If you want to eliminate debts quickly, one of the most effective strategies is to raise your earnings—not to cut your coffee habit or to suspend your subscriptions to streaming services. Having a better job with a higher salary will help you get out of debt more quickly than any way that merely relies on a budget.
While that may seem obvious, many people are trapped in low-paying positions while they try to aggressively eliminate their debts—and those types of math do not add up. You can only reduce expenses so far, but there are no limits on income.
So if your job doesn’t pay enough to cover your bills and nowhere near enough to even make the minimum payments on your debts, it might be time to seriously consider making a career change.
Three years into their debt repayment journey, a couple sat down and had a simple but painful discussion about their jobs. They both were employed in the same field and made regular incomes; however, something was “off” within them.
One of them did not work in the career he always dreamed of.
There was an unused degree, a career path that was living on the back-burner, and the realization that staying in a comfortable position was going to leave them in a financially miserable position.
That discussion resulted in an important act that was a combination of a new career challenge (starting fresh with a different career), from a different location, and income potential greater than they had experienced previously.
In one years’ time, a lot had changed.
The employer had downsized to the point where they were moving hundreds of miles away, new job paid approximately double what they had been earning, and was not easy to achieve, but it did help to foreshadow their path toward becoming debt free quickly.
Sometimes progress is achieved when you change up your entire routine.
The Biggest Question that Most People Avoid
One thing that many people never do is think long-term – they think in terms of 5 years away.
Not 5 days or 5 weeks or so, but 5 years.
Ask yourself the following:
- Will I want to work in this field 5 years from now?
- If so, what position/to what level?
- If not, what would I like to be doing?
Yet, if you choose not to change your career and stay where you are, it can be far more dangerous than switching careers.
Networking will never be fake, but it can sometimes feel that way to some; this is just being yourself.
The biggest myth in switching careers is that false pretenses are needed for genuine relationships.
Honesty always draws a positive response — not perfection. It would be better to ask for opinions and honesty to someone instead of trying to look “cool” and have fake self-confidence. If you sent someone a simple message like:
“Hi, I’m currently working in this field and considering moving into your field, and I would love to have your perspective on what the transition from one career to another is like, if at all possible.”
Many professionals are actually willing to give their time and knowledge to help those who are genuinely interested in learning. Networking is not showing off — it’s about having real conversations and learning from someone who has been in that career before.
Sometimes even one conversation can turn into one opportunity.
From that one opportunity comes one job.
From that job comes a different financial future for you.
Skill sets, accreditation, and reality regarding changing careers
Nobody wants to hear this, but it takes time to change careers sometimes.
You may need to earn a different credential or complete additional training.
You may have to take classes at night after you finish work.
While the process of moving into a new profession may not be particularly fun, and the time required can be long, if you’re already well-educated in terms of your current job (for example, 3 to 40 percent), you may already be closer to a career change than you realize since there are many people who have degrees they will never use completely.
The key to your success is not being afraid to take action instead of waiting for a “perfect” time.
Another point worth noting is that while companies do look for an applicant’s skills on their resume, they also very much consider the applicant’s energy and enthusiasm.
A candidate’s eagerness to grow within an organization’s team may outweigh a candidate’s technical qualifications, yet yield no hire.
Employers prefer to hire candidates who demonstrate initiative, motivation and enthusiasm for the position they are applying for because the energy they bring will translate to higher productivity once they have hired.
Therefore, the way the employer learns about you through your confidence, effort and enthusiastic attitude will open doors to opportunities other applicants will never be able to access because they only have their resume to rely upon.
Two-Way Evaluation in Interviews
A majority of job candidates tend to focus on what they’re being assessed for during an interview, and not that they too will assess the organisation they’re interviewing with. It is probable that a role could appear to be ideal on paper or on the job descriptions and company information; however, if the work environment is unhealthy or does not have clearly established expectations, it can become the worst job ever. A job applicant should not only get hired, but get hired by a company that is the right fit for them.
Asking questions at the end of the interview is a great way to show confidence and inquisitiveness. One question you might want to ask is, “What does success look like for this role in the first 3 months?”.
Asking the right questions can assist in creating your foundation for longevity within a specific organisation and/or profession.
Experiencing rejection is a component of the employment seeking process.
Let’s keep it real, the employment seeking process, at times, can be extremely taxing.
You send out dozens of applications.
Some organisations do not respond at all to your enquiry.
Others end up rejecting you after you have made it to the interview phase.
At times, it can be very disheartening to you as the job seeker.
Rejection should not serve as a failure to you, but rather an integral part of the entire process.
Talented individuals tend to have a higher level persistence; they have a tendency to continue on when adversity or difficulty arises for them. Successful people will often try multiple different things and consistently improve as they attempt to meet their goals.
Perseverance produces results just as much as perfection when it comes to having a successful career or being financially successful.
Don’t stop your efforts because of your uncertain future and/or the long time it takes you to see improvements.
If you are in debt, once your salary increases your ability to manage that debt becomes much easier.
Having a higher salary allows you to:
- Have a greater amount of pay applied towards your monthly debt
- Have a faster reduction of your principal balance
- Be less financially stressed
- Have greater flexibility in your monthly budget.
Instead of struggling with debt for years you now have the opportunity to significantly accelerate your progress towards having financial freedom.
Cutting back on spending can assist you in paying off debt, but increasing your income produces the most progress.
Momentum is what allows you to move forward while paying off debt rather than simply struggling to achieve your goal with little or no progress.
Switching jobs can be challenging and is not typically done overnight. It takes time to develop a new career path; you need time for research and networking; you need to learn new skills; you need patience; and you need persistence.
But if your current job isn’t allowing you to make enough money to pay off your debt faster, then seeking an alternate job may be the most effective option for changing both your income and your debt payoff period.
A new, better job will increase your income.
A larger income will decrease the time for you to pay off your debts.
Therefore, a shorter period of paying off your debts will improve your quality of life significantly.
The quickest way to achieve financial freedom does not necessarily involve spending less money, but rather earning more money while not putting yourself in a situation of being unable to change your position.
