Q&A with Cailyn

Welcome to Member Money Moments – a Q&A series sharing the wisdom, struggles, success, and goals of our Happy Money Members as they navigate their journey to financial freedom.

How does money and or debt affect your mental health?

😧 Negatively

What do you find is the most difficult challenge you face when it comes to money?

💰Saving Money
💳 Managing my debt
🤑 Impulse Spending

What do you wish you knew about money growing up?

That interest is a killer. No one really informs or educates you about the interest that is tacked on to credit card payments.

What topics would you most like to learn about when it comes to money?

💸 Learning good spending habits
💳 How to manage debt
😊 Healthy budgeting techniques

What is one piece of advice you would give to others on their personal finance journey?

There IS an end in sight, you just need to work up a small percentage of bravery and courage and it IS possible to see the light at the end of the tunnel!

What’s your first financial goal when you become debt free?

🏡 SAVE! I would like to buy a second home or condo in Las Vegas in addition to my owned Minneapolis home, and have that be a second source of income by renting it via AirBNB, etc.

In what way did Happy Money assist you in your personal finance journey?

I should say, it *did* impact my mental health. I had been in a downward spiral with recurring cycles of high CC bills and interest payments for the past 10 years. Then, life throws you a curveball once you think you have it all under control, and you are forced to make a decision on whether you will pay your high CC payment that month, or simply pay your electrical bill, or get groceries to survive. I had always 'planned' to use the snowball method, but something would come up where I would need to put a certain expense on one of my credit cards. The Payoff Loan helped me to see that there IS an end in sight. Mentally, it's easier for me to fathom paying a lump sum payment from my checking account, and leave all of the debt that was welled up in my credit cards behind me. Now I get to celebrate and tell myself, "it's only 2 years until I'm 100% credit card debt free!" and that means the world to me, and is a HUGE weight lifted off. I had received mailings for The Payoff Loan and was always hesitant due to the credit pull as I didn't want to go deeper into the darkness, but it actually helped raise it; now my credit score is instantly 45 points higher than it had been. It was a very easy process and very simple to understand, and that's what a lot of us millennials are looking for nowadays - let's get to the end result quickly and efficiently. Thank you Happy Money, for changing my life and making things possible.