I know, I know. The same woman who was so impatient to get back to debt repayment that she made a post about it, is now asking, “Am I saving enough?” I will address what led me to ask this question momentarily. First, an income update…

Part Time Job

As I shared in an earlier post, I picked up a part time job. And…I actually love it. It’s usually two and a half hours per day (a minimum of two hours and a maximum of three hours), Monday through Friday. After I wrap up my day job, I get changed and head over to my evening gig. As of the this post, I have been there about six weeks and I have only encountered two other people, both of whom were wearing masks and who spoke to me from across a room. I go to the site, I complete my tasks, and I head home. I don’t think about it before I show up or after I leave. It’s mindless and when I first started I was listening to music, but recently, I have begun listening to personal finance and business podcasts…

So…umm…what’s the downside? The pay. I am currently earning just $10.00 per hour. While that isn’t a terrible wage, given the cost of my education and professional experience, it seems like my time could should be spent earning a higher wage. And I’m working on that. But for now, the additional income is very much appreciated. For the month of September, I earned the following:

Paycheck (9/11): $195.28 (I, thankfully, did not have to work on Labor Day…)

Paycheck (9/25): $237.23 (I covered someone else’s shift.)

Given how modest my income is relative to the size of my student loan debt, this consistent, additional income will meaningfully help me along on my debt repayment journey.

Additional Responsibilities

At my full time job at University B, I recently took on some additional responsibilities. While this is often an unsaid expectation at colleges and universities (that faculty and staff will perform uncompensated labor in service to the university), due to the nature of this role, I will actually receive a very small stipend. While this labor is significantly more intellectually and emotionally taxing* than my part time job, I was interested in the role because it is in-line with my long term career goals before I learned it came with a stipend.

University B pays us on the first of each month but the HR payroll portal allows you to see your pay stub about a week before payday. I logged in today to discover that the monthly stipend is $200.00 which after taxes and 403(b) contributions (which are a percentage of my salary), resulted in a net increase of $129.85.

While this stipend isn’t life changing by any means, it does represent a very modest improvement in my ability to pay off debt…or save…

*This job requires I work a couple of evenings, during one week, every two months.

DIY Money

Above I shared that while at my part time job, one of my favorite things to do is to listen to podcasts while I work. Currently, I am listening to DIY Money. Hosted by Quint and Daniel, it is straight-talk about personal finance and investing presented in a super accessible way. The show’s outgoing message sums the show up pretty well: “The key to wealth is simple: Live on less than you make, invest the rest, and do so for a very long time.

They have over a hundred podcasts and I have just made my way into the double digits but one of my favorites thus far is, “Like a Roth to a Flame.” In this podcast, in addition to learning a ton about Roth IRAs, one of the key takeaways for me was, “You don’t get time back.” As I went about my tasks, I began to think about my financial journey and where I want to be in five years. Not to be Carrie Bradshaw but, “Is being debt free enough?”

As I progress through even more of the DIY Money podcasts, it is clear that Quint and Daniel are not in complete agreement on this question. Quint believes there are three categories of debt: 1) bad, bad debt (credit cards, store cards, rent-to-own agreements, pay day loans, etc.), 2) bad debt (student loans or automobile loans), and 3) debt (mortgage). He believes that one should only have category 3 debt or a mortgage remaining before one begins to invest. This perspective is pretty Ramseyesque. Daniel agrees that category 1 debt must be eliminated, but thinks investing is possible with category 2 debt remaining depending on individual circumstances (interest rates, stage in life, overall portfolio, other obligations, etc.).

Looking Ahead

I know she has to be tired of me name-checking her by now, but one of the things that stuck out to me the most about DDSW’s debt free post (Double Debt Single Woman Has Paid Off Over $142,598 and is Officially Debt-Free!) was that not only was she out of debt but that she also managed to amass considerable assets along the way. (Note: I am confident I make significantly less than DDSW, so I am not worried about having as much as she has at the end of my journey. Instead, I am looking at it as a model for potentially doing both debt repayment and retirement savings.)

Another somewhat recent addition to my blog reading list is Millennial Mayday. Despite starting off with an enormous amount of student loan debt ($200,000.00), Avery seems to have done everything right. While they have received some support from their parents, they were smart and took on this kind of debt for a six-figure profession (pharmacy), hustled to pay it back, moved back in with their parents, refinanced where appropriate, and invested and saved like a beast. Which is why it’s not really surprising that less than three years into their journey, Avery already has a positive net worth. As I was reading through their debt update posts, I noticed their repayment slowed a bit and Avery explained that with just under $50,000.00 in student loan debt remaining, they have decided to invest even more…

For all of the reasons you can imagine, the DIY Money podcast, DDSW’s post, and Avery’s blog have me really thinking about my long term financial goals and what I need to do now to get there…

P.S. I know I was super vague about exactly what my part time job is. That was obviously intentional. However, unlike secrets I plan to keep, like my identity, this is one I will give up once I’ve paid off my debt. I am sure there will be other secrets along the way, and at the end of this journey, I plan to divulge a few.