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Chapter 1: What are the key strategies for getting out of debt?
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Let's go out to the 806 to Amarillo, Texas, and talk to Sam. What's up, Sam? Hey, how you guys doing? We're rocking on to the break of dawn, brother. What are you up to?
Oh, man, let me tell you. The last few years of my life has been, some people would call it easy street, and I would have agreed with you if you told me 10 years ago, but now I'm struggling to find purpose. I'm struggling with being fulfilled.
What does easy street mean?
Well, I... I was in the military. I did eight years in the U.S. Navy, and I came home, got a four-year degree, and I made the decision. I was like, okay, if I meet my eventual wife while I'm in college, then I'll settle down. I'll start a family. If I don't, I'll go back into the service as an officer, and you wouldn't say just have it.
The Lord blessed me, and I found my wife, and we've been married now for six years. She is a family medicine physician. and board-certified surgical obstetrician. So she makes all the money, and we have three beautiful babies. I love my babies. I love them so much. But the Bible makes it very clear it is not good for man not to work.
And I feel like the pressure is on, even though I don't need it for financial purposes. I just feel like I'm not doing anything of value, which I know is a lie. Raising my kids is the greatest value that I can have as a human being. because they're going to leave the most lasting impact. Money is only going to go so far, but my kids can make a lasting impact on their communities.
But I just don't see the return on investment right now, and that's where I'm struggling.
Man. If you were here, if you and I were just sitting, if we met up in Lubbock and we were just sitting down in the shadow of the stadium having a drink, I would get up right now and I'd walk around the table and I'd give you a hug. Here's why. For some reason, you believe that your value is economic. Like that's it. And for some reason, you have backed yourself into this corner of either or.
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Chapter 2: How can I prepare financially for buying a house?
Okay. So what you're finding out is you want to do a thing in the road you're trying to take isn't working. Cool. Can you find some folks at your local church there or over at, at WT and go sit there and have coffee with him and ask them about it opportunities in Amarillo, Texas?
I could probably talk to someone for sure. I don't know who that someone would be, but I could start asking questions.
All you want to do is take someone to coffee. Do you know anyone that works in IT, even Facebook friends?
I gave up Facebook like 10 years ago.
Okay. Well, you need to find some people who are in that field.
Bro, you got people you're in the service with that are scattered across the country.
They are, actually, and I tried getting help there, and they tried to help me get jobs, but even there, I came up short. Admittedly, I haven't dug in as deeply locally as I probably could have, and I'm not even from here. That's part of my hesitation. I'm like, they're going to be like, who's this guy? There's nobody. I don't know who he is.
No, they're not. That's bullcrap. That's a story you're telling yourself. And again, it goes back to you. That's why I would have come around the table and hugged you because the cancer here is not that you haven't found an IT job. The cancer here is you have lost purpose.
You think when you checked out of the military and married an amazing woman that there was a period at the end of your sentence, and that's wrong. It's not true. It's a lie. And so when you go looking for a job, you're going looking for a job with one foot. You're just sending out a bunch of LinkedIn profiles and that's not how people get jobs.
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Chapter 3: What should I do if my spouse wants to stay home?
What do we want this house to feel like when we get home every day? How much are you making a year, James?
Just you.
Just myself, about $60,000.
And are you doing music lessons full-time?
No, mother-in-law does music.
My wife, no. She's a music teacher by trade.
What are you doing full-time?
I am a program director for a medium-sized nonprofit.
Okay. So I think we also need to go, okay, if this is in the future, my wife staying home, we're going to be a one-income family, what changes do I need to make? What education do I need to get? What career moves do I need to make in order to sustain a good life for my family? And that's the part that I think scares you, is this involves you having to change too.
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