Most people don’t fear debt. They accept it. Some even wear it like a badge.
You’ll hear things like
“Debt is leverage.”
“Smart people use it to build wealth.”
“Everyone has loans. It’s normal.”
Here’s the truth: that mindset is exactly why people stay stuck. Debt is not a tool for most people. It’s a trap dressed up as opportunity.
The script they sold you
You’re told this is how life works.
Take a loan for education. Then borrow for a car. Sign a 20-year home loan. Swipe the credit card when money feels tight. Take a personal loan for the wedding or vacation. Stack EMI after EMI.
Sounds like progress. Feels like growth. But look closer.
Every time you borrow, you trade a piece of your future. You don’t just owe money. You owe time. Effort. Options. Control.
You’re not building freedom. You’re locking it away.
Debt isn’t harmless. It’s permission slavery.
This isn’t dramatic. It’s just honest.
When you owe money, your life becomes smaller. You can’t leave the job. You hesitate before saying no. You filter decisions through monthly repayments.
You are no longer free to pause, reset, or pivot.
Your lender decides the terms. You just comply.
And the worst part? You’re repaying with money that keeps losing value while interest stacks quietly in the background.
That’s not smart finance. That’s modern servitude.
But isn’t some debt good?
Let’s be fair. There is a difference between consumer debt and asset-backed borrowing.
Borrowing to build a business or buy an asset that pays for itself? Maybe. But that’s not what most people do.
Most people borrow to spend. Gadgets. Cars. Furniture. Stuff that doesn’t grow in value and doesn’t return a single rupee back.
So let’s stop pretending debt is a strategic move when it’s really just a coping mechanism dressed up as financial logic.
Debt has weight
You don’t just carry it in your bank account. You carry it in your head. In your stress levels. In the decisions you avoid. In the opportunities you don’t even consider.
This stuff is invisible, but it’s real.
You’re not building wealth when you’re deep in EMIs. You’re surviving.
You wake up every day calculating how much you owe. That’s not freedom. That’s a quiet cage.
Financial freedom starts at zero
Forget what you’ve been told. Real freedom doesn’t start when you have ₹1 crore in mutual funds. It starts when you owe no one.
At zero, your income is yours.
You can walk away. Say no. Take time. Change direction. Sleep better.
It’s not flashy. But it’s power.
So what do you actually do?
If you’re in debt right now, this is your way out.
- Stop calling it normal
It’s not just another payment. It’s limiting your options. - Make it your top priority
Don’t invest before you clear high-interest debt. Paying off a 24% credit card is better than any stock tip. - Cut brutally
Anything that’s not helping you get to zero faster is slowing you down. - Build cash buffers
Freedom doesn’t come from spending. It comes from space.
You’re not broken. The system is.
The truth is, you were trained to accept debt. From your first loan offer, you were nudged toward dependence.
You were never taught to ask:
What does this loan cost me in life, not just interest?
That question changes everything.
Debt isn’t evil. But blind loyalty to it is.
Choose clarity over comfort.
Get to zero. Stay there.
Then build from that place.
That’s real leverage.
Fiat to Free 
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