Today we’d like to introduce you to Justine Nelson.
Justine, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My story really started back in 2008, when I received a phone call from my mom telling me that she was laid off. She and my dad were no longer going to support me financially through college and I had to figure it out on my own. I did what any other college student did and took out loan after loan.
In 2011, I graduated from Kansas State University with $35,000 in student loan debt. I was only making a meager $10 per hour working as an intern for an ad agency right out of college. After my six months grace period on my loans, I started to receive letters from the federal government demanding $230 minimum monthly payments for the next 10 years. I panicked. This was not how I pictured my life after college. I saw friends purchasing new cars. I saw friends going out to expensive restaurants and bars. I was jealous. Pissed off. And not going to put up with my circumstances. I was going to create new rules.
I read books and online articles on how to dump debt. I was $35,000 deep in student loans, but I was determined to live life on my own terms. I started tracking my spending habits for the first time. I created a budget and disciplined myself to live within my means. Two and a half years later, I became debt-free making an average of $37,000 per year in income.
A year after becoming debt free, I got married and moved from small-town Kansas to San Diego in 2015. Even though I was debt free, my journey with personal finance continued. Friends and family asked me how I did it. I kept researching ways to increase my wealth and have enough money to indulge in travel and restaurants. In 2017, I started Debt Free Millennials as a way to help millennials slash their debt and stay in control with their money. Debt Free Millennials is an extension of my personal story but it is so much more now. It is becoming a community for millennials who want to live life on their terms without owing anyone anything.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Debt Free Millennials was hard to get off the ground at first because I was so focused on building digital products like my online course. I didn’t have an audience at all, so once my product was ready, I had no one to sell it to. If you are passionate about a certain topic, start by creating a social media account specifically for that purpose. Build your audience first. Try new things. Then, you can ask your audience what they want and you can create a product that fits those needs.
In my corporate days, I was a marketing manager and had a few consulting clients as a contractor. Once I knew I wanted to pivot to Debt Free Millennials full-time, I dropped 90% of my clients and went to nearly a zero income. I got scared really fast. I spent day after day in a constant state of stress because I was trying to figure out how to grow my audience, sell my course, and get my income up quickly. It was hell. I eventually added in blog writing for personal finance blogs and I love it. It keeps my income steady and I can still try new things with Debt Free Millennials. My advice is to keep giving yourself a steady paycheck, even if it’s in a crappy day job. When you operate out of desperation where you feel like you have to sell, it comes across to your audience. You have to sell from a standpoint of, “wouldn’t this be cool if this works?”
Please tell us about Debt Free Millennials.
I specialize in teaching millennials how to get out of debt, budgeting and saving while living a life that doesn’t feel constricting. I don’t tell millennials to live a scorched earth life. I give millennials permission to spend but also guidelines to pay off their debt as quickly as possible.
I am most proud of Debt Free Millennials new presence on YouTube. I recently hit 1,000 subscribers (a huge feat for newbie YouTubers) and the feedback has been incredible. I like to keep the videos fun and informative. My brand takes a very literal approach. I actually enjoy drinking craft beer and working on my budget with my husband. We film Beers and Budgeting videos every month, show our real income and expenses and talk about money. We have showcased a number of local San Diego craft beers through this segment and I think that sets Debt Free Millennials apart from other personal finance bloggers and YouTubers.
Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well positioned for?
Yes! There are so many opportunities for women and entrepreneurship, specifically. As women, we are positioned to build businesses from anywhere. We can create online platforms that promote communication and collaboration. I feel that women are unique communicators. We can touch customers at an emotional level. Especially when it comes to money. Women typically view money as security. The more we have, the more secure we feel. I think we have the opportunity to take ownership of wealth in this country. If we seek out the knowledge to understand our finances, we are in a position of independence. Being debt free and building wealth gives you the freedom to start a business. Create a blog. Run a YouTube channel. We have the opportunity to build digital and physical products. I truly believe the only barrier to entrepreneurship is your own belief in yourself. If you can just say, “Eff it,” and do it anyways, you are flexing the bravery muscle and I’ll be cheering you on!
Pricing:
- Budget Bootcamp: $37 per month
- The Freedom Project: $97
Contact Info:
- Website: www.debtfreemillennials.com
- Email: justine@debtfreemillennials.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/debtfree_millennials
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/debtfreemillennials
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/debtfreejustine
- Other: www.youtube.com/debtfreemillennials
Image Credit:
Nigel Cook
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