How do you earn 600K and still die in debt?

It feels impossible, right? How can someone earn the equivalent of 600,000 a month and still spend their life drowning in debt?

If you’re earning 20,000, 30,000, maybe 50,000 or even 100,000, it’s easy to believe that “more money” is the magic solution. You might imagine that once you hit a certain salary, you’ll never borrow again, you’ll automatically live below your means, and you’ll finally be financially free.

I wish that were true. But money doesn’t work like that.

Let’s talk honestly about why higher income doesn’t guarantee financial security, how people at every income level get trapped, and what you can do differently—starting right where you are today.

More income doesn’t fix a broken money system

We’re sold a simple story: small income = struggle, big income = freedom. So we chase higher-paying jobs, foreign opportunities, promotions, and strikes for better pay, assuming that once the number on our payslip grows, everything else will fall into place.

But if your habits, mindset, and systems around money don’t change, a bigger income just gives you more room to make bigger mistakes.

I’ve seen people at 20,000 struggling. I’ve seen people at 200,000 struggling. I’ve seen people at 600,000 struggling. The common thread isn’t the number—it’s what happens next.

The real problem: lifestyle creep

Here’s the pattern I see over and over again:

You start earning more. Something inside you says, “I deserve better now.” And honestly, you do deserve comfort and dignity. But in our consumer culture, “better” almost always means “more expensive.”

So your life quietly upgrades itself:

• You move from a 5,000 house to a 10,000 house.
• Your monthly shopping jumps from 10,000 to 20,000.
• You trade your perfectly fine phone for a financed one.
• You start eating out more, taking more rides, buying nicer clothes.

Individually, each decision feels harmless. Together, they create a lifestyle that eats your entire salary—and then some.

This is lifestyle creep. Your expenses rise to match (or exceed) your income. And once that happens, it doesn’t matter whether you earn 30,000 or 600,000. You’re stuck in the same cycle: waiting for the next paycheck, hoping nothing goes wrong.

How debt quietly takes over your life

Debt rarely starts with one huge, dramatic mistake. It creeps in through small, “manageable” decisions:

• A phone on credit from a shop.
• A small 10,000 loan from the bank.
• A supermarket account you’ll “clear next month.”
• Two or three loan apps on your phone—just to “top up.”

Individually, each payment feels small. But together, they form a heavy chain around your income.

Now your salary is already spoken for before it even lands:

• Rent
• Groceries
• Phone financing
• Bank loan
• Loan app repayments
• Maybe a chama or two

On paper, you’re earning well. In reality, you’re broke and exhausted—because your money has too many jobs and not enough freedom.

Then life happens: the emergency that breaks everything

There’s one more piece of this puzzle that we don’t like to think about: emergencies.

At some point, something will happen. Not “maybe.” Not “if.” When.

• A parent or child gets sick and needs 70,000 immediately.
• A funeral in the family comes with unexpected costs.
• You lose your job or your income is delayed.

Most people are not prepared for this. And when an emergency hits a life that’s already stretched to the limit with loans and fixed expenses, everything collapses.

That’s how someone earning 600,000 can still be in deep debt. That’s how someone abroad earning in dollars can’t afford a flight home for a funeral. That’s how someone on 30,000 and someone on 300,000 can be living with the same anxiety: “If this month’s salary doesn’t come, I’m finished.”

Why even people abroad are trapped

From the outside, it can look like people working in the US, UK, Canada, or Australia are “winning.” They earn in dollars or pounds, they send money home, they help with projects. It’s easy to assume they’re all comfortable and secure.

The reality for many is very different.

In a lot of developed countries, almost everything can be financed:

• Mortgages for homes
• Car loans
• Furniture and electronics on payment plans
• Credit cards for everyday spending
• Even food delivery you can pay for later

It’s incredibly easy to build a big, impressive life on borrowed money. And it’s incredibly hard to step off that treadmill once you’re on it.

That’s why so many people in those countries are one missed paycheck away from crisis. It’s not that they don’t work hard or earn well—it’s that their lifestyle has been built on constant payments. There is no room for error. No room for emergencies. No room for rest.

The courage to live a simpler life

So what’s the alternative? For me, it comes down to one simple but powerful idea: simplify your life.

When I say “simplify,” I don’t mean you should suffer or deny yourself basic comfort. I’m not romanticizing poverty. I’m talking about making a conscious decision to need less so you can breathe more.

One helpful question to ask yourself is:

“If I had very little money, how would I live?”

Then, as much as is realistic and safe, move your current life closer to that simpler version—even as your income grows.

That might look like:

• Staying in a modest but safe home instead of upgrading every time your salary increases.
• Keeping your current phone until it truly needs replacing, instead of chasing every new model on credit.
• Cooking more at home instead of turning restaurants into a routine, everyday expense.
• Buying fewer things overall—and really questioning each purchase.

The goal isn’t to impress anyone. The goal is to create space in your budget so you can save, handle emergencies, and avoid the constant stress of owing everyone money.

Why simplifying is so emotionally hard

If simplifying is so powerful, why don’t more of us do it?

Because it hurts our ego.

We live in a world that admires visible success: the car, the house, the holidays, the outfits, the photos. A simple life doesn’t photograph well. People might:

• Think you’re not ambitious.
• Assume you’re poor or failing.
• Wonder why you’re “under-living” when you could be showing off more.

And that judgment stings. So many people upgrade their lives not because they truly need to, but because they’re chasing validation. They want to look like they’re doing well—even if it’s funded by loans and silent panic.

Simplifying your life is an act of courage. You’re choosing inner peace over external applause. You’re choosing long-term security over short-term admiration.

What peace of mind actually looks like

Peace of mind doesn’t come from having more. It comes from needing less.

It looks like:

• Knowing that if your salary delays this month, you’ll be inconvenienced—but not destroyed.
• Facing an emergency with some savings available, instead of immediately turning to debt.
• Looking at your bank app without feeling your stomach drop.
• Sleeping at night without mentally listing all the people and apps you owe.

From a practical standpoint, simplifying your life makes it easier to:

• Build an emergency fund so that when life happens, you’re not thrown completely off balance. (If you’re ready for that step, you may find it helpful to explore tools like high-yield savings accounts.)
• Align your spending with your real priorities instead of what looks good on social media. I talk about this a lot when I review my own months, like in my August 2026 money review.

It’s not glamorous. But it’s deeply, deeply freeing.

How to start simplifying from where you are

You don’t need to move to the village or sell everything you own. You can start small and practical:

• List your fixed payments. Rent, loans, subscriptions, school fees, anything that comes every month. Ask: what can I reduce, pause, or remove?
• Stop adding new debt. Even if you can’t clear existing loans right away, commit to not taking on new ones for non-essentials.
• Delay upgrades. That new phone, new couch, new car—wait. Use what you have a bit longer.
• Normalize “no.” Learn to say, “It’s not in my budget right now,” without shame.
• Protect a small savings habit. Even 500 or 1,000 regularly is a start. The habit matters more than the amount at the beginning.

Over time, these small choices add up to a life that’s lighter, calmer, and far less dependent on the next paycheck.

The bottom line

Yes, it’s possible to earn 600,000 and still die in debt. It’s possible to earn in dollars and not afford a flight home. It’s possible to look successful on the outside and be completely trapped on the inside.

The number on your payslip matters—but it’s not the whole story. What matters just as much is how simple or complicated your life is, how many payments you’ve chained yourself to, and whether you’ve made space for emergencies and rest.

You don’t have to wait until you “earn more” to fix your finances. You can start now, with what you have, by choosing to need less, spend slower, and live more simply.

Your peace of mind is worth more than any lifestyle you could perform for other people.