If You Are Having a Hard Time Getting Started...

I read this great post this morning from Leo over at Zen Habits. I mention his blog frequently because I am impressed with his ability to make things seem so darn simple. He talks about how some of people's best ideas never make it to completion because they are just too complex.

A friend of mine mentioned this post from Leo in an email she wrote me this morning and asked why it seemed like we were able to apply these principles to some aspects of our lives (like finishing our dissertations in a year), but not to others (like getting going on those books we both want to write). Something about what she said really struck me as important and got me thinking. This is what I've come up with -- one simple piece of advice to get you going.

If you are having a hard time getting started on a project, think about a time when you have been successful in the past. Really think about it. What steps did you take? What kind of attitude did you have about your project? Who did you ask for help? What decisions or sacrifices did you make in your life so that you could focus on something that you deemed important? Think about, and then apply what made you successful in the past to your current project. Don't procrastinate. Do it now.

In order to complete my dissertation, I spent a year saving up every penny I could so that I could afford to take a year off (and then ultimately leave for good) a high school teaching position that, in many ways, was a perfect job for me. I had to ask my family and friends for support in ways that went against my fiercely independent nature. And I had to trust the process.

A quote that Leo began his post with, that I think is also fitting here, comes from Wu-Men, who wrote that "If your mind isn't clouded by unnecessary things, then this is the best season of your life."

I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to post a comment in the comments section below.

[Image available at http://www.harborhomesbuilding.com/images/gallery/big/BuildingHouse.jpg]

3 Tips on Tackling Student Loan Debt

I have to admit that my student loan debt has been consuming me lately, especially because at the beginning of February I started paying back my doctorate loans (in addition to loans I'm still paying on my B.A. and M.A. degrees). I am no financial expert and it is my natural instinct to run screaming AWAY from anything having to do with finances, money, budgets, etc. That being said, here's some advice I DO have to offer.

1. Recognize that your student loan debt is, largely, a result of the CHOICES you have made... Unlike, say, medical debt that might result from treating a terminal illness.

It's easy to feel sorry for yourself, to feel like you're being punished because of your decision to get an education. It's easy to feel resentment towards people who, because of large trust funds, ingenuity, different life circumstances, or different choices, are walking around with the same education that you have without any of the debt. If you are feeling any of these negative things, make the choice to stop. Switch your thinking. Focus on how amazingly lucky and privileged

you are to have been able to choose to get an education. Use your education to make the world a better, more positive place. And don't take that education for granted. Ever. If you, like me, are paying very large student loan payments every month, you are lucky that you have a monthly reminder of just what that education cost you. Don't waste the education that is, largely, a result of the choices you've made and the opportunities you've been given.

2. Pay your bills on time. Every month. And look into loan consolidation or federally-sponsored programs to help alleviate debt.

Again, I'm no expert here and so I won't offer much in the way of specifics. Loan consolidation has been a good way for me to alleviate at least a little of the monthly burden and not feel like I have to rush out and get some job I don't want just so that I can make my loan payments every month. It has also been a way for me to have some flexibility in terms of how I spend my time and which professional opportunities I choose to accept and which I choose to pass by.

3. Live a simpler life and do not accumulate additional debt.

Although I am not often proud of the amount of student debt I have accumulated, I am proud to say that I have paid off all my consumer debt. And I continue to take steps everyday to simplify my life so that I have more available money to go towards paying off my student loans. I want to be debt-free as soon as possible, and to do that I know I have to pay off my loans as quickly as possible. That becomes easier because I choose to drive a used car, clip coupons, save money on my grocery bill by eating lots of fruits and veggies, little processed food, and no animal products. Although the sole purpose of making these choices is NOT monetary, having extra money to pay off my student loans is a nice by-product of some of the conscious decisions I make.

I have a long way to go and am far from perfect, but I thought I'd share a few things that I have learned on my journey. There isn't a day that goes by that I regret the decisions I've made about my education. I know that a large part of my growth and development as a person is due to the educational opportunities I've had. And I don't want the amount of my student debt to diminish for me the value of my education. Ever.

If you would like to comment on this post, or just introduce yourself as a reader, please do so in the comments section below. I would love to hear from you.

[Image available at http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/business/consuminginterests/blog/education.jpg]