SHIFTING PERSPECTIVES

Growing up, I have watched people take up loans, I have heard of people who took loans and also seen some of them in the movies but for most of it, I hardly saw any who took out a good loan. Most of them, they struggled so much in paying back what they owed and that caused them to go into hiding. When I saw this, I told myself as a little girl that taking of loan is the last thing and if possible, something I will never do.

I grew up with the mind that nothing good can come out of getting loans, so if I had seen a topic like this some years back, I would have had a challenge giving a response to it but thank goodness for growth, I’m older and I know a little better. Now I know that loans are more like a life saver to some people, just that some others don’t know how to manage the loans that have been given to them and they end up going bankrupt even after taking up a huge loan. Also, I have come to understand that, when taking a loan, the place and the terms of conditions are very vital no matter how urgent getting that loan might be.

If there was one thing that was common to those people who failed to pay up their loans when they should, it would be the fact that most of them took these loans from places that had really high interest rate and terms and conditions that they were too busy to read through. All that concerned them at that point was how to get that loan and sort whatever issues were pressing. And sadly, since they weren’t really in their right state of mind when taking that loan, they also most times end up spending it also in the wrong state of mind.

Knowing this much, I tried to leave my life in a way that I’d never have a need to take up a loan. Well, this was only possible because I had support from family and some friends and also I had something doing to keep me going. But still, at some point, I had a great need for a new phone which I know would help me get even more income for myself and I needed a very huge amount of money if I needed a good phone. I thought about it for a while, thinking of how to raise that money as soon as possible without taking anything from my staked income but then, the only way out was taking a loan, more like borrowing though.

This thought of borrowing money to help me get a new phone got me worried because I had promised myself to avoid borrowing money especially something huge. After a long time of thinking and deliberating, I spoke to my sister about and she advised me to borrow the money if I find anyone to give it to me. And luckily for me, I found someone who was willing to give me 3/4 of the money I needed with a deadline of 1 month. At first I was worried it was too short but then that was the condition for me to get the money.

I took some time to analyze how fixable it was for me to pay back in a month time and I saw that there was a good chance of me paying back so I opt for it. During that one month, I kept saving money daily to make sure I get the money back in a month. I was able to get the new phone and thanks to Hive, I was able to save enough to pay back exactly one month as agreed. I was really grateful to the person who gave me that huge amount of money, I was also proud of myself and most especially, I was grateful to God for helping gather enough to pay back.

I don’t think I would have been able to get my phone by now if I didn’t borrow that money when I did. I won’t have been better off either. I got to realize that sometimes we just have to go the extra length no matter what principles or promises we’ve made to ourselves, if we truly want to move to the next level. If I had held on to my belief of the negative effects of borrowing or taking loans, I wouldn’t have borrowed that money and by now I’d still be struggling to get my phone.