Being in credit card debt can be stressful beyond belief, especially if holding high interest credit card debt with no extra cash to pay off. Today, you don’t need to look far to find a company that appears willing to help. From TV to the internet, there are thousands of companies that desire your business in helping you get out of debt.
As we think about getting out of debt, it occurred to me that there is one cardinal rule that is foundational for getting out of ‘credit card prison’. This issue plagues the majority of debt holders and must be eliminated in order to successfully beat credit card debt and experience freedom. So what’s the cardinal rule?
RULE: You must stop accumulating more debt
The cardinal rule to eliminating credit card debt is to stop accumulating more debt. Yes, its a simple concept – but is a prime reason people feel trapped in credit card debt and truly can never get out. Generally this is usually seen by making a payment on your credit card, and then at the end of the month seeing that you charged the same or more than your most recent payment (meaning you are right back where you started!). It is a cycle that must be put to death in order to escape debt prison.
A common name for this is to ‘live within your means’. This is generally true, but doesn’t quite hit the mark for me, because it is much more than living within your means. You must be able to live within your means & also pay off your debt. ‘Living within your means’ applies to being able to provide for yourself today. ‘Not going into more debt’ means that you are not only providing for yourself today, but you’re also making payments on what you spent yesterday.
Four simple steps to make this happen
First, remove all auto-payments from your credit card. Auto-payments will add debt every month that will have to be paid back at the end of the month. This payment will many times make up the majority of your monthly payment, meaning that making the minimum payment (always pay more than the minimum if possible) will not pay down your debt because you will just be paying for what you spent that current month.
Second, Cut up your credit cards. You’ve heard it before – but it’s usually what is required in order to begin getting out of debt. If you just can’t control yourself, then by all means this is what is required. You need one thing and one thing only – obliterate temptation! (If you’re reading this, you know who you’re are – Just do it)
Third, use a debt payoff method. Now that you’ve stopped adding debt, you are more than halfway there. All you need to do now is use a debt payoff method and begin the process of getting out. I recommend the debt snowball plus, but none the less you need a plan that will make you successful. Figure out what that plan is and make it happen.
Finally, don’t give up. Getting out of debt is usually long and filled with sacrifices – but is always temporary. Get determined, cowboy up, and get it done – believe me, the end goal is worth it.