This Woman Had Bad Credit And Debt From 25 Credit Cards...She Now Owns A Multi-Million Dollar Enterprise
She was on every form of government assistance offered. She was robbing Peter to pay Paul. She was living paycheck to paycheck, with a non-existent savings account and an embarrassing, credit score. Finally, enough was enough. Arnita Johnson was fed up.
Arnita took charge over her credit and finances and, by successfully doing so, was led to her purpose in launching Luxurious CREDIT™, a credit consulting agency and financial education empire. Grossing over million dollars, Luxurious CREDIT™ is the fastest growing black-owned female ran credit consulting firm in the country.
“I graduated high school with good credit thanks to my mother, but six months later, I messed it up. I had 25 different credit cards and couldn't keep up with the payments. When you have good credit, credit card offers are literally thrown at you and I believe I got addicted to just being approved. I was working a low paying job and just could no longer keep up with the payments. I let the credit cards go believing in the myth that after seven years, those credit cards would disappear from my credit report. I was 18 years old and felt that within seven years, I would be 25 and I could just live with my bad credit."
In addition to the demanding responsibility of keeping credit cards in good standing, the Dallas native had a baby, was living in the hood, and was just trying to get by with what she had. “I worked long hours at a low paying job and went to school at night. I would cry on my way to work, on my way to school, and at night in my bed. I remember an era where I just cried all of the time. I just wanted to get ahead financially."
Arnita's woes didn't stop there.
When a job opportunity with an annual salary of $60,000 slipped through her fingers because of her poor credit score, it was a glaring wake up call. “I went home, pulled my credit report, and my God; my credit was shot. I was embarrassed. I ended up working at a car dealership and while there, I saw the difference between how people were treated with bad credit versus those who had good credit."
“The majority of people aren't taught how to make money, manage money, and definitely weren't taught how to spend it. Applying for too many credit cards, not having a budget, and spending money before you have it may easily cause one to fall in to debt."
A strong will and determination are Arnita's hallmarks. It was these characteristics that prompted her to begin taking one step at a time towards the life she knew she deserved. She knew her road to financial recovery wouldn't be short or sweet.
“Where there is a will, there is a way. Budget! Budget! Budget! You have to find out where all of your money is going. You will find it very difficult to become financially independent if you are using your credit cards as a source of income. Trust me on this, NOT all of your money is going towards your needs, some of it is going to towards your wants. Make your credit card(s) work for you.
"Pay off the balance on your credit cards BEFORE the end of the grace period, this way you aren't paying interest. Use a credit card with a cash back reward system, this way you are making money while spending it on something you would have paid cash for anyways. After creating your budget, use the snowball effect to pay off your credit cards. The snowball effect is when you pay off debts or credit cards with the smallest balances. By doing so, it will encourage you to keep paying off other debts."
By creating a strategic and realistic budget, as well as living below her means, Arnita was able to pay down her debts. Every extra dollar she found from her tight budgeting went towards her financial goals. Slowly but surely, it became easier and the weight of her financial burdens began to lift. Using the snowball effect, she paid off lower balances while continuing to make the minimum payments on her remaining debts. This strategy challenged some of her spending habits.
“It took a major shift in my priorities and I picked up other hobbies. Instead of hanging out with the girls on Friday nights, I would purchase a cheap bottle of wine and cuddle up with a good book. Instead of taking the kids to the movies and pizza, we watched movies on Netflix and made homemade pizzas. I soon realized that I was also saving on gas because I was staying home more.
"I had to learn something that I was never taught in life and that was how to spend, save, and manage money."
Once she had a handle on her spending habits, Arnita began to save. With an estimated 47% of Americans unable to come up with $400 in the event of an emergency, Arnita highly recommends saving as a close second to budgeting on the list of priorities for financial freedom.
“Saving money wasn't easy and took self-motivation and discipline. Because I was living paycheck to paycheck and was pinching any extra money to pay off debts, I found saving any extra money difficult to do. I was very impatient and felt that the little money I was putting back just wasn't enough. I decided to turn off my cable, shop around for cheaper car insurance, and cell phone plans. The extra money I saved each month went straight to a savings account. Starting to see my savings account grow little by little was very therapeutic and exciting for me."
Arnita, a product of her own advice, goes on to describe her process. Set goals…Smash goals…Repeat, seems to be the pattern for this credit industry maven.
Her process wasn't easy in the least. In fact, like the rest of us, Arnita had to take a few “L's" along the way.
“I set short-term goals and long-term goals. I wanted to start setting goals like businesses did. Corporations had quarterly goals and that's what I wanted to start doing. They planned for years to come and budgeted that way. I soon realized I was cutting myself short. I was making business decisions every day. From the clothes I wore, the car I drove, where I purchased gas, where I worked and ate were all business decisions.
"My short-term goals were weekly and monthly and I connected those to my long-term ones. For example, one of my short-term goals was to save enough money to pay off a credit card with a $500 balance that contributed to my long-term goal of paying off all of my credit cards by the end of that year.
"Again, by me being a self-motivator, being able to scratch off shorter goals encouraged me to keep going and reach towards my long-term ones."
Vision and foresight to carry a dream from conception to fruition are what separate the average from the amazing. Rather than pursuing the instant gratification and relief of closing out her credit cards, Arnita took another route.
Arnita details how she was selective during her own process: “When it came to improving my credit report and credit score, I knew that closing out credit cards and waiting for my credit to repair itself was not an option. What was most important was knowing that closing my credit cards was a huge NO-NO. Closing your credit cards can actually lower your credit score because you'd be closing off your credit history, which is 15% of your credit score. I also knew that 30% of your credit score is your credit card usage. Once I began to pay down my credit cards, I knew that my credit score immediately began to increase.
"During this journey, I began to study credit consumer laws and learned that the information on my credit report had to be reported accurately and verifiable. After reviewing my credit report, I saw that a lot of my bad credit came from credit bureaus not reporting correct information about me and by law, I had the right to dispute these errors. With that alone, I was able to increase my credit score over 100 points."
Many women, like Arnita, with vision, passion, and ambition have the drive for success and are ready to “smash the ignition," so to speak, on their goals but feel paralyzed by debt. Some believe bankruptcy to be a viable option for a new start. Arnita calls this a “myth" and reveals the truth in her own terms.
“The myths when it comes to bankruptcy is believing that once you've filed, you are free of all debts and you will have good credit immediately after it is discharged. Sometimes, filing for bankruptcy can make your situation worse. Filing bankruptcy on debts that are past its statue for being sued it not a good idea. Filling debts on collection accounts that cannot be validated within accordance of the law is a waste of money. Lastly, a bankruptcy can remain on your credit report for 7 to 10 years. Moreover, some lenders will not extend credit to those who have filed bankruptcy because they feel they may be a liability and won't commit to paying their debts."
Arnita explains why bankruptcy was never an option for her, “I knew that a bankruptcy would do more harm than good and I knew that no matter how high my credit score, a bankruptcy would hinder me from larger investments, such as purchasing a home and establishing business credit. Besides, I didn't have large assets and felt that filing bankruptcy just wasn't suitable for me."
No longer did the then-single mother have to wait on tax refunds to purchase big ticketed items. Being denied for a job because she couldn't pass a credit check was the straw that broke the camel's back…a wakeup call…an epiphany to confront those financial hurdles with vengeance. “The success of recovering from my own personal credit and financial journey is what led to me to start my business."
Success from one of Arnita's clients
Arnita knew there had to be countless of other women out there like her and she needed a way to reach them. Soon after, her credit and financial educational blog, Luxurious CREDIT™, was born.
Leveraging social media to create the powerful platform purposed to educate, inform, and assist others to break free from financial bondage, Arnita ushers women into living a “Luxurious Credit Lifestyle" and that lifestyle is having the luxury of being able to get approved for what you want, when you want, on your own terms! She was able to turn her own financial mistakes and lessons in to a platform to teach others on financial freedom, self-investment, and ownership.
Her organizations, Luxurious Credit & AMB Credit, has helped hundreds of thousands of women get out of debt, reach their credit goals of home ownership, purchasing vehicles, building generational wealth, and most of all, feeling luxurious and confident about having happy finances.
Her vision remains revolutionary and successful, not only because it improves the lives of others, but because it teaches them that their alternate reality is just within arm's reach.
“God saved my daughter and I from poverty and therefore, I dedicated myself and business to help others. Good credit really changed my life."
It can change yours too.
To interact with Arnita personally or get advice on how to clean up your credit, simply connect with her on Facebook, Instagram or YouTube. You may also check out the Blog www.LuxuriousCredit.com.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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These 11 Married Couples Share Their Keys To Long-Term Marital Success
The late actor Audrey Hepburn once said something that I think a lot of married couples who have at least 10 years under their belt will agree with: “If I get married, I want to be very married.” In my mind, this means very committed, very complementary, and very willing to go the distance — otherwise, what’s the point?
Really, what’s the point?
Thing is, with the divorce rate still being higher than it ever should be (for the record, a husband is not a boyfriend, and a wife is not a girlfriend; a marriage is serious business, y’all) and acting married being praised (or at least acknowledged) more than actually being married seems to be — folks who 1) are married and are looking for some hacks that will help with relational longevity or 2) want to be married someday and want insight on how to make their future marriage last are constantly seeking truly beneficial material.
Can you Google articles with random bullet points? Sure. And I’m not discouraging it. Every little bit of wisdom that you can pull, I fully support. However, the reason why I like to do articles like this one from time to time is there is something to be said from hearing real talk from multiple sources on the same topic who have some solid wisdom and knowledge on a particular topic.
Today? 11 married couples who were willing to talk about how they’ve been able to make it to several wedding anniversaries with a smile on their face and no regrets for choosing who they chose. Let’s all sit at their feet for just a moment.
*Middle names are always used in my content that’s like this so that people can speak freely*
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1. Kyle and Adrienne. Married 12 Years.
Kyle: “Some of your readers aren’t going to want to hear this but it’s worked for my marriage: people need to lower their expectations sometimes; I mean, men and women. We go into marriage with stuff that movies told us, social media told us, friends who are always single told us about what we should expect from someone, and then want to fault the person when they’re not what we made up in our head. Everyone should have standards but if you’re expecting your spouse to be some living version of a fairy tale character, you’re going to be disappointed almost every day of your life. Drop those expectations some and watch your relationship be a lot less stressful.”
Adrienne: “Talk to people who respect your man about your marriage. I’ve never believed that you shouldn’t ever go to anyone when you need some support. Even the Bible says that there is safety in wise counsel [Proverbs 11:4]. Too many women talk to women who don’t respect men, in general, let alone their husbands, and so that’s where things go left. Sometimes, you need an ‘outside in’ perspective. But if that woman is always taking shots at men, doesn’t respect marriage, or isn’t someone who holds your man in high regard, don’t ask her for advice. Really, you should ask yourself why you’re friends with her at all.”
Shellie here: I’m big on engaged and married couples having a “village” of sorts for their relationship, too. Check out “Why Every Engaged Couple Needs A 'Marriage Registry'” to get a good idea of what I mean.
2. Levi and Paulette. Married for 15 Years.
Levi: “Some of you have probably heard of the 7-7-7 rule. It’s where couples go on a date every seven days, have a weekend getaway every seven weeks, and go on a romantic trip of some sort every seven months. My wife and I do the 2-2-2 rule instead because sometimes our schedule and budget make ‘7’ difficult. It has gotten easier since Shellie told us about the sex jar. Bottom line, if you’re waiting for time to just open up to be with your spouse, that ain’t gonna happen. Schedule intimacy, including sex. Prioritizing it is better than saying you’re gonna be spontaneous and…never are.”
Paulette: “Initiate sex, dammit. When Shellie told us that men initiate sex most of the time, and then I thought about how often I used to push my husband away whenever he did it — I never really thought about how that made him feel until I put myself in his shoes. We’ve got to stop having all of this understanding for why women cheat when it comes to them not feeling desired or not getting attention when we’re the same way to our husbands. Your marriage isn’t ‘Young and the Restless’, where you’re just supposed to wait for your man to make the move. If you want to feel wanted, do the same thing for him.”
Shellie here: What’s a sex jar, you ask? You can read more about it via “5 Reasons Why Every Married Couple Needs A Sex Jar.”
3. Matthew and Gaia. Married for 17 Years.
Matthew: “Reenact some of your favorite times together. My wife and I do that semi-often. We’ll go back to where we had our first date, or we’ll go back to the hotel where we had some of the best sex before. Bringing back memories of when you felt the best together can give you the motivation to stay together to create some new memories to ‘play out’ later on.”
Gaia: “If you want to ‘mom your husband,’ you need to have kids — or at least get a dog! I didn’t realize how bossy I was until I got married. It’s because I saw my mom be that way with my dad. In my eyes, I thought that’s what love looked like until I watched how my in-laws were. They don’t try to change each other, and they definitely don’t make any demands. They’re very polite. I think a lot of married people are rude to their partner. Don’t be that.”
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4. Joseph and Carletta. Married for 10 Years.
Joseph: “Go to therapy for your childhood. I’m dead serious. No one is going to show you yourself like your wife will, and I realized that a lot of my hang-ups came from unhealed childhood stuff. It’s hard to be an adult in your marriage when you’re still emotionally a kid in a lot of ways. If you’re at the point where you think therapy is needed, go alone and deal with your childhood first. It did miracles for me and mine.”
"No one is going to show you yourself like your wife will, and I realized that a lot of my hang-ups came from unhealed childhood stuff. It’s hard to be an adult in your marriage when you’re still emotionally a kid in a lot of ways."
Carletta: “Meditate together once a day. Even if it’s just for 5-10 minutes, you need to carve out a moment to be mindful, focus on each other, and slow the world down. [Joseph and I] have been doing it for a couple of years now; it’s totally changed the way we communicate. Meditation reminds us to put each other first; that if we’re focused on each other, we can take on…whatever.”
5. Zeke and Rachelle. Married for 12 Years.
Zeke: “An argument is not a fight and a debate is not an argument. Learn that and you’re home-free. That’s all I got.”
Rachelle: “That advice that you just got? That sums up what it’s like to live with my husband. He’s very cut-and-dry, direct, and not wordy. That used to bug the hell out of me until I realized how wordy I was and then accepted that I wouldn’t want ‘two of me’ in the house [LOL]. He’s right. You can have a difference of opinion, and it be a debate. You can not find a middle ground on something and it turns into an argument. Neither of those is a red flag. It just comes with being with someone who is as much of an individual as you are.”
6. Taurus and Madison. Married for 22 Years.
Taurus: “Be prepared for your partner to change — not a couple of times, quite a bit. And when they change, that alters the relationship because now it’s not the person you stood with on your wedding day; it’s someone else. People get divorced so much because they are inflexible; they expect their spouse to never switch up and that’s just not how life is. If you’re rigid, controlling, or don’t know how to adjust, you don’t need to marry anybody. You’re gonna be miserable, and so will they.”
Madison: “Pray before sex. Before my husband and I got married, we had quite a bit of sexual history that caused us to do some comparing, and that led to resentment. In marriage, we had to adjust to how it’s more than just what we’re getting from another person. Married sex comes with so much more spirituality and responsibility. Prayer before sex reminds us to see it from a spiritual lens — and that makes the experience more intense and sacred. It might sound weird at first. Just try it. I don’t think you’ll regret it at all.”
"Married sex comes with so much more spirituality and responsibility. Prayer before sex reminds us to see it from a spiritual lens — and that makes the experience more intense and sacred."
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7. Karl and LaTasha. Married for 9 Years.
Karl: “Check in with your partner twice a day. In the morning before leaving the house and at night before going to sleep. If you work outside of the home, a lot can happen during the course of one day, so you shouldn’t assume that the person you left in the morning is who you are coming home to. I don’t mean sharing each other’s schedules or to-do lists. I mean, asking your spouse, ‘How are you doing? How are you really doing?’. It’s a smart way to take note of their mood and needs so that you are never blindsided.”
LaTasha: “Give each other some privacy. I have never been the kind of woman to go through a man’s phone, and I won’t start. If you think that you have to be a detective in your relationship, why are you in it in the first place? I know that Karl would give me codes and passwords if I wanted them because we’ve talked about it all before. Knowing that he would is enough for me. Marriage is an institution, but damn, it shouldn’t feel like jail.”
8. Thomas and Wynter. Married for 15 Years.
Thomas: “Ask your partner what their sexual needs are. Never assume that they haven’t changed because if we all agree that we are constantly growing and evolving as people, why would sex be exempt? Don’t personalize what they say about it either. All of us have sexual fantasies and interests that we keep to ourselves because we don’t know what our partner will think or ‘cause we think that they will create stories in their head about what made us think that way. I’ve learned that intimacy is feeling okay with sharing the deep stuff. The more comfortable a man, especially, is with doing that, the better the sex will be for everyone because talking about stuff like that is like taking down some walls.”
Wynter: “It’s okay to take one vacation a year with your girls and one by yourself. Just don’t go with people who don’t have the same standards as you, and as far as your solo venture, it doesn’t need to be longer than a long weekend. One thing that they don’t tell you about marriage is how there are times when you will feel like it is monotonous because of the routine of everything. A girls’ trip reminds you to get back to you outside of being someone’s wife or mom, and the trip alone is when you can sit around and do whatever you have to negotiate most of them. And yes, your man should be given the same courtesy.”
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9. Allen and Yvette. Married for 11 Years.
Allen: “STOP. BRINGING. UP. OLD. SH-T. SH-T. Nothing creates walls in a marriage more than you telling someone that you forgave them, and then the minute something else happens, here you go with the rap sheet of wrongs. Forgiving someone means that you are pardoning them, and that’s not what you’re doing if you’re constantly holding stuff over their head. One thing that marriage will show you is how bad of a forgiver you are. Most people suck at it, if we’re gonna be real about it.”
Yvette: “I already know that some women are going to assume that my man must’ve done something to say all of that (LOL). He’s a much better forgiver than I am, believe it or not. The real plot twist is, what gets on his nerves more than anything, is when I bring up stuff that he’s forgiven me for. Allen is the kind of man [who] hates to live in the past. I’ve grown a lot because of that. I think my advice would be to stay focused on solutions and tomorrow instead of problems and yesterday.”
Allen: “Sh- t, that’s bars, babe!”
Shellie here: INDEED.
10. Brennton and Danyelle. Married for 16 Years.
Brennton: “Why anyone who is trash at forgiving would get married is beyond me. It’s delusional to the nth degree to think that you are worthy of forgiveness and others aren’t — or that what you do isn’t ‘as bad,’ and that’s why you deserve forgiveness and others don’t. My wife and I have a lot of time under our belts. I’m here to tell you that there will be something, daily, that you will need to forgive your partner for on some level. If you can’t see yourself being open to that, marriage simply isn’t for you.”
Danyelle: “I don’t know who taught so many of us that being passive-aggressive will get us what we want, but it’s a damn lie. If something is wrong, stop saying ‘nothing’ when your man asks you what’s up because, if you’ve got a man like mine, he’s gonna say ‘Okay’ and go on about his day. Brennton often says that my refusing to speak isn’t his responsibility, it’s mine. That used to piss me off because, deep down, I knew that he was right. Oh, and chill on the grudge-holding too. With guys, that’s not going to get you anywhere either.”
11. Christopher and Yvonne. Married for 26 Years.
Christopher: “Have more loyalty for your spouse than you do your closest friend. Too many people don’t think like that. If you’ve got a friend since college, you’ve been through some things and you’ve learned to forgive and move past it. If you can’t see your wife or husband in this way, why did you get married? You should never have more grace for someone who you didn’t take vows with; that’s ludicrous. Before anyone else, I’m going to prioritize reconciling with my wife. It’s because I value her more than anyone. That’s what marriage is.”
"Before anyone else, I'm going to prioritize reconciling with my wife. It's because I value her more than anyone. That's what marriage is."
Yvonne: “Even if you’re not about ‘traditional gender roles,’ discuss what the expectations are for the home. People don’t divorce over cheating as much as getting sick of beard clippings in the bathroom sink or cars that look like pocketbooks. When you sign up for marriage, you are doing daily life with another person. Articulate your expectations. Listen to theirs. Be flexible until you both can make it work. Do that, and you’ll look up, and it’s been 20 years already.”
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Gems. Pure gems, y’all.
You know, popular consultant Barbara De Angelis once said, “Marriage is not a noun; it’s a verb. It isn’t something you get. It’s something you do. It’s the way you love your partner every day.” And love? Love is a choice.
And so, whether you’re married, engaged, or simply desire marriage in the future, hopefully, these tips will help you to choose how you love your spouse (or future spouse)…better.
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Featured image by Jasper Cole/Getty Images