We were lucky to catch up with Tatianah Green recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tatianah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

So far, this project of sharing my financial wellness journey has been a vulnerable yet rewarding one. The road to student loan debt freedom started 10 years ago when I learned about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, a federal program which is serviced by MOHELA. I realized I was working in the nonprofit space, which qualifies for student loan forgiveness, so I decided to start the process of applying for the program and sought help at first to advocate for my qualifying payments. In this program, to receive loan forgiveness, you need to be working for a qualified employer and making 120 payments on your federal public student loan, which is the equivalent of ten (10) years. After that benchmark is met, you may qualify for your student loan balance to be forgiven.

One of the reasons why I initially started this path to debt freedom and student loan relief was the ongoing interest working against my monthly payments. Whenever I’d make a payment, most of the payment went towards the interest and not my principal balance of over $68,000. Making the monthly payments felt like swimming against a strong current and something had to give. I decided to continue the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to contribute to my overall goal of becoming debt free.

Tatianah, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a creative social media manager with over ten years of experience creating multimedia content. My career in social media started while an undergrad as I noticed more traditional modes of communication and publishing transitioning to the digital space. As a proud elder Millennial, I witnessed the growth of Twitter, the early and “pure” days of Instagram, and the organized chaos that Facebook was in the late 2000’s. With years of experience in journalism and communications, I was able to transfer most of those skills to the new forms of media marketing to the world.

Looking back over my career, I realized I’ve been a part of a series of “firsts” in an industry that grew and evolved in the 2010’s. I started off working in local government, helping my community city hall start its Facebook presence while attending graduate school for a Master’s degree in Digital Media. I was one of the first Black women to graduate from the Digital Media program at Valparaiso University in late 2012. After graduating from school and with a few internships to support my resume, I was able to branch out and explore a career in the growing industry of social media marketing. I started working for the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago in late 2013, working not only in social media content creation but reporting, email marketing, event reporting, analytics, and more. Today, I work for another nonprofit, Take Stock in Children, as their first Communications and Social Media Manager. It’s been amazing to see how much this career pathway has grown and matured to be a pivotal piece of marketing and communications from nonprofits to the POTUS. We need social media, and it’s not going anywhere!

What I’m doing with my own personal social media presence this year is sharing my debt freedom journey as well as the mistakes, lessons, and resources I utilize now to save money and meet my personal finance goals. My career experience so far has impacted how I show up online for myself, and I’m happy to be an inspiration to others.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I aim to finish this year strong by celebrating my student loan debt freedom! I have reached my 120th payment on my student loans, which will qualify me for my public student loan debt balance ($71,000+) to be forgiven. So far, I have seen five out of the thirteen (yes, thirteen)student loans get forgiven, and I am waiting for the remaining eight loans to be forgiven. Since this has been a goal I’ve been working towards for over a decade, I want to be able to celebrate and give back in the process.

People often want to reach this goal, but it may not be as attainable for some. The feeling of so much debt getting taken off your shoulders is a blessing for many and a game-changer for most.  I believe we should normalize celebrating and honoring financial milestones and breakthroughs. We have birthday parties, weddings, and baby showers, and we should also celebrate when we pay off or get our student loans forgiven. Student loans often hinder homeownership, traveling, getting married, and even starting families. For me, this is part of a life goal to become debt-free, so celebrating this milestone on that path to debt freedom would be the best way to close this chapter.

I desire to celebrate and give back to others on similar paths to obtain debt freedom in whatever area they’re aiming for (car loans, private student loans, credit cards, etc.). Stay tuned to my Instagram page (@HonestlyTatianah) for more updates on the upcoming debt freedom celebration!

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Working in social media—whether for personal or professional reasons—is often misunderstood by people who don’t work or are familiar with social media’s potential for business. Social media is more than just playing around on the phone. Social media is one of the best ways to get feedback from your audience or customers, create a solid fan base or community, and earn new clients. I’m so blessed to be able to use social media in creative ways to achieve my dreams and goals. For instance, as part of my debt freedom journey content, I mentioned wanting to start a high-yield savings account. That same day, one of my friends connected me with her bank to get a high-yield savings account started, and we both benefited from that referral. That’s what social media is about, sharing your vision and connecting with those who want to help you build your vision. There are countless other positives to using social media. As long as you have balance and goals outside of technology, you don’t have to get stuck in the doom-scrolling loop of self-sabotage and distraction. Instead, you must take charge of social media and make it work to meet your personal or professional goals.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/honestlytatianah/
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/tatianah-m-green

Image Credits
Photo files: reduced_TatianahGreen__0801TSICHeadshots2_1710386202639 reduced_TatianahGreen__1924TakeStock233_1710386913969 are taken by Brittany Morgan Photography