Hannah Cox - How she got out of £20,000 of debt and saved £15,000 in a year to go on a 10 month, 18,000 mile journey from the UK to Bhutan

Hannah, is a 34-year-old creator, minimalist and adventurer living in Manchester, UK. Last year she got rid of everything she owned except what would fit in a carry on backpack. She travelled overland from the UK to Bhutan through eighteen countries with her partner Phil to document and discover what makes people happy. 

Hannah has scoliosis and deals with chronic pain, although she wears a permanent back brace, this does not stop her from getting out side and hiking on a regular basis. In her early twenties, she was £20,000 in debt and working in a stressful, badly paid job. Her Dad dying suddenly encouraged her to become debt free and focus on doing work with purpose that helps support other people. 

Hannah is now back in the UK writing about her experiences at betternotstop.com. Hannah shares stories about how to enjoy everyday life through work, friendships, travel, and adventure. Hannah believes experiencing different countries and culture is a way to discover more about ourselves and how to make the world a better place.

During this podcast we focus on the money, how she got into the debt, the mistakes she made and how ultimately she turned it around by getting out of debt and saving £15,000 in a year to pay for the ‘Road to Happiness’ Expedition.

*** this is not financial advice*** If you are having financial problems please speak to a qualified professional.

Show notes

• Growing up, getting a job at 15
• Going to university getting a full time job, a student loan and an overdraft
• Work hard and play harder - not being sensible with money - racking up credit card debt while at university, 
• Taking out a loan to expand a business
• The breakdown of a relationship and moving to a new town
• Not being able to pay the minimum payments on her credit cards
• Feeling overwhelmed by her money situation 
• Why only overspending by a few hundred pounds a month can lead to huge problems down the line
• Moving back home to live with her mum, about 45 mins from London
• Planning to move to London and to get a job working in events
• Would you like to live on a tropical island? Disappearing off to Asia for a year to forget about the money problems in the UK
• moneysavingexpert.com 
• Deciding between 2 options - declare bankruptcy or going down the Individual Voluntary Arrangement
• Individual Voluntary Arrangement and what that involved for Hannah
• Having major surgery, and losing her father while all of this was happening
• How it felt once she paid if all off
• No debt, no credit cards, no overdrafts
• Minimalism how she got into this movement- the minimalists
• Never earning more than £25,000
• Saving up £15,000 for a 10 month expedition (the Road to Happiness )
• Having a 2 bedroom house and why she decided on that
• Getting a flat mate, cycling into work, saving everything she could
• Gary Vaynerchuk and the Flip Challenge 
• How to make money from doing adventures and the plan for the blog
• 2 new books coming out - How to save for an adventure and how to plan for an adventure 
• Tim Moss from the Next Challenge - self publishing books 
• Cathy O’Dowd - The Business of Adventure 
• Pat Flynn - Smart Passive Income 
• Patreon for creators https://www.patreon.com 
• Privilege in the adventure industry
• Earning £600 a month going forward
• Taking ownership of her goals and financial future and being very clear with what she wants to achieve.
• Doing monthly income reports
• Documenting the journey
• Final words of advice  - ‘You can’t change the people around you, but you can change the people around you’
• Find your tribe 

Social Media

Follow Hannah's Writing at betternotstop  

Support Hannah on Patreon 

Instagram: @betternotstop  

Facebook: @betternotstop    

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