It is very easy to be consumed by student loans while paying off your student debt. As previously mentioned on this website, I was absolutely obsessed with my student loans during my student debt repayment saga. Over the past year or so, I have also communicated with hundreds of people who have told me how consumed they are with their student loans. Of course, student debt borrowers often want to talk about their experiences with student loans, since student debt is an important part of their lives. However, there are certain things you should keep in mind when discussing student loans with friends and family.
It is an understatement to say that student debt was an important part of my life while paying off my student loans. Understandably, I wanted to speak to others about my student debt so that I could learn student loan repayment strategies and share my story. However, when discussing student debt with other people, I was often faced with hostility and annoyance.
One of the reasons why people often don’t want to hear about someone’s student debt struggles is since it reminds them of financial pressures that most people experience. Indeed, I remember one time, my secretary asked me why I never went on vacation, and I related that I was trying to save money to pay off my student loans early. My secretary seemed annoyed about my response, and then launched into a long discussion about her own financial struggles and how you have to enjoy life without considering financial consequences.
In addition, many people are very private about their student loans, and don’t like people sharing their story or asking them for their own experiences. I completely understand how discussing student loans can bring up some information that people would rather keep private, since many people don’t want to admit to any kind of financial hardship.
Based on my own experiences, it is usually best to talk about student loans as little as possible, and it is especially important to refrain from talking about student loans with people with which you are not close. Although student loans are a major part of many people’s lives, discussing student debt can oftentimes generate friction.
However, some people will invariably want to hear about your student debt story. Many of the individuals in my life who were most interested in discussing student loans were older people in my family who wanted to offer me advice. However, I think there is a generational divide in how student loans were handled by individuals decades ago and how burdensome student loans are for borrowers in the present.
There are a number of things you should keep in mind when discussing student loans with older people in your life. From my own experiences, many older individuals think that educational costs have simply increased with the cost of inflation since they went to school, and as such, the burden of student loans is no greater now than it was for them. This is false, and it is important to emphasize how educational costs have increased at a rate higher than inflation for decades.
It is also important to discuss with older people in your life how student debt is not subject to many of the ordinary precepts of financial security. I remember one time, my grandfather told me that I should only pay the minimums on my student loans and put the rest in the bank or place the money in safe investments. However, I told my grandfather that much of my debt had an eight percent interest rate, and I could not expect to make a larger return by investing, especially since I would have to pay taxes on any gain.
On more than one occasion, older folks in my life suggested that I not worry about my student debt, since the student loan companies might just forget about my loans! Although my student debt lenders made mistakes during my student loan repayment saga, I had to convey how unlikely it was that they would forget my loans when justifying my repayment tactics.
During my student debt repayment saga, I also found that individuals who never borrowed student loans were curious about the burdens of student debt. Sometimes, to be completely honest, I had trouble speaking to folks who did not have student debt because of jealously! However, there are certain things that should be emphasized when discussing student loans with folks who never borrowed student debt.
First, it is important to note the cascading effect of student loans, and how student debt can affect one’s ability to own a home, buy a car, and succeed financially. It is also critical to explain how student loans are much different than mortgages, car loans, etc. since folks who never borrowed student debt might think that student loans are similar to other types of debt. In addition, I have found that individuals who never borrowed student loans sometimes feel bad because they have no education debt, usually since their parents paid for their education. However, I typically explain how my financial status helped me receive need-based financial aid, to which wealthier individuals are usually not entitled.
In the end, discussing student loans can be difficult, since personal finances is a touchy topic. Although it is a good policy to just not discuss student debt altogether, if individuals are curious, it is a great idea to educate people about student loans. So long as you keep a few things in mind, it is easy to talk with friends and family about student debt.