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Sara went from broke and living pay cheque to pay cheque to saving $80,000 in two years

By April Glover|

An Australian woman has revealed how she went from living pay cheque to pay cheque to saving over $80,000 in just over two years.

Digital marketer Sara Ocean, 30, admits she was once "terrible" with money and dreaded looking at her bank account, despite working full-time.

Speaking with 9Honey, the NSW woman กช who once had barely $1000 to her name กช recalled her extraordinary money transformation which she credits to financial education and investing.

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Sara Ocean saved 80k in two years
Sara Ocean saved an impressive $80,000 in two years after living pay cheque to pay cheque. (Supplied)

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"In my mid-20s, before learning how to manage my finances, I was terrible with money. Finance and money were not topics that were talked about in my family growing up," Sara says.

"I would earn money and then spend it, so after years of working I had nothing to show for it. I didn't know how to save and the concept of investing was completely foreign to me. I would dread looking at my bank account. I was scared of my finances."

With no concept of how to build her wealth or how to control where her money was spent, Sarah was left near penniless at the end of each pay cycle.

Despite earning a full-time income, she remembers being stuck in an "always broke loop".

"It made my day to day very stressful, and the lack of financial control affected my self-esteem," she says.

"Most people around my age seem to be doing well and knowing how to manage their own finances, however, I was stuck in the 'always broke' loop, not knowing what to do to get out of it."

Sara Ocean saved 80k in two years
Sara enrolled in a financial masterclass and learned how to take control of her finances. (Supplied)

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The breaking point was when Sara needed cash for an operation but couldn't even qualify for a loan.

"I ended up having to ask my mum to take out the loan for me. It was a shock because I realised...I'm an adult, I have no money despite years of working, I couldn't even get a loan for something that was really important," she explains.

"It was my rock bottom. I knew I had to get my act together."

Sara's first step was enrolling in the Mastering Money program, a financial education course from SkilledSmart which helps teach young people how to save and invest.

It covers topics such as mindset, saving, budgeting, investing, insurance, tax and even retirement funds.

Investing had always seemed like a scary and foreign idea, however the course helped simplify it for Sara.

Money management tips helped Sara to start saving cash. (Getty)

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"I thought that to invest, you needed a lot of money and it was very risky," she says.

"I also didn't really understand why investing was important, I didn't realise how necessary it was for my financial future and what kind of opportunities it could open up for my life."

Within just a few weeks, Sara had started to see results and had started investing and saving her money instead of constant spending.

She also structured her accounts to manage income effectively and learned how to budget.

After six months, Sara had paid off $5000 debt and started making additional contributions to super.

"The program helped remove the fear because investing no longer felt like this very complicated thing only reserved for some people, it felt more accessible, like anyone can do it," Sara explains.

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Sara structured her accounts to manage income effectively and learned how to budget. (Getty)

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The now proud saver was able to accumulate an incredible $80,000 in net worth over two and a half years กช an impressive feat for someone who struggled to make ends meet before the next pay cheque.

"In that time, I've also been able to easily afford things that before would have been a stress, like my operation, a trip to Europe, and more," Sara says.

"My life feels so much less stressful because I'm not living in constant financial anxiety. Now, I'm excited to take care of my finances, whereas before thinking about my finances gave me anxiety."

"Now, I'm in control of my money, before my money was in control of me."

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