Yello's Personal Thoughts

March 10, 2026 - I am FINALLY debt-free!

As of February 26, 2026 at 25 years old, I am OFFICIALLY debt-free from my student loans!!!! I never thought the day would come this soon. I can't tell you just how liberating it feels because I was hopelessly expecting to be paying this debt into my 30's. But thanks to years of discipline and a little bit of an unexpected opportunity, I'm finally on the other side of a $53,000 student loan. It's crazy that that amount is considered low nowadays, and I'll be the first to say that student loans are 1000% a scam.

Yes, I know you get supposedly higher education, get the chance to live on your own, network and all that. But why does it come at such a detrimental cost? It didn't help that half of my college experience was (understandably) stifled by COVID, but that certainly didn't do me any favors when initially trying to enter the job market. Because of this instant pressure to pay off my loans, I felt so pressured to find a secure entry level job immediately. And lemme tell you, job hunting post-COVID is the most depressing thing I've ever done. I do not care what the older generations think. I couldn't simply "try harder". So imagine trying to do that while needing to keep up with interest-accruing debt. Yeah, not exactly beneficial for my brain.

I hold so much resentment towards student loans because especially in the US, you're expected to go to college or else you're severely disadvantaged...or at least you'll be unfairly judged. I started taking out loans when I first entered college in 2018, but didn't start actually paying until after I graduated in 2022. So for these past 3-4 years, I felt like these loans did nothing but hold me back. A good chunk of my paycheck would never be mine, so I could never TRULY save enough money to move on in life.

BUT, I will give myself some grace. Paying off loans in under 5 years for someone as low-income as me is extremely rare. I'm usually not a big spender, but I did have to deny myself a lot of nice experiences in order to keep my head down and keep my interest at bay. I can never judge too much for people who want to enjoy their youth before the reality sets in; life is already hard enough. But I've always stood by the phrase "slow and steady wins the race". That goes for art, productivity, and ESPECIALLY finances. As tempting as those get-rich-quick listicles are, usually the methodical, boring way is the most effective and the least headache-inducing.

I didn't need to sell off all of my possessions, only eat $1 meals, or live in a shoebox. I just saved whenever I could and dumped it towards my loans. That vacation was never gonna be worth the satisfaction of finally having my paycheck be ALL mine.

So to my student loans, thank you for keeping my humble but also fuck you.