Our family had committed to following Dave Ramsey’s Debt Snowball plan as a way to attack $55,000 worth of debt. This mountain of bills included medical debt, a student loan, a 401K loan, and our second mortgage. Our first fervor and intensity began to wane as we successfully eliminated the smaller loans but were now staring at the remaining $35,000 adjustable rate second mortgage. The second mortgage had looked good as a way to bypass paying PMI in the era of creative home financing, but now the monthly payment was increasing at an alarming rate. We needed a bigger shovel to dig ourselves out of the hole we were in. We wanted that loan out of our lives.
We had been living on one income for approximately four years and began to consider seeking additional employment to speed up eliminating that debt snowball. While we were discussing the logistics of my returning to work or my husband’s picking up a second job, my husband was offered a new opportunity at his growing company. A new role would involve traveling to clients every other week. This new job came with a substantial pay increase; a six-month review would determine if it was a good fit both for my husband and for the company.
He lasted five months.
Flying a few times a month, communicating with toddlers via phone calls, and building a strong marriage without his physical presence each evening simply wasn’t sustainable for our family. My husband had an honest conversation with his boss about the situation and asked to return to his previous position and compensation.
Here’s the thing: he returned to his position, but his employer insisted on paying him much of that salary bump because of the ways he had grown professionally over the previous five months. I remember being shocked that his company was willing to support our family in this manner. Usually employees pay for training that will result in higher pay, but my guy received that additional training on the job itself, and received a reward for it.
Those five months were really challenging for our family. While I do not want to relive them, I am grateful my husband took advantage of the opportunity, and I was able to support him. Trying out the new job opened doors for him professionally, helped define work/life balance for our family, and increased the size of our financial shovel for his career.
I am confident that none of this would have happened without our understanding of our financial situation and the shared goal of eliminating our debt. Knowing that we were working to eliminate our mountain of debt made it easier to make the shared sacrifices of the five-month new job experience. On those tough weeks when I was home with two cranky toddlers in search of a break, I could remind myself that this would last only until our debt was retired. When my husband was working eighteen-hour days, he could remind himself of what this short-term sacrifice would provide our family in the long run.
Over the years of teaching FPU, we had met numerous families who have taken on extra work, extra hours, grown their own business or sought side jobs in order to generate additional income. Their willingness to dig in and do the hard work to meet their long-term goal constantly impresses me.
Last week all three of our children started school. After twelve years as a full-time stay-at-home mom, I am gathering my courage, summoning my confidence, and channeling my enthusiasm to re-enter the job market. We have lived and thrived on one income, we have a plan for the additional money my work would generate. That, in addition to the dignity of paid work, makes me excited for this next chapter in my career story.
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