Using Video Games to Get Out of Debt

Debt is the wealth killer. Debt is also a tool that requires mastery of money. I can’t walk in to my kid’s taekwondo dojo, fight the masters, and expect to win. It takes years of practice and experience to even get to that starting line. The best place to start building wealth is with a good plan and no debt. But if you’re already in debt, here’s what has worked for me. 

Join the anti-social social club. I’m kind of sick of seeing this phrase on sweaters when I’m out and about, all over social media, and on clothing in video games as of late. It got me thinking. Playing video games helps you join a community that is technically an anti-social social club. The reason is simple, I don’t really enjoy going out into the social circles that are part of my work or school and sit around listening to the latest gossip or trending news. I’m more interested in the thinking of people who are the trailblazers of what it means to be free. One of the dreams I’d like to experience again is being free from debt and for me, that means more than having wealth at this point in my life.

All get-out-of-debt plans are boring as (insert explicative). Trying not to spend money on entertainment is hard and so boring. There’s only so much self-help, exercise, meditation, and mantras I can really do. My biggest money wasters are eating out and even worse, going out drinking. With twenty dollars I can make twenty drinks in my own home. Nowadays, I’m lucky to get two drinks in a bar not including tip. Why bartenders get tips for a drink they make in thirty seconds is beyond me. But having to stand around for fifteen minutes waiting for them to come my way has taught me otherwise. We tend to pay for things that make life easier. 

Think of time as money and stop being lazy. Money allows me comforts to do less and not struggle. Depending on what is being saved, I always take into consideration what is worth my time. Saving five dollars in gas to wait in a line for fifteen minutes is not worth it for me. I’d rather get my fifteen minutes and fill up at a more expensive gas station with no line. When making money, I try to concentrate my productive time. The two hours I spend assembling products and shipping to Amazon will net me $750. At $376 per hour I discovered the more effective use of my time. This leaves me a lot more time to either make more money or spend time how I want. Lately, my entertainment of choice is video games.

Friends and partners are expensive but necessary. Most of the time, you want to go out and do stuff and that’s perfectly fine. I would not trade any of my past experiences. That’s where I need to listen to my heart and soul. Although my primary goal is getting out of debt, life is more than just sucking it up and refusing everything. There are times where my soul needs to be recharged and that’s worth a couple of days off of work. It will be a struggle for sure but I ask myself if I would regret the decision. That answer is always no. I’ve had enough experience to get to know myself and where the limits are for achieving my goals. I learned to prioritize what is important to me and getting out of debt is not always the priority. It would certainly help me get out faster but at what cost? The unseen expense is if I contract some medical issue or develop a calloused attitude toward people from the stress building up and never doing things that make me feel alive. It’s good to have a direction to fall back on but when life calls–it’s best to answer.