Last week I took part in the student debt challenge of Maaike van fuck that student debt (fuck die studieschuld). I have been following her for a while and saw the challenge and thought Lets see. The challenge consisted of 7 assignments in 7 days. Here are the challanges and how I did them.
Challenge 1 No spending
The first day was immediately a tough challenge. You weren’t allowed to spend that day. Neither cash, nor debit cards and not via internet. That day I had to send a registered mail to one of my clients. So I had to get out of the house and to the mall. I did it. I only paid for it that day (That was allowed).
I am not someone who buys, buys and buys. Still, it was difficult not to go to supermarket and get something that day. I survived the first challenge.
Challenge 2 Pocket change
Find small amounts that you spend on your account and choose one and don’t spend it for a whole week. This was a little easier now with Corona measures than usual, because when I work on location I sometimes buy lunch. Those are small amounts, but quite often. This also worked more or less this week, because on Thursday when I was working on location my water bottle broke and so I bought water. Little cheat 😊.
Challenge 3 Repayment goal
On day 3 you had to come up with a repayment goal. So I have thought that of every part of an invoice amount that goes to private (this is a fixed percentage per invoice), 2 percent of that will go to my student debt. I opened a special redemption savings account in Knab for this, because you can transfer a minimum of 5 euros to Duo. And since it concerns every invoice that I get paid, it can be large or small amounts. Every time there is 5 euros on it, I will transfer it.
I also have a nice thermometer hanging to visualize my goal. I am curious how much will be gone by the end of 2020. You can help😊 by buying my Excel ecourses or making your purchase at bol.com and booking through my website. On the side you see the banners to make your purchase.
Challenge 4 Sell something
Sell one thing. I already had a stand for the laptop on Marktplaats (Dutch ebay) and I added a large storage box. I no longer need both, because the first does not fit my laptop and the second I have cleaned up and put away those things, minimizing remains a goal for me. This assignment was a breeze for me.
Challenge 5 Tell about your student debt
Tell someone about your student debt. Most people around me know that I have a student debt, but not how big it is. Until 2012, I paid more than the minimum amount each month. That was easy with my salary back then. When I started for myself, it did not seem wise to me, because I first had to look and have a buffer. After that, I went on a trip and paused the payoff or paid off the minimum so far. I have over 33,000 euros left to pay off. So I told someone, you the reader 😊.
Challenge 6 Less ads
Make sure you get less advertisment. Because I adhere to minimalism, I receive little to no advertisment. I went through my email anyway and canceled two more newsletters. I already had a Yes / No sticker so no problems there.
Challenge 7 Pay a small amount to your student debt
Transfer an amount to Duo. Okay, I didn’t expect that. Do I really have to transfer an amount to Duo right now? I have not sold anything through Marktplaats so that money was not there to transfer. Oke, I will transfer 5 euros! So my first repayment in years has been done! Although the minimum that is allowed, but a start.
The challenges were nice challenges and got me thinking about my student debt. It is my own fault that I still have it. And it has to go, because otherwise the capital that I am building with investing has no value. So Duo can expect a lot of 5 euro transfer from me.
My after Corona Bucket List
Chocolate fair
Not one but two walking related conferences just before spring starts
No I am not ….
No reason Retroprints
1 percent turnover to Wegloophuis Utrecht
1st quarter 2020
Farewell to Strijp-S in Style
The 5 lessons I learned from the book Blondies invest better
1 percent gross turnover to the Food Bank
Databeet story
English 
Dutch
2 thoughts on “I don’t want to know about my student debt”
Hey, wat leuk dat je hebt meegedaan! En ook leuk om te lezen hoe het je is vergaan. En supergoed trouwens dat je de laatste dag geld hebt overgemaakt! Ik herken dat wel, dat je denkt: nee, dat hoef ik niet echt te doen, toch? En dan is het zo verleidelijk om te stoppen. Maar je hebt het gewoon gedaan! Voelt misschien als een klein stapje, die vijf euro, maar let maar op: dit zet van alles in beweging.
Inmiddels heb ik nog twee keer 5 euro overgemaakt! Dus het brengt me wel in beweging inderdaad 🙂