Food Stamps To Seven Figures?

“The only man who sticks closer to you in adversity than a friend is a creditor.”
-Unknown

“A hundred wagon loads of thoughts will not pay a single ounce of debt.”
-Italian Proverb

Getting out of debt requires a lot out of you. It takes conviction, a strong "why", a plan, a budget and LOTS of encouragement. And as a coach, I've seen that one of the best ways for our students to stay motivated is to hear other people's stories, listen to their struggles and live vicariously through their wins.

Graham's story is going to inspire you, I promise!

This is the whole reason I started this "Journey To Debt-Freedom" series. I wanted to curate a reservoir of personal stories that will help you "find your own story" and keep marching forward toward your personal finance goals and ultimately to debt-freedom and beyond. 

Along those lines, if you have a "debt-free" or "on-my-way-to debt-free" story, I'd love to share yours with our audience. It's always such a gift to our subscribers and fans to hear your particular story AND will help you, especially if you have a a blog/platform/YouTube channel you want to promote (although that's not at all necessary).

Next up in our "Journey To Debt-Freedom" series, meet Graham Cochrane!

Introduce yourself, Graham.

Hey friend, I'm Graham Cochrane from Tampa, Florida. I run an online business teaching people how to build income streams based around their knowledge, skills, and passions.

Give me a little bit of background about your financial situation and your decision to "tackle it". Tell me about how much debt you've paid off so far and in how much time. What is your debt made up of?

Only debt we've ever had is mortgage debt. Paid off our primary home mortgage of $414,000 in 4 years.

Looking for a way to get started on your own debt-free journey? Check out my: 

 “Debt-Elimination Quick-Start Guide”. This free resource will have ALL the tools, forms and printables you’ll need while moving through this 30 day challenge.

What was "the moment" you decided, "enough is enough" and what actions did you take or resources did you use to get the process started?

Always knew I wanted to be debt free since being introduced to Dave Ramsey back in 2005.

Looking for a ways to live more frugally and address your debt? Check out my: 100 Frugal Ways To Save Money And Get Out Of Debt.

What was your "why"? What kept you going when you wanted to quit? How did you stay motivated?

To do something no one else does :-) And to reduce our monthly expenses.

Describe your "belief system" about money and (if/how) has it changed? Maybe even talk about how you were brought up to think about money and how that changed as you progressed through the process.

I believe money is good for three things: spending, saving, and giving. I try to do all three, all the time.

I believe in enjoying the moment and not being miserly, but not at the expense of building wealth for the future, nor at the expense of giving to those in need right now.

I grew up seeing my parents buy new cars every couple of years and never was taught to save, give, or spend wisely. My big process was learning both the power of compound interest and living debt free.

When I realized that you could become a millionaire in America if you simply kept your spending in check and invested consistently over decades, I was sold.

What have been the biggest/toughest sacrifices you've made in your personal finance/debt-elimination process?

For us, we've been committed to giving a large percentage of our income away (now up to 35%). This actually slowed down our mortgage pay off even process more than we wanted but we didn't want to wait to give either.

Describe how it feels to be debt-free. 

The biggest thing I can say is I feel proud. :)

This “$1000 In 30 Days Challenge and Resource Pack” is designed to help you find, cut and/or earn $1000 inside of 30 days so that you can: pay off debt with it, save it or invest it.

Here's the free downloadable/printable PDF.

What are some pieces of advice you would give to someone who's ready to get serious about tackling their finances?

Have balance. Don't go all in on debt payoff at the expense of giving or enjoying life. Otherwise you'll burn out, resent your life, and quit. And if not you - your spouse or family will.

There's no rush. Also, it's not just about eliminating debt. It's about building wealth and creating multiple streams of income.

Think through your ENTIRE financial life as whole, and not compartmentalized.

Start giving money away NOW, even if you don't feel like you can afford to. Becoming a giver and opening your hands up to others makes you feel better than any drug on the planet and gives your life and money purpose.

Full disclosure - we do still have a mortgage on a rental property and a condo we own. I don't mind mortgage debt even though I paid my personal residence off.

Where can we find you (website, social media, etc.)?

www.GrahamCochrane.com

Call To Action

Now that you've heard Graham's story, maybe you're ready to take a closer look at a "framework" to start your own "journey to debt freedom". And, if you’ve hung out on this platform for any length of time, you’ll know I’m all about helping you to take action. And here are two very easy next steps to keep you moving in the right direction:

1. Download our free PDF guide that goes along with this series: “Debt-Elimination Quick-Start Guide”. This has a very comprehensive and dedicated video on establishing your “why”.
2. Head over to YouTube and start with the “Day 0” video. You can totally binge-watch the whole series if you want. That “first pass” will give you an idea of where you are and what it’s going to take for you to get to the next level with your own personal situation. And again, starting with your “why” is the absolute most important step.

I want for you to capitalize on any and all emotional momentum you’ve gotten from this piece of content by committing two just getting started by completing those two actions I mentioned above. If you’ve done that, congratulations, you’ve started! Now just follow the breadcrumbs and please let me know what’s helpful and what you might need more detail around.

Struggling Or Feeling Alone?

Join Our Private FB Group: Zero Debt Tribe

Now, if this decision process is something you struggle with and you constantly feel isolated about, I’ve got some great news for you and it’s free.

Our private Facebook group, ZeroDebtTribe. It’s a group of like minded people that are all somewhere along this P2P/debt-elimination/on their way to FI continuum. So click the image above and apply to join us. :)

Call To Action 

So, we’re all about taking action around here, so I wanted to offer you this free little resource that will help you get your finances organized an on track in less than 4 hours. It’s called our “Debt-Elimination Quick-Start Guide” and the link is in the video description below.

Looking for a way to get started on your own debt-free journey? Check out my: 

 “Debt-Elimination Quick-Start Guide”. This free resource will have ALL the tools, forms and printables you’ll need while moving through this 30 day challenge.

How can ZeroDebtCoach help you? 4 ways...

1. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and click the notifications bell to make sure you get our new videos every week. 

2. Download one of our free personal finance guides. You’ll learn some of the exact strategies I teach my private coaching students on how to organize and optimize their finances, obliterate debt and move on to financial independence by starting and growing online businesses.

3. If you’re looking for a community of motivated and like-minded people, go ahead and get on the waitlist to join our private financial coaching community. We only open it for new students a couple of times a year, so make sure to get on the waitlist.

5. If you need some help right now because you’ve got a burning issue, you need a problem solved, you want to talk through a complex situation, click on the button below.

All that said, let's keep on building your financial acumen and make this your best year yet!

Thanks so much for reading and we’ll see you in the next video post!

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