Kelly - Get the Hell Out of Debt: The Proven 3-Phase Method That Will Radically Shift Your Relationship to Money

Advance Praise for Get the Hell Out of Debt

Erin has a brilliant way of explaining, step-by-step, how to radically shift your finances for the better.

Peter Mallouk, President, Creative Planning

Erin understands that wealth is about so much more than money. It is about creating, living, and leaving a legacy of love and happiness.

W. Brett Wilson, Father, Entrepreneur, and Philanthropist

With a welcomed irreverence and absolutely no judgment, Erin shows us all of the nuanced, messy, and dysfunctional ways we stumble and fall into debt. But then! Then she shows us how to get up and stand tall before we kick, claw, and fight our way out of it. Its you against your debt. Read this book if youre ready for your gloves to come off.

Jesse Mecham, Founder of You Need A Budget (YNAB)

Weaving personal stories, random hilarity, and brilliant insights, Erin Skye Kelly has given you everything you need to change your life. The framework presented in this book provides easy, hilarious, and specific step-by-step instructions for you to take action immediately, reclaim your power, and free yourself from the financial stress that holds you down. This is the funniest, most practical, most readable, and relatable book about money that Ive ever read.

Dr. Jeremy Goldberg, Author, Itll be Okay And You Will Be Too

As soon as I began reading Erins book, I immediately felt calmed by her personal understanding and experience of debt. Her book highlights and offers practical solutions to some of the biggest challenges that come up around money and debt. I loved Erins brilliant and fierce sense of humor combined with her endless encouragement that shined through on each and every page. I felt hopeful and guided in the fullest way. I couldnt recommend this book more for anyone that is struggling to get out of debt.e

Silvy Khoucasian, Relationship Coach

Erin Skye Kelly is the greatest thing that ever happened to my potential as I didnt even know the path to get where I am today. She helped me shape that path. Not only did she speak unlimited possibility into me, she also has constantly celebrated my wins and challenged me to always go to my edge.

Mark Groves, Human Connection Specialist and Founder of Create the Love

A POST HILL PRESS BOOK

ISBN: 978-1-64293-955-2

ISBN (eBook): 978-1-64293-956-9

Get the Hell Out of Debt:

The Proven 3-Phase Method That Will Radically Shift Your Relationship to Money

2021 by Erin Skye Kelly

All Rights Reserved

Cover art by Cody Corcoran

Although every effort has been made to ensure that the personal and professional advice present within this book is useful and appropriate, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any person, business, or organization choosing to employ the guidance offered in this book.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author and publisher.

Post Hill Press

New York Nashville

posthillpress.com

Published in the United States of America

Dedication

T his book is dedicated to Jidi.

I was a teenager when I told my grandfather I was thinking of becoming a broadcaster. He paused, and then pointedly said, Thats nice kiddo, but you are a girl and one day you will be fat, middle-aged, and ugly, and no one will want y ou on TV.

Now this sounds rather harsh, and yes, it smarted.

But it was my boorish Lebanese grandfathers 1990-ish way of saying, If you want to have a career you must not leave its success up to someone elses decisio n-making.

So, I started investing in real estate and businesses on the side, and plunged into my first long-term relationshipwith debt.

It would not have mattered in the end what I had done with my life or how well Id done it. It would not have mattered to my grandfather that I ended up failing spectacularly, if only hed lived to see it. It would not have mattered that I worked tirelessly to recover. It would not matter that eventually I would abandon this idea of needing a backup plan and learn to commit myself fully to accomplish more than my teenage self ever dreamed of.

His eyes always lit up when I entered the room. He was unfussed about whether people liked him or agreed with his decisions. He was simultaneously horribly inappropriate and remarkably progressive. He loved me with his whole heart, and I felt it every day.

My wish for you, dear reader, is that you always have someone whose eyes light up when you enter the room. And if you dont, know that I am excited you are here, for the journey you are taking, and I believe in you, even during those times you are finding it hard to believe in yourself. The fact that you are here makes my eyes light up.

I miss you, Jidi. And in spite of how far we still have to go, you would not believe the kinds of awesome things women get to do now.

Authors Note

P re-2020, youd be hard-pressed to find a financial expert who didnt give conservative advice about having three to six months of expenses in a savings account for emergencies.

And then the pandemic hit to test that.

Having substantial savings is definitely helpful in pandemic times. But as you likely figured out, six months of expenses wouldnt have been enough.

One of the most frustrating things about pandemic life is how average humans were financially shamed for not having six months of savings on hand, and yet businesses that did not have cash on hand are now getting massive forgivable loans and corporate bailouts. The government has convinced us that millions of hard-working people are actually lazy in order to take the focus off the few hundred people who are truly greedy.

The whole system is a mess. And if you look closely at how it is designed, you can quickly see that if you carry consumer debt and you feel trapped in the cycle of minimum payments and maxed out accounts, you are right where the system wants you to be.

I want you to create your own personal economy so you are less at the mercy of what is happening around you and more in control of the flow of money in and out of your life.

When we carry consumer debt, we are in a position of weakness. Debt causes us to stay too long in relationships we ought to leave. Debt causes us to stay too long in jobs we hate. Debt requires us to often put up with toxic environments: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Debt is a trap. And debt causes us to make decisions against our better judgement because being broke is expensive.

Imagine for a moment you have just become an adult and you have the opportunity to earn income. You first need to buy safety equipment in order to do this work. You could earn $1000 doing this work, but the equipment you need is either high quality and very expensive or poor quality and affordable.

The high-quality equipment is $2500 but it will last you for ten years.

The cheap equipment will keep you safe, but it only lasts one year and it costs $800.

When you are starting out, you do not have enough money to buy the expensive equipment, so you buy the cheap equipment, thinking youll save up for the expensive equipment in time. But because you have other costs to keep you alive, you just never quite get around to it.

After ten years, the cheap equipment has cost you $8000.

The higher quality equipment would have cost you $2500.