I like to view my life as an adventure. And as part of that adventure, I am imagining all the possibilities for good things to happen. I expect good things to happen.
Even when there are bad things.
But I hope against hope.
Givling is a hope that good things can happen.
But first let me back up a bit, what is Givling?
Givling is a free app you can download to help “end student loan debt by playing a free game”.
It is that simple and that powerful.
But first There Is Something I’ve Been Meaning To Tell You.
In that post I share my story of my wife Sarah and I and how we got our MBAs, it was a great moment!
A true “mountain top” experience!
And as much fun as that was, and it was fun!, there was something else that had been set into motion.
We had taken out loans to pay for our education and while we were actively enrolled we did not have to make any payments.
Now that we had graduated, well…
The clock started ticking!
We had been dealing with student loan payments for a few years after we had got our undergraduate degrees.
Balancing the payments with our other financial needs was tricky.
The thing about it was that it wouldn’t have been so bad but when I graduated with my B.A. the year was 2008.
I took my degree with a smile and hit the streets looking for what I thought would be a sure thing because I wanted to be a teacher.
“And we always need teachers.”
Or so they said.
The job hunt had not gone well, I was not “America’s Next Top Teacher”, and instead I had been working day-to-day as a substitute in the school system trying to develop relationships to get connected and get a job.
Not working a full-time job meant several things for my finances.
I had a paycheck to paycheck life, which wasn’t new, but it was hoped that I wouldn’t have to do that anymore once I went to college.
Then there was also the issue of not having health insurance so I never went to the doctor or dentist.
I was unable to save for my future and soon there were college loans to pay back with an already limited budget.
We were doing all that we could to stay afloat.
By 2012, four years after I first graduated, I landed my first full-time position.
Yet the economic description for it would be underemployment.
I had a college degree for a job that didn’t require one.
This means I wasn’t getting paid the anticipate rates or amounts that would be necessary to make the cost of college worth it.
I continued to have dismal results in getting a higher paying job that was supposed to be the light at the end of the tunnel.
Finally, I decided to do something about it.
I thought, “If I can’t get a better job with this degree, maybe I should go back to school and get a Masters…”
Then so I did and then nothing special happened.
At first.
Well at that time our time had run out.
We were going to owe several hundred dollars a month each on both my wife’s loans and my own.
The student loan payments were going to be so high that we had to do something.
Calls were made.
Other income-based repayment plans were researched.
Nothing was going to help us get the payments low enough.
Our budget was already stretched to the limit!
We had to make a drastic change!
So we did.
We sold our home and lived with a friend for about 7 months as we searched for something with a lower mortgage payment.
Finally we had a bit of a break!
After a year looking for a higher paying job, I had an amazing opportunity to make more money and finally be a teacher like I had set out to do over a decade prior to that point.
Now I am happy with what I do and and love my job, but we still owe a ton of money to pay off our loans.
I believe in working hard and paying what you owe, but I see the potential that Givling brings to help free people from their debts sooner and would love for everyone to be able to put their debts behind them move forward.
So I ask you, can you help by downloading an app and playing a free game?
Can you help me by using my Givling invite code when you do?
Once you download the app and while you are signing up, just enter my code MP862580 and help me help you help everyone!
Written, adapted, and rewritten, by Michael Paine
If you haven’t recalled, we have spoken before.
If you are interested in more on Givling stay tuned to future upcoming posts explaining, how to sign up, Queue Point offers that break down the price per point, and more.
