June 10, 2025 • 18 mins
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Feeling overwhelmed by money? You're not alone! Join Brad Nelson, founder of Debt Free Dad, as he welcomes Tara Mean, who shares her journey of saving and paying off tens of thousands of dollars. Discover how mindset shifts, motivation, and practical steps can lead to financial freedom. Tara shares the challenges she faced and the strategies she used to turn her financial life around, including getting her family on board and celebrating progress along the way. Tune in for an inspiring conversation about overcoming debt and achieving financial peace.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Brad Nelson (00:00):
So are you feeling overwhelmed by money and unsure
how to move forward?
Let me tell you you're notalone, and today's guest, Tara
Meen, knows exactly how thatfeels.
But instead of giving up, shetook action, saving and paying
off tens of thousands of dollars.
You guys, In this episode, Tarais going to share the honest
truth about what it took to turnthings around, how she stayed
motivated and the mindset shiftsthat made the biggest
(00:21):
difference for her.
Now, if you need proof thatchange is possible for normal,
everyday people, this is goingto be a conversation you're not
going to want to miss.
Announcer (00:32):
You're listening to the Debt-Free Dad Podcast with
Brad Nelson.
Brad and his co-hostsexperience the anxiety of living
paycheck to paycheck beforelearning the fundamentals of
financial success.
They are now on a mission toempower regular people to pay
off their debt for good andenjoy happier, less stressful
lives.
Keep listening forinspirational interviews, tips,
(00:54):
tricks and practical advice togain financial freedom.
Brad Nelson (01:01):
Hey guys, welcome to today's show.
My name is Brad Nelson, founderof Debt Free Dad.
I've paid off about $45,000 ofdebt.
I've been debt free now formore than 12 years and I've also
been fortunate to helpthousands of other people save
and pay off tens of millions ofdollars with the work that we do
here at Debt Free Dad.
After listening to this episode, if you're ready to take action
and you want to take things tothe next level, you're ready to
(01:21):
break free from living paycheckto paycheck.
You guys want to reducefinancial stress.
You want to build a savings,finally pay off some of that
debt for good.
But maybe you're like a lot ofpeople, you're just not sure
where to start.
Well, we've got you coveredwith some incredible free
resources here at Debt Free Dad,and I'll be sharing some
details about how you can getsome of those later on in
today's episode.
As I mentioned, I'd like towelcome Tara to the podcast Now.
(01:44):
Tara has been married for 24years and is a proud mom to a
14-year-old daughter and a13-year-old son.
Her family shares a love forK-pop Well, she says, most of
them do anyways and they'retotal foodies who enjoy
exploring all different kinds ofcuisine.
Tara lives in California.
She says they can hit the beachone day and the snowy mountains
the next.
That's pretty cool.
She's also completely smittenwith her Cornish Rex cat Tay-Tay
(02:06):
, who she lovingly fights overfor attention.
Well, hey, tara, welcome to theDeaf-Free Dad podcast.
So glad that you're taking sometime to hang out with us here
today.
Tara Mean (02:15):
I'm excited to be here.
Brad Nelson (02:16):
Yeah, I'm excited for you to be here too.
You've made some incredibleprogress and I'm glad you're
here to share your story because, like I just told you right
before I recorded, your story isgoing to be inspiring some
other people.
But before we get to all theprogress that you've made, take
us back a little bit and tell uswhat was your financial life
like before finding Debt FreeDad and eventually joining our
membership program Brutes, andwhat things were you struggling
(02:38):
with?
What experience did you havewith money before getting
started?
Tara Mean (02:42):
Oh goodness, that was a lot.
So my mom always told me youknow, you should save money,
have cash before you buy, andshe was always very frugal with
money.
So me, growing up in adifferent age we have credit
cards, we buy what we want.
We don't really save to buywhat we want.
So I got myself in thissituation many times where I
(03:05):
paid off my debt and it was justa vicious cycle.
But then I found Debt Free Dadand the cycle is ending.
Brad Nelson (03:13):
So yeah, I love that.
So, when you say it was avicious cycle, what kind of
things did you struggle with themost?
Was it credit cards youmentioned when you wanted to buy
something?
You just bought it?
Was it overspending?
Was it impulsive spending?
Was it trying to keep up withpeople?
What contributed to that, doyou think?
Tara Mean (03:29):
Well, definitely impulsive spending, get it now,
pay for it later.
That kind of mentality, notreally like keeping up with the
Joneses, but just buying stuffthat we don't really need,
actually like a lot of stuffthat we don't need.
Brad Nelson (03:46):
Yeah, yeah.
Anyone listening to thisprobably can relate to that.
It's so easy nowadays just tospend money, right?
Everything is so readilyavailable, especially with
phones and online shopping, and,yeah, they make it so easy.
So, was there any feelingsaround your money?
Were you dealing with a lot ofstress, any emotions that were a
struggle for you?
Tara Mean (04:03):
Well, it was stressful to have all that debt
and it just never seemed to begoing away and it just kept
multiplying and then there wouldbe another debt, and so, yeah,
it's definitely a cycle.
I can't explain it.
It's just we have all this debtthat we created and then we
(04:24):
have this big mess and thenwe're stuck with it.
How do we get out of it?
Brad Nelson (04:28):
Yeah, yeah.
So you eventually found DebtFree, dad.
How did you find out about whatwe do, and what kinds of things
did you get started with?
Tara Mean (04:35):
Okay.
So first I found Debt Free Dad.
I said, okay, this may work.
I saw it on Facebook.
I said this could work.
Okay, he, I saw it on Facebook.
I said this could work.
Okay, he has a plan to like getout of debt.
So I I think I joined one ofthe free webinars and then I
just started.
I started with roots and Istarted looking at roots every
day and I went through it rightaway and I just I was doing
(04:58):
action items Like, for example,okay, first thing, save a
thousand dollars.
Okay, next thing, don't spendany more money, change your
spending habits.
So then I found the program andit worked.
It was working right away.
When I started, I think in Julyof 2024 to November, I had paid
(05:18):
off like $15,000 and this isjust like credit card debt and
like loans, but we still had alot and I had to get my husband
on board.
So that was a whole thing.
Brad Nelson (05:30):
Yeah, I want to talk about that coming up.
We get that question all thetime, tara, how do I get my
spouse or partner on board withthis?
I want to do it, but they'redragging their feet.
I want to get into that alittle bit.
But when you first got started,though, I mean, like you just
said, you joined in July of 2024.
And by November of 2024, you'retalking four or five months you
paid off $15,000.
(05:50):
So what kinds of things did youlearn in Roots that you felt
were really beneficial, thatreally helped you move that
needle really quick on gettingsome quick?
Tara Mean (05:59):
progress.
So I learned that you had tostart somewhere.
Any progress is good, everylittle thing that you could
celebrate.
But you had to start.
You had to take action becauseif you didn't you'll just be in
the same situation.
But because I was able to starttaking action and paying off
(06:20):
the debt and changing behaviors,I was able to see like really
good success.
Brad Nelson (06:25):
Yeah, when you mentioned behaviors because we
talk about that a lot in Ro,because we talk about that a lot
in Roots, we talk about it alot of this podcast Was there
any habits that were like oh mygosh, that were shocking to you?
Like one of the things that wehave you guys do and we talk
about on the show a lot is, youknow, going through and looking
at your past, spending yourexpenses, where your money has
been going.
Was there anything that stoodout to you like oh my gosh, I
can't believe we're spendingthis much on this?
Tara Mean (06:48):
Yeah, so it's.
Where are you at now?
There's like a worksheet thatyou fill out and you put all
your debt and then, when youlike, add it all up.
It is very surprising.
It's eye opening.
And when I did that, it wasjust it actually became
addicting to pay off the debt.
Like when I got on and startedlike looking at stuff and paying
(07:09):
off stuff, it was veryaddictive.
I'm like, oh, I paid offanother one.
I was able to get rid of this.
It was good, awesome.
Brad Nelson (07:15):
Yeah, that's awesome.
So talk about you have kids 13and 14.
Obviously, kids they cost money.
Right, they can be expensive.
What did they have to say aboutthis new plan that you guys got
on?
Tara Mean (07:26):
Well, my daughter is very I want to say frugal with
her money.
Like, for example, if I giveher money to spend, she'll like
save some of it.
She's very smart with money.
Um, and even my husband liketalks to them about money.
They talk about what we weredoing.
I said, oh, guess what?
I paid off the truck, Like Ijust paid off our truck this
(07:48):
week.
And she goes oh, dad alreadytold me.
So they're kind of on boardwith the things so that we can
reach our goals and go onvacations and have money for
things that they want to do sothey're totally on board yeah.
Brad Nelson (08:04):
I love that.
Again, like I said, gettingyour husband on board.
How did that go?
Was he excited about it atfirst, or was he like a little
cautious?
What is this?
What were his thoughts on it?
Tara Mean (08:14):
Okay, so first he was very skeptical.
Like we did not have joint bankaccounts, we had our money
separate.
I did the training for Harmonyfor couples.
Brad Nelson (08:25):
Oh, yeah, yeah, training for.
Tara Mean (08:26):
Harmony for couples.
So I did the training.
We held hands, we looked ineach other's eyes and I said
let's do this, because he sawlike what I had paid off in.
You know, when I first startedand I helped him pay off some of
the debt that he had, I saidlet's do this.
And so we were paying off.
His debt was our debt, but wewere paying it off.
(08:47):
And then we combined ourfinances sometime last year and
then it just went from thereLike we joined bank accounts.
We had some really greatprogress in of December of last
year, of last year, starting inDecember, we had paid off
(09:08):
$22,447 in debt in December.
Brad Nelson (09:15):
That was from July through December.
Tara Mean (09:18):
From July to November I paid off over $15,000.
But then another year has goneby and then in December we paid
off $22,000.
But since then, since December,we paid off $34,954 in debt.
(09:44):
So credit card debt, loans,truck payment.
So now all the credit cards arepaid, the loans are paid.
We have one car payment now.
Everything is paid.
I can't believe it.
Brad Nelson (09:48):
How does that feel when you see that?
Tara Mean (09:51):
It is the most amazing feeling.
And my husband, he's just asaddicted as I am in paying off
the debt.
I'm like can I pay off the loan?
Because I think we paid off theloan maybe last week.
I think it was like $3,500 lastweek and then we paid off
(10:11):
$2,600 this week for the truck.
So yeah, it's just, it's anaddiction.
Brad Nelson (10:16):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, you guys have paid off tens of
thousands of dollars, right?
And what you're talking aboutis the addiction of like it just
feels great, right.
It's like just freedom, right.
It's just it's incredible to beable to see that kind of
progress, especially when youstruggle and you don't really
make any progress.
Now you're starting to see it.
You're right, you definitely doget addicted to it.
(10:39):
And from a relationshipstandpoint, when it comes to
financial conversations, I'mguessing, because now you guys
combine finances conversationsprobably are a lot better
nowadays, right?
Tara Mean (10:48):
Much better.
He's totally on board.
He's much happier now.
He can sleep at night.
Before he was probably verystressed.
He couldn't sleep, you know,having all this debt over his
head.
So, yeah, we do have a house aswell in Florida, so we have to
figure that out.
But as far as our credit carddebt and loan debt, we don't
(11:10):
want it anymore.
Brad Nelson (11:11):
Yeah, now you mentioned building your
emergency fund.
Obviously it's one of the firstkind of like small goals that
we give our members to do isbuild that $1,000 to $3,000
emergency fund.
Can you share some things thathelped you build that, because
people are probably asking, like, how did Tara do this?
Like paid off tens of thousandsof dollars, built an emergency
fund.
She was not making progressbefore she started, so like, was
there things that you did thathelped you build that really
(11:33):
quickly, you think, was therethings?
Tara Mean (11:34):
that you did.
That helped you build thatreally quickly.
You think, well, we used ourtax return to help build it as
well and so I would put money inthere.
I used some of the money to paythe debt, but this year with
our tax return I think we gotabout 18,000 back, but in our
emergency fund now we have over33,000.
(11:56):
So we used our tax return, ourbonuses you know like his
bonuses and we put it in there.
We could feel good about it.
We have like a nice nest eggand then just this one little
car payment.
Brad Nelson (12:15):
Yeah, yeah, and that number.
Looking at that number and thatsavings account, man, you talk
about being able to breatheright and just knowing like, hey
, we've got money in the bank incase something comes up.
I mean, you just go throughlife in a much different way,
much better mental health, likeless stress.
Man, good for you guys.
And again, you guys got startedin July of 2023 in that area.
So we're talking coming up onyour two-year mark, essentially
(12:36):
Two-year it's doable.
Tara Mean (12:38):
It's really good.
You have to stay engaged withthe program because it helps
keep you motivated.
Do your Roots 15.
Do your action items.
It all helps, everything helps,or we wouldn't be here.
Brad Nelson (12:53):
Well, I love that.
So did you tell anybody elsethat you were doing this?
I mean, obviously you're on thepodcast.
People are going to know you'redoing it now, but does anyone
know that you're doing it?
Was anyone kind of like you'redoing what?
You joined a program to helpyou get out of debt.
That's weird.
Anyone say anything to youabout that?
Tara Mean (13:09):
Yeah, so for some people maybe they live like that
.
They think it's normal.
Other people are maybe arebetter with money.
But I talked to mysister-in-law about it and every
time I pay like something, Ilet her know about it.
So she had given me a book.
It was probably a Dave Ramseybook.
And I read it, but she read thebook too and there's no
(13:32):
progress.
So it's a great book, like Ilove the book, but this program
actually helped me because ithelped me stay accountable.
Brad Nelson (13:41):
Yeah, and I want to hit on that because you're
right Even listening to thispodcast, listening to a podcast,
reading a book there's nothingwrong with that.
Education, getting positiveinformation into your mind, is
all great stuff.
The hard part is doing the workthat you're learning about.
That's where people struggle,and you mentioned, obviously,
roots helped you stayaccountable to it.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthat?
What are the things in therethat helped you keep your feet
(14:03):
to the fire on what you guyswere doing?
Tara Mean (14:05):
Yeah, so the weekly meetings.
It just gives you weeklyreminders like, okay, debt is a
trap, or whatever the meeting isthat week.
You're learning about snowballor you're learning about your
emergency fund.
It gives you reminders everyweek and then from there, you
have your Friday celebrations.
I look forward to that like themost, the Friday celebrations,
(14:29):
because I'm like this is what Idid this week.
It helps you.
It gives you things to work on,like whether it's building your
emergency fund, not using anycredit card.
There's challenges.
Yeah, it's great.
It definitely helped, or Iwouldn't be.
We're in the position I am today.
Brad Nelson (14:48):
Yeah, it's so good.
So I mean looking at whereyou're at now versus when you
started, would you have everbelieved that with your
experience with money, that youwould have ever made this kind
of progress in this time period?
Tara Mean (15:02):
No, I think it would have taken much longer, many
years, many, many years.
I would have been probablystuck for a long time.
Brad Nelson (15:09):
Yeah, well, it's awesome.
Tara, I just want to thank youagain for jumping on and sharing
.
I think what you guys have beenable to do just in less than 10
years is proof.
Even today, like in theeconomic times that we're in,
with expenses, the way that theyare normal everyday, people
still can make great progressand you guys are just proof of
that.
And you're right.
You guys had to do the work andI'm proud of you guys for being
willing to stand up and do thatwork, because that's hard work.
(15:30):
What you guys have done is abig deal and it's going to just
have this tremendous payback foryou guys for the rest of your
lives and super proud of whatyou guys have been able to do.
Tara Mean (15:39):
Thank you so much.
Thanks for having me.
Brad Nelson (15:45):
Yeah, absolutely All right.
Guys, if you're ready to breakfree from living paycheck to
paycheck, you want to startgetting results like Tara just
talked about.
You want to reduce stress.
You want to build savings.
You want to pay off tens ofthousands of dollars of debt,
but again, maybe, pay off tensof thousands of dollars of debt,
but again, maybe you're justnot sure where to get started.
Don't worry, I've got youcovered.
Simplify my Money is sent toyou each and every Sunday to
your email.
It is your step-by-step roadmapto better financial control.
You're also going to learn someeasy-to-follow strategies to
(16:06):
manage your money effectively.
You're also going to getstress-free money decisions that
are going to help you simplifyyour financial life with proven
tips that actually work, andyou're going to gain the tools
and the confidence to tackleyour financial goals head on.
Tara Mean (16:19):
Sign up for Simplify my Money by clicking the link,
at the bad things that may be.
Let's talk about debt.
Announcer (16:39):
Let's talk about debt .
Tune into.
Tara Mean (16:42):
Debt Free.
Debt Tune into Debt Free.
Brad Nelson (16:44):
Debt.
That's all means it's time forthe celebrations of the show,
and today we are kicking it offwith Laura.
Laura says I added $75 to myemergency fund last week.
I'm working hard at sellingthings on Marketplace Only $925
more to go.
My goal is to post at leastfive items per day, laura way to
(17:05):
go and way to focus onincome-producing activities.
I love that.
Tammy says my win this week isthat I paid off two smaller
medical bills.
I added $500 to my savings andset aside $500 more for a new
backdoor, currently working onmy next month's budget.
Tammy, congratulations to you.
Awesome wins.
And last but not least isTiffany.
(17:26):
Tiffany says going on vacationand paying 100% cash.
She says I also just paid offmy next credit card on the debt
snowball list.
Tiffany, amazing, amazing wins.
Hey, as always, guys,congratulations to all of you
guys who are taking a stand foryour financial life and you're
wanting better.
Hey, we get that.
Getting out of debt isn't easy,but with our help and with your
consistency and discipline, wepromise you guys, this will be
(17:48):
some of the best work that youguys do in your entire life.
Thanks for joining us ontoday's show and we will see you
guys on the next episode.
Announcer (18:00):
Thanks for listening to the Debt-Free Dad podcast.
Connect with us on Facebook,tiktok, youtube and Instagram.
Just search Debt-Free Dad.
If you found value in today'sepisode, please leave us a
rating and review.
We so appreciate it.
For resources, show notes andlinks mentioned in today's show
visit debtfreedadcom.
(18:20):
Catch you next week.
So are you feeling overwhelmed by money and unsure
how to move forward?
Let me tell you you're notalone, and today's guest, Tara
Meen, knows exactly how thatfeels.
But instead of giving up, shetook action, saving and paying
off tens of thousands of dollars.
You guys, In this episode, Tarais going to share the honest
truth about what it took to turnthings around, how she stayed
motivated and the mindset shiftsthat made the biggest
(00:21):
difference for her.
Now, if you need proof thatchange is possible for normal,
everyday people, this is goingto be a conversation you're not
going to want to miss.
Announcer (00:32):
You're listening to the Debt-Free Dad Podcast with
Brad Nelson.
Brad and his co-hostsexperience the anxiety of living
paycheck to paycheck beforelearning the fundamentals of
financial success.
They are now on a mission toempower regular people to pay
off their debt for good andenjoy happier, less stressful
lives.
Keep listening forinspirational interviews, tips,
(00:54):
tricks and practical advice togain financial freedom.
Brad Nelson (01:01):
Hey guys, welcome to today's show.
My name is Brad Nelson, founderof Debt Free Dad.
I've paid off about $45,000 ofdebt.
I've been debt free now formore than 12 years and I've also
been fortunate to helpthousands of other people save
and pay off tens of millions ofdollars with the work that we do
here at Debt Free Dad.
After listening to this episode, if you're ready to take action
and you want to take things tothe next level, you're ready to
(01:21):
break free from living paycheckto paycheck.
You guys want to reducefinancial stress.
You want to build a savings,finally pay off some of that
debt for good.
But maybe you're like a lot ofpeople, you're just not sure
where to start.
Well, we've got you coveredwith some incredible free
resources here at Debt Free Dad,and I'll be sharing some
details about how you can getsome of those later on in
today's episode.
As I mentioned, I'd like towelcome Tara to the podcast Now.
(01:44):
Tara has been married for 24years and is a proud mom to a
14-year-old daughter and a13-year-old son.
Her family shares a love forK-pop Well, she says, most of
them do anyways and they'retotal foodies who enjoy
exploring all different kinds ofcuisine.
Tara lives in California.
She says they can hit the beachone day and the snowy mountains
the next.
That's pretty cool.
She's also completely smittenwith her Cornish Rex cat Tay-Tay
(02:06):
, who she lovingly fights overfor attention.
Well, hey, tara, welcome to theDeaf-Free Dad podcast.
So glad that you're taking sometime to hang out with us here
today.
Tara Mean (02:15):
I'm excited to be here.
Brad Nelson (02:16):
Yeah, I'm excited for you to be here too.
You've made some incredibleprogress and I'm glad you're
here to share your story because, like I just told you right
before I recorded, your story isgoing to be inspiring some
other people.
But before we get to all theprogress that you've made, take
us back a little bit and tell uswhat was your financial life
like before finding Debt FreeDad and eventually joining our
membership program Brutes, andwhat things were you struggling
(02:38):
with?
What experience did you havewith money before getting
started?
Tara Mean (02:42):
Oh goodness, that was a lot.
So my mom always told me youknow, you should save money,
have cash before you buy, andshe was always very frugal with
money.
So me, growing up in adifferent age we have credit
cards, we buy what we want.
We don't really save to buywhat we want.
So I got myself in thissituation many times where I
(03:05):
paid off my debt and it was justa vicious cycle.
But then I found Debt Free Dadand the cycle is ending.
Brad Nelson (03:13):
So yeah, I love that.
So, when you say it was avicious cycle, what kind of
things did you struggle with themost?
Was it credit cards youmentioned when you wanted to buy
something?
You just bought it?
Was it overspending?
Was it impulsive spending?
Was it trying to keep up withpeople?
What contributed to that, doyou think?
Tara Mean (03:29):
Well, definitely impulsive spending, get it now,
pay for it later.
That kind of mentality, notreally like keeping up with the
Joneses, but just buying stuffthat we don't really need,
actually like a lot of stuffthat we don't need.
Brad Nelson (03:46):
Yeah, yeah.
Anyone listening to thisprobably can relate to that.
It's so easy nowadays just tospend money, right?
Everything is so readilyavailable, especially with
phones and online shopping, and,yeah, they make it so easy.
So, was there any feelingsaround your money?
Were you dealing with a lot ofstress, any emotions that were a
struggle for you?
Tara Mean (04:03):
Well, it was stressful to have all that debt
and it just never seemed to begoing away and it just kept
multiplying and then there wouldbe another debt, and so, yeah,
it's definitely a cycle.
I can't explain it.
It's just we have all this debtthat we created and then we
(04:24):
have this big mess and thenwe're stuck with it.
How do we get out of it?
Brad Nelson (04:28):
Yeah, yeah.
So you eventually found DebtFree, dad.
How did you find out about whatwe do, and what kinds of things
did you get started with?
Tara Mean (04:35):
Okay.
So first I found Debt Free Dad.
I said, okay, this may work.
I saw it on Facebook.
I said this could work.
Okay, he, I saw it on Facebook.
I said this could work.
Okay, he has a plan to like getout of debt.
So I I think I joined one ofthe free webinars and then I
just started.
I started with roots and Istarted looking at roots every
day and I went through it rightaway and I just I was doing
(04:58):
action items Like, for example,okay, first thing, save a
thousand dollars.
Okay, next thing, don't spendany more money, change your
spending habits.
So then I found the program andit worked.
It was working right away.
When I started, I think in Julyof 2024 to November, I had paid
(05:18):
off like $15,000 and this isjust like credit card debt and
like loans, but we still had alot and I had to get my husband
on board.
So that was a whole thing.
Brad Nelson (05:30):
Yeah, I want to talk about that coming up.
We get that question all thetime, tara, how do I get my
spouse or partner on board withthis?
I want to do it, but they'redragging their feet.
I want to get into that alittle bit.
But when you first got started,though, I mean, like you just
said, you joined in July of 2024.
And by November of 2024, you'retalking four or five months you
paid off $15,000.
(05:50):
So what kinds of things did youlearn in Roots that you felt
were really beneficial, thatreally helped you move that
needle really quick on gettingsome quick?
Tara Mean (05:59):
progress.
So I learned that you had tostart somewhere.
Any progress is good, everylittle thing that you could
celebrate.
But you had to start.
You had to take action becauseif you didn't you'll just be in
the same situation.
But because I was able to starttaking action and paying off
(06:20):
the debt and changing behaviors,I was able to see like really
good success.
Brad Nelson (06:25):
Yeah, when you mentioned behaviors because we
talk about that a lot in Ro,because we talk about that a lot
in Roots, we talk about it alot of this podcast Was there
any habits that were like oh mygosh, that were shocking to you?
Like one of the things that wehave you guys do and we talk
about on the show a lot is, youknow, going through and looking
at your past, spending yourexpenses, where your money has
been going.
Was there anything that stoodout to you like oh my gosh, I
can't believe we're spendingthis much on this?
Tara Mean (06:48):
Yeah, so it's.
Where are you at now?
There's like a worksheet thatyou fill out and you put all
your debt and then, when youlike, add it all up.
It is very surprising.
It's eye opening.
And when I did that, it wasjust it actually became
addicting to pay off the debt.
Like when I got on and startedlike looking at stuff and paying
(07:09):
off stuff, it was veryaddictive.
I'm like, oh, I paid offanother one.
I was able to get rid of this.
It was good, awesome.
Brad Nelson (07:15):
Yeah, that's awesome.
So talk about you have kids 13and 14.
Obviously, kids they cost money.
Right, they can be expensive.
What did they have to say aboutthis new plan that you guys got
on?
Tara Mean (07:26):
Well, my daughter is very I want to say frugal with
her money.
Like, for example, if I giveher money to spend, she'll like
save some of it.
She's very smart with money.
Um, and even my husband liketalks to them about money.
They talk about what we weredoing.
I said, oh, guess what?
I paid off the truck, Like Ijust paid off our truck this
(07:48):
week.
And she goes oh, dad alreadytold me.
So they're kind of on boardwith the things so that we can
reach our goals and go onvacations and have money for
things that they want to do sothey're totally on board yeah.
Brad Nelson (08:04):
I love that.
Again, like I said, gettingyour husband on board.
How did that go?
Was he excited about it atfirst, or was he like a little
cautious?
What is this?
What were his thoughts on it?
Tara Mean (08:14):
Okay, so first he was very skeptical.
Like we did not have joint bankaccounts, we had our money
separate.
I did the training for Harmonyfor couples.
Brad Nelson (08:25):
Oh, yeah, yeah, training for.
Tara Mean (08:26):
Harmony for couples.
So I did the training.
We held hands, we looked ineach other's eyes and I said
let's do this, because he sawlike what I had paid off in.
You know, when I first startedand I helped him pay off some of
the debt that he had, I saidlet's do this.
And so we were paying off.
His debt was our debt, but wewere paying it off.
(08:47):
And then we combined ourfinances sometime last year and
then it just went from thereLike we joined bank accounts.
We had some really greatprogress in of December of last
year, of last year, starting inDecember, we had paid off
(09:08):
$22,447 in debt in December.
Brad Nelson (09:15):
That was from July through December.
Tara Mean (09:18):
From July to November I paid off over $15,000.
But then another year has goneby and then in December we paid
off $22,000.
But since then, since December,we paid off $34,954 in debt.
(09:44):
So credit card debt, loans,truck payment.
So now all the credit cards arepaid, the loans are paid.
We have one car payment now.
Everything is paid.
I can't believe it.
Brad Nelson (09:48):
How does that feel when you see that?
Tara Mean (09:51):
It is the most amazing feeling.
And my husband, he's just asaddicted as I am in paying off
the debt.
I'm like can I pay off the loan?
Because I think we paid off theloan maybe last week.
I think it was like $3,500 lastweek and then we paid off
(10:11):
$2,600 this week for the truck.
So yeah, it's just, it's anaddiction.
Brad Nelson (10:16):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, you guys have paid off tens of
thousands of dollars, right?
And what you're talking aboutis the addiction of like it just
feels great, right.
It's like just freedom, right.
It's just it's incredible to beable to see that kind of
progress, especially when youstruggle and you don't really
make any progress.
Now you're starting to see it.
You're right, you definitely doget addicted to it.
(10:39):
And from a relationshipstandpoint, when it comes to
financial conversations, I'mguessing, because now you guys
combine finances conversationsprobably are a lot better
nowadays, right?
Tara Mean (10:48):
Much better.
He's totally on board.
He's much happier now.
He can sleep at night.
Before he was probably verystressed.
He couldn't sleep, you know,having all this debt over his
head.
So, yeah, we do have a house aswell in Florida, so we have to
figure that out.
But as far as our credit carddebt and loan debt, we don't
(11:10):
want it anymore.
Brad Nelson (11:11):
Yeah, now you mentioned building your
emergency fund.
Obviously it's one of the firstkind of like small goals that
we give our members to do isbuild that $1,000 to $3,000
emergency fund.
Can you share some things thathelped you build that, because
people are probably asking, like, how did Tara do this?
Like paid off tens of thousandsof dollars, built an emergency
fund.
She was not making progressbefore she started, so like, was
there things that you did thathelped you build that really
(11:33):
quickly, you think, was therethings?
Tara Mean (11:34):
that you did.
That helped you build thatreally quickly.
You think, well, we used ourtax return to help build it as
well and so I would put money inthere.
I used some of the money to paythe debt, but this year with
our tax return I think we gotabout 18,000 back, but in our
emergency fund now we have over33,000.
(11:56):
So we used our tax return, ourbonuses you know like his
bonuses and we put it in there.
We could feel good about it.
We have like a nice nest eggand then just this one little
car payment.
Brad Nelson (12:15):
Yeah, yeah, and that number.
Looking at that number and thatsavings account, man, you talk
about being able to breatheright and just knowing like, hey
, we've got money in the bank incase something comes up.
I mean, you just go throughlife in a much different way,
much better mental health, likeless stress.
Man, good for you guys.
And again, you guys got startedin July of 2023 in that area.
So we're talking coming up onyour two-year mark, essentially
(12:36):
Two-year it's doable.
Tara Mean (12:38):
It's really good.
You have to stay engaged withthe program because it helps
keep you motivated.
Do your Roots 15.
Do your action items.
It all helps, everything helps,or we wouldn't be here.
Brad Nelson (12:53):
Well, I love that.
So did you tell anybody elsethat you were doing this?
I mean, obviously you're on thepodcast.
People are going to know you'redoing it now, but does anyone
know that you're doing it?
Was anyone kind of like you'redoing what?
You joined a program to helpyou get out of debt.
That's weird.
Anyone say anything to youabout that?
Tara Mean (13:09):
Yeah, so for some people maybe they live like that
.
They think it's normal.
Other people are maybe arebetter with money.
But I talked to mysister-in-law about it and every
time I pay like something, Ilet her know about it.
So she had given me a book.
It was probably a Dave Ramseybook.
And I read it, but she read thebook too and there's no
(13:32):
progress.
So it's a great book, like Ilove the book, but this program
actually helped me because ithelped me stay accountable.
Brad Nelson (13:41):
Yeah, and I want to hit on that because you're
right Even listening to thispodcast, listening to a podcast,
reading a book there's nothingwrong with that.
Education, getting positiveinformation into your mind, is
all great stuff.
The hard part is doing the workthat you're learning about.
That's where people struggle,and you mentioned, obviously,
roots helped you stayaccountable to it.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthat?
What are the things in therethat helped you keep your feet
(14:03):
to the fire on what you guyswere doing?
Tara Mean (14:05):
Yeah, so the weekly meetings.
It just gives you weeklyreminders like, okay, debt is a
trap, or whatever the meeting isthat week.
You're learning about snowballor you're learning about your
emergency fund.
It gives you reminders everyweek and then from there, you
have your Friday celebrations.
I look forward to that like themost, the Friday celebrations,
(14:29):
because I'm like this is what Idid this week.
It helps you.
It gives you things to work on,like whether it's building your
emergency fund, not using anycredit card.
There's challenges.
Yeah, it's great.
It definitely helped, or Iwouldn't be.
We're in the position I am today.
Brad Nelson (14:48):
Yeah, it's so good.
So I mean looking at whereyou're at now versus when you
started, would you have everbelieved that with your
experience with money, that youwould have ever made this kind
of progress in this time period?
Tara Mean (15:02):
No, I think it would have taken much longer, many
years, many, many years.
I would have been probablystuck for a long time.
Brad Nelson (15:09):
Yeah, well, it's awesome.
Tara, I just want to thank youagain for jumping on and sharing
.
I think what you guys have beenable to do just in less than 10
years is proof.
Even today, like in theeconomic times that we're in,
with expenses, the way that theyare normal everyday, people
still can make great progressand you guys are just proof of
that.
And you're right.
You guys had to do the work andI'm proud of you guys for being
willing to stand up and do thatwork, because that's hard work.
(15:30):
What you guys have done is abig deal and it's going to just
have this tremendous payback foryou guys for the rest of your
lives and super proud of whatyou guys have been able to do.
Tara Mean (15:39):
Thank you so much.
Thanks for having me.
Brad Nelson (15:45):
Yeah, absolutely All right.
Guys, if you're ready to breakfree from living paycheck to
paycheck, you want to startgetting results like Tara just
talked about.
You want to reduce stress.
You want to build savings.
You want to pay off tens ofthousands of dollars of debt,
but again, maybe, pay off tensof thousands of dollars of debt,
but again, maybe you're justnot sure where to get started.
Don't worry, I've got youcovered.
Simplify my Money is sent toyou each and every Sunday to
your email.
It is your step-by-step roadmapto better financial control.
You're also going to learn someeasy-to-follow strategies to
(16:06):
manage your money effectively.
You're also going to getstress-free money decisions that
are going to help you simplifyyour financial life with proven
tips that actually work, andyou're going to gain the tools
and the confidence to tackleyour financial goals head on.
Tara Mean (16:19):
Sign up for Simplify my Money by clicking the link,
at the bad things that may be.
Let's talk about debt.
Announcer (16:39):
Let's talk about debt .
Tune into.
Tara Mean (16:42):
Debt Free.
Debt Tune into Debt Free.
Brad Nelson (16:44):
Debt.
That's all means it's time forthe celebrations of the show,
and today we are kicking it offwith Laura.
Laura says I added $75 to myemergency fund last week.
I'm working hard at sellingthings on Marketplace Only $925
more to go.
My goal is to post at leastfive items per day, laura way to
(17:05):
go and way to focus onincome-producing activities.
I love that.
Tammy says my win this week isthat I paid off two smaller
medical bills.
I added $500 to my savings andset aside $500 more for a new
backdoor, currently working onmy next month's budget.
Tammy, congratulations to you.
Awesome wins.
And last but not least isTiffany.
(17:26):
Tiffany says going on vacationand paying 100% cash.
She says I also just paid offmy next credit card on the debt
snowball list.
Tiffany, amazing, amazing wins.
Hey, as always, guys,congratulations to all of you
guys who are taking a stand foryour financial life and you're
wanting better.
Hey, we get that.
Getting out of debt isn't easy,but with our help and with your
consistency and discipline, wepromise you guys, this will be
(17:48):
some of the best work that youguys do in your entire life.
Thanks for joining us ontoday's show and we will see you
guys on the next episode.
Announcer (18:00):
Thanks for listening to the Debt-Free Dad podcast.
Connect with us on Facebook,tiktok, youtube and Instagram.
Just search Debt-Free Dad.
If you found value in today'sepisode, please leave us a
rating and review.
We so appreciate it.
For resources, show notes andlinks mentioned in today's show
visit debtfreedadcom.
(18:20):
Catch you next week.
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