Last Updated on January 7, 2020

Every other person I come into contact with has student loan debt. Some may have five-figure debt while others have six-figure debt. Truthfully, I honestly believe that all debt is created equal! It’s debt! It has to get paid off one way or another.

The point of this debt-free series is to bring attention to those stories that aren’t often brought to the forefront. Today, I’ll be sharing how a stay at home mom became debt-free by using side hustles!

Stay at home moms are often underestimated! Today, more millennial women are leaving the workforce to become stay at home moms. According to Forbes.com, technology allows millennial women to stay home and raise their babies while providing the flexibility to work from home. This proves that women’s purpose does not lie in one or the other. SAHMs are breadwinners, too.

We are living in a day and age where technology should not be underestimated. Stay at home moms are staking their claim and taking it on with full force.

I want to introduce you to Valencia. She used side hustles to pay off $43,000 of debt in three years while being a stay at home mom!

Complete the sentence “I knew I was debt-free when….”

I did not have to budget for a student loan payment!

Tell me a little about yourself?

I am a financial coach, blogger, author, and the founder of Millionairess Mama Financial Group, LLC. Today I write about family finances, side hustles and building a legacy of financial freedom. However, it didn’t start out that way. Financial literacy was not a topic of discussion in my household. My mother (who happened to be a single mom) did not show me how to be financially astute. We lived house poor, eviction notices always on our door and on most days we were without food. Growing up in this environment, I realized I did not want to fall into the same pattern.

I am a first-generation college student graduating with my B.A. in Sociology. I put myself through school with 2 jobs and student loans. Graduated from college with over $40,000 in student loan debt. I attempted to pay them off but I had to request deferments for economic hardships, I was not earning enough money to make monthly payments.

Fast forward a few years, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl and married her father. The marriage ended in divorce within 3 months. During this time, I relied on my credit cards and I racked up thoughts of dollars in credit card debt.

One day I realized that this is not the lifestyle I want to live, I needed to make ends meet for myself and for my daughter. Since I was a stay at home mom, I started focusing on side hustles. Eleven side hustles to be exact. I discuss those side hustles in my book The Ultimate Side Hustler. Once I decided to change my money mindset and work on those side hustles, I became completely debt free in 3 years. I was a stay at home mom with a toddler at home and no full-time job.

What did your debt consist of and how much did you (or do you) owe? 

I am debt-free! My debt consisted of student loans and credit card debt. I owed over $43,000 of debt.

At what point did you realize you wanted to be debt-free?

Having my daughter, made me realize I wanted to leave a legacy. Therefore, I had to get rid of my debt and build wealth.

What steps did you take to reduce your debt?

What was the most difficult challenge you faced in eliminating your debt?

The most difficult challenge that I faced in eliminating my debt was not taking care of myself. I was immersing myself in my bills and did not have a care or concern about self-care.  I’d rather pay bills opposed to taking care of myself.

Now that you’ve reached this goal, what’s next for you?

I’m immersing myself in real estate investing. I want to invest in multi-family housing.

Additionally, I’ve launched Side Hustle University where students learn about new side hustles, receive monthly sessions with individuals who know the ins and out of side hustling and participate in a book club that teaches various ways of building wealth.