I was asked on my Facebook page the other day how people pay of their debt so fast. This was in response to one of my clients that in 90 days paid off almost $13,000 in debt and saved $1,000 for an emergency fund. I see these results all of the time from my clients. So the question is, how do they really do it?
The fact of the matter is, it takes more than cutting cable and living on “rice and beans” to get out of debt. Most households that are in debt have a lot of it. From what I can tell, the average household has at least $1,000/month being paid as minimum payments on debt (and that is not counting the house payment). If you really want to get out of debt, first you need to be sick and tired of being in debt and be willing to do whatever it takes to get rid of it. Second, you need to be willing to never again go back into debt. Once you have established those two winning ingredients, now you must be willing to do one or more of the next three items that are essential to paying off the debt and getting control of your life again.
Sell Stuff
If you want to get out of debt quickly, one of the fastest ways to get the ball rolling with a good amount of steam is to sell stuff. Sell some of your belongings on EBay and Craig’s List, have a garage sale or maybe take an item of substantial value and simply get rid of it for the purpose of becoming debt free. You can always buy some more stuff later.
I have another client right now that just sold their car. That instantly paid off $13,000 in debt and freed up $425/month in debt payments. That now gives them an additional $5,100 to pay off debt over the next year. These guys are pumped that they now have additional money to throw at their other debts.
Extra Job
A little extra work never hurt anybody. I know of someone that is delivering pizza’s 15-20 hours per week and bringing home around $1,000/month. You do not have to deliver pizzas. Instead, you may take one of your hobbies or something that you are really good at and find a way to make a buck or two.
Lifestyle Change
Sometimes the lifestyle we would like to live needs to hit pause, while achieving the goal of being debt free. A lot of this can be done by simply doing a monthly budget. You will see areas that you are over spending and then correct course. Put the dollars going towards unneeded spending towards your debt and then go enjoy life the way it was meant to be lived.
There is no other way to put it. The people that you read or hear about that eliminate massive amounts of debt, in a relatively short amount of time, almost always do one of those thing things. Was it easy? No, it was hard…but it was worth it. If you do not think that you can bring yourself to selling stuff, getting an extra job or changing your lifestyle, I would encourage you to watch this inspiring video. It has nothing to do with money, but everything to do with motivation and perspective.
What are some things you have done to get out debt?