterday. Like I'd mentioned, I came home from conference in January 2013 with goals that I wanted to accomplish. I'd wrote out all our debt. The numbers added up were scary, to say the least. It's a sobering moment to see how much debt a family can accumulate in a decade. I was on fire and going to change things, but I lost that momentum as time went by and my busy schedule unfolded.
Only a week ago, I was training, networking, and partying with 10,000 of my It Works family in Tampa. Now that I'm home, and motivated again to this time accomplish my goal of paying off debt, I sat down and again, wrote out all that we owe. At first my numbers just didn't seem right. I was very discouraged, but at the same time not surprised. I'd subtracted the total current debt from where we were last year...only a difference of $8000. How could this be? How could I had only eliminated such a small amount over the course of a year? I ended up on the phone with a friend and teammate of mine. I told her all about this, and how I had to changes things this year. I couldn't have a repeat. I know what I need to change, and this time around I had to make it happen. My family deserves more. I was sick, and stressed, and just in the lowest of places emotionally.
This morning I was awoken by a call from my husband. He said, "Good news! I got paid and they paid me the whole week!" I admit that I was stressing about him going to Tampa with me just for the fact that we really needed a full paycheck. So, this was a blessing and a sigh of relief. This meant I could send out our tithe check, put money back in savings that I'd taken out the week prior, finish paying January's bills, and then have money left in the bank. Oh, thank you, Jesus! So, I wasted no time. I went straight to my office, and started getting checks wrote out to put in the mail. Tithe check...done. My truck payment...done. Then I got to my husband's truck payment. I have coupon books for our vehicle loans. The book for his truck is starting to feel slim. I flipped to the back to tear out the coupon to send in to the bank to request my next booklet. Here's where everything changed. The last coupon isn't for what I thought it was for. The last coupon reads, "Call bank for your final payment." What??? How can this be??? I was certain we still had 18 months on this note. Turns out, if not sooner, we'll have my husband's truck paid off this July. We only have 6 more payments. You know what that means? It means my math was wrong!!! Quickly, I'm pulling up the calculator on my phone. Oh...my...goodness!!! Forget what I thought I'd paid off...once I got my numbers correct, in 2013 we paid off $22,457 in household debt!!!
Of course, I had to check my numbers again and again. I kept getting the same result. I was so down, depressed, and disappointed in myself the day before. But this...this turned it all around. And then I started really realizing what I'd accomplished on top of all that I'd done that year. Traveling all across the United States and still paying off this much debt. My heart has been racing all day. The butterflies haven't stopped fluttering in my stomach. Adrenaline times 10! And I didn't wait to get started on my 2014 goals. I finished paying the bills for January, then I made my first "debt eliminating" payment of $500 toward one of our open credit cards. Do you know how freeing that is!?! Knowing that I'm that much closer to having that card paid off, and I can start tackling the next. And OMG, when my husband's truck is paid off in the next few months, we'll have that amount to use toward our debt as well. THIS is what a natural high feels like.
I'm really pumped. This year is going to be huge, I just know it. And it's already starting out sooo good! I have a heart for helping others. If any of this is sparking your interest and/or curiosity, please get in touch with me. I don't ever want people to be intimidated by how I choose to work my business. Trust me, you can do exactly what I do without having to travel all over the country (but the traveling sure is fun). My life has been changed. I want to take my journey and share it with others so their life can be changed. I'm building a legacy. I'm making my dreams a reality. My family is living a blessed life. And I always say that it's a blessing to be a blessing. I want to bless others by helping them make their dreams a reality. AND there's no better time than NOW. ItWorks is offering GOOD Bonuses ranging from $10,000-$75,000 to those that qualify by March 31, 2014. What would that do for you and your family? I'm working toward it, and when I get it, I'll be knocking out more debt. www.4miwrap.com
No comments:
Post a Comment