<prompt> Human: As the title says - I live in upstate NY, I have a 6 year old son and I work an 8-4:30 job as well as an overnight job 10:30-7am a day or two a week. I have 30,000 in student loans that I almost never pay on they defaulted about 3 years ago and I had my wages garnished. On top of that I had to enroll in a program through the company that owned my loans and ended up having to pay about 500month between the garnishment and 7 months plan to get myself out of default. Im always behind on my electricity. I claim a tax exemption of 4 federally and 3 state instead of the typical 0 because I was afraid of not being able to afford my bills and ended up owing 1100 to the IRS turned into a 25.00 a month payment plan. And now Im terrified of lowering them, even though I absolutely have to, out of not being able to afford what I need to.I make 14hr and work 37.5 hours per week with no chance of OT. I also work 8-16 hours a week at an overnight position that makes 11hr. Its a temp position, so some weeks I dont work any hours. Its pretty sporadic, but Ive managed to get at least 1 day a week on average. Im making about 935.00 every two weeks at my day job, and 76.44 every week from the overnight job.Expenses -Rent 550.00Internet - 50.00Netflix - 10Electric - 100Cell Phone - 100 upgraded to a newer iphone early last year where they tacked on an extra 12month to my bill for 2 yearsFood - 140 I tend to spend more on Fridays when I pick my son up for the weekend buying the things he wants. I almost never eat out.Gas - 120 give or takeChild Support - 360 90week. My sons mother and I never went through the courts. We decided on the child support amount and me getting him every weekend the moment that we split up 5 years ago.Car - 265.00 I have 661.00 left on the car. So thats two normal payments and a smaller third payment. I was hoping to be able to make two larger payments over the next two months and have it paid off one month earlyCar Insurance - 143.00401K - 68.30 I was automatically enrolled at a 3 rate. I know I never see this money in the paycheck, but would it be at all worthwhile to stop contributing at the moment and bank that money?My car will be paid off in 2-3 months. When that happens I will have that 265.00 free as well as lowering my car insurance as I wont have to carry full coverage any longer. I want to take care of my student loans. I want to put money in savings. I want to not have to work a second job any longer as it tends to conflict with my sons practices andor games. What do I lower my tax exemptions for federal and state down to I ask because I have no idea how much the amount of money I get paid will change based on changing those exemptions in NY? Ive been a person that has always been horrible at paying bills because I have a fear of paying bills and then not having any money stupid, right?. I always wait until the last possible moment, or even too long, to ensure that I have more than enough money to pay my bills. I pay my rent on time, every month, without issue. Ive been in debt since I was probably 20 years old. I dont want to live that life anymore. I have a 6 year old that wants a father he can rely on. Its my job to provide for him for Christmas, his birthday, and everything in between. I grew up in a poor household where our Christmas gifts were delivered by a truck and labeled with stickers that said To: Boy. I dont want my son to experience that life. I want to be able to afford a home in the not so distant future. Being broke and constantly anxious about it has put a huge damper on my life in general social, dating, self confidence, etc....I dont know that anyone here can help me change my life around. But Ive seen so many people thank this sub for helping them climb out of debt and live a life of noless financial stress, and Im realizing better late than never that I can use all of the help I can get right now if Im ever going to right this sinking ship.Thanks!EDIT - Wow. Thank you Reddit. I spent yesterday evening, after I got home, getting all of my bills paid. I also set up payments for my student loans again. I was also given great advice to look into IBEW, heating, and plumbing unionized positions to increase my income. Low income and a poor mindset are my two biggest issues. Reading all of your kind words and tips has been more helpful than any of you will ever know. Youve inspired someone to really take control of his life to get to where he really wants to be for his son and himself. Thanks!  <response>: Ive been a person that has always been horrible at paying bills because I have a fear of paying bills and then not having any money stupid, right?Not stupid. Thats a perfectly rational fear, but your coping mechanism isnt very good. What you need to do is save up about one full months worth of expenses in your bank account. Then as you spend money youll always have that float - so long as you dont go out and spend it on something.As for expenses, you could cut back on phone and car sounds like the car is about to be paid off soon though so who cares?As for income, you should obviously try to get more of it. Pay off your student debts as quickly as possible. In your situation Im not sure a 401k contribution is worth it until you get more money. 