The expression “Happy Anniversary” can often be applied to more than just weddings and years of employment. On December 21, 2023, Al expressed these words to Lesia and her response was, “For what?” Al was acknowledging their accomplishment of living another year debt-free. In fac, over 75% of the couple’s 21 years of marriage has been lived without any consumer debt.

Making the decision to buy your life back is one of the most difficult challenges people face as they strive to achieve a debt-free lifestyle. After looking back on their journey, here are a few tips that helped the Riddicks:

Marry the right person: Financial disagreements are bound to happen, however, when both parties can come to a mutual agreement, it reduces stress.
Understand your spouse’s relationship with money. Questions that begin with what, when, or how usually produce the best answers. Avoid using the word why because most people find it offensive.
Spend money on what you value as a couple.
Implement simple and easy-to-duplicate systems for saving, investing, and debt reduction.
Determine a monthly allowance that represents each person’s fun money.
Select a consistent day and time each month to review your spending plan for the next month.
Track what you plan to measure: projected spend versus actual spend, debt reduction, change in net worth.
Plan for predictability. Many aspects of your financial life are predictable and planning accordingly helps with cash flow management.
Rinse and repeat!