Like many recent high school graduates choosing their careers, Bradley, who declined to give his full name, once felt the pressure of trying to have it all figured out in his late teens. A degree felt like a life or death decision for your future.
With no strong interests outside of baking and pastries, he enrolled in the prestigious Culinary Institute of America. But a week before graduation, with little financial guidance or preparation, he learned he’d racked up $134,000 in debt. With interest, that ballooned to about $147,000. His monthly payments were projected to hit $1,500, even while earning only $12 to $13 an hour at his first farm-to-table restaurant job in upstate New York.
A switch flipped: ‘I have to completely overhaul my life’
Traumatized by his student loan burden, a switch flipped at 20: he turned extremely frugal and adapted several side hustles to find a way to pay it off, embracing the life of underconsumption.
“My brain in that one instant was like, I have to completely overhaul my life,” Bradley, now 32 and known on TikTok as @BradleyOnABudget, tells Fortune.
Since September of 2013, he’s paid off $80,000 toward his loans. He still has $114,000 left in a Parent PLUS loan under his mother’s name, which he hopes will be forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. The federal loans in his own name—originally around $25,000 but grown to $35,000—were recently discharged through the Borrower’s Defense to Repayment program.
But the underconsumption didn’t stop in his 20s. Since implementing these habits he still lives this way today.
“I’d rather have my $2 lunch than a $20 meal, that’s just how my brain works,” Bradley says. “A lot of people spend money to fit in. I don’t see the point in spending more for things when it’s unnecessary like clothes, going out to eat, a newer car.”
From dog sitting to crisis counseling–his frugal habits and side hustles are here to stay
Bradley still lives the same ultra-frugal life he adopted in his early 20s. From dog sitting to crisis counseling, he juggles 10 side hustles—and avoids unnecessary spending at every turn. He now earns a significant portion of his income through content creation and brand deals.
His frugal habits include eating the same meals, making wipes out of napkins and water, buying kids clothes, skipping AC in the summer months, unplugging appliances when leaving the house, bringing his own meals on vacation, reusing towels, trimming his nails with scissors and living with no insurance. He can’t imagine living his life any other way.
But despite saving over $250,000, his audience often questions why he still chooses to live “in survival mode.”
“I get a lot of opinions and judgment, but I’m the one paying my bills, right?” he said.
Online critics have accused him of “hoarding money” or “cosplaying” poverty.
“The only thing I wanted when I was in my 20s and struggling in debt was to be financially stable,” he said. “I think some people can’t grasp that now that I’ve increased my income and accomplished my financial goals, I would still find joy in how I choose to live.”
And he’s not the first high-earner to be extra cautious of his choices. Some high-net-worth individuals and $100,000+ earners that previously spoke to Fortune said they keep their discretionary spending as minimal as possible by cooking for themselves, for example, or even buying frozen groceries because they’re cheaper than fresh ones.
Others choose to mend their own “capsule” wardrobes, find some of their children’s toys on Facebook marketplace, or not own cars.
“I don’t go to Starbucks, I avoid it like the plague. It just feels comfortable too because I’ve always been frugal,” tech entrepreneur Brenda Christensen previously told Fortune, whose fortunes run into the multi-millions.
By the end of July this year, Bradley calculated he made $120,000. In August, he raked in over $18,000.
This August, his monthly income with 10 side hustles were broken down as follows, according to his TikTok account.
Content creator: $10,633
OnlyFans: $4,105
Financial coach: $1,724
Dog sitter: $875
Crisis counselor: $396
Partnership: $416
CD account: $342
Lawn mower: $160
Dancer at a night club: $124
House cleaner: $85
Dumpster diving: $37
Change found on the ground: $0.43
Total: $18,897.43
“For me, ‘treating myself’ means watching my bank account grow. And I guess that’s my advice for younger folks trying to save: focus on your mindset. That’s been the biggest factor in everything I’ve been able to do.”
He also hopes his story can help others who are struggling, especially with debt and depression:
“I thought all my life was going to be drowning in debt and not making a lot of money, and I just always had this thing within me to be like, just keep going. Just keep going,” he said.
