Another holiday season has passed and it’s on to the new year. Due to increased expenses during the holiday season among other factors, people often enter the new year with concern about their finances. Regardless of your current financial situation, regardless of the amount of debt you have, there is a way to get out of debt and stay there.
If you’re looking for a quick fix to your money situation, that might be hard to find. If, however, you are willing to put a few simple pragmatic tools into practice consistently, you can turn things around.
Here are 3 tips on How to Get Out of Debt and Stay There:
- Stop Ignoring Your Finances
How were you with money, growing up? Were you educated about money? Was money talked about? Or was it hidden? Ignored? A topic that was avoided?
If you came from a family that avoided the topic of money, you may find that you have carried that over into adulthood. The problem with this is that ignoring your finances does nothing to change them. If you would like something different, you have to be willing to take a look at where you are today. Not from a place of judging you. Rather from the place of, “Here’s where I am. What’s it going to take to change this?”
Once you are clear on how much debt you have, work out how much extra you would need to pay each month towards your credit card debt to be out of debt in 12–24 months. If you have more than one credit card to pay off, what are the possibilities of consolidating your debt?
2. Be Willing to HAVE Money
When I tell people, “You have to be willing to have money,” most people look at me like, “Duh. Of course. Everyone’s willing to have money.” It’s actually not true. Most people are willing to spend money but few are willing to have it. When you have money, you don’t have to spend it. You are grateful for the energy of what it contributes to you.
If you’d like to be willing to have money, not just spend it, try these two things:
Put aside 10% of everything that comes in.
Put 10% away of everything that comes into your life. This is not a rainy day fund. It’s money you have and watch it grow. You can keep it in cash, you can keep it in a bank account, whatever is fun for you. When you ‘save’ money, that means you intend to spend it. This is different, because when you have money, you are making an investment in you and your future.
Carry around the amount of cash you think a rich person would carry.
How different would you feel about your life if you saw a big wad of cash every time you opened your wallet or purse instead of a lot of blank space and some half-crunched up receipts? Practice having money. Carry around the amount of cash that you think a wealthy person would carry.
3. Do What Makes You Happy
People often think that when they have money, then they will be happy. It’s actually the other way around, be happy, choose joy and money will show up. Money follows joy. Joy does not follow money.
If you’d like to have more joy, start doing what you love. Don’t decide that there’s no way that what you love will make you money. That’s a conclusion not a question. Get out a notepad and begin writing down everything you love doing. It doesn’t matter what it is. Cooking, gardening, reading, walking the dog, talking to people. Don’t consider whether or not it has value to others. If it’s fun for you, put it on the list. Keep adding to it over the next days and weeks. Then take a look — are you doing enough of what you love?
The topic of money, and especially the topic of debt, can be a source of frustration for many people. It doesn’t have to be. If you would like to get out of debt and have more money, you can start to create the change you are asking for today.
Be aware of your finances — don’t ignore them. Take steps to increase your monthly payments on your current debt. Start putting 10% aside for you. Watch it grow. Notice how much that 10% account increasing adds to your sense of wealth and abundance. Choose joy now. Live your life as a celebration today. As your joy increases, so will your money.
If there is one thing that I would really like for you to get, it’s that YOU are the source for creating your life — including your money. That’s good news because that means if you desire for your money situation to change and choose to change it, you can create a whole new financial reality. You may not wake up tomorrow and instantly be out of debt. But, if you will wake up every day and choose to put these tools into practice, change is possible.
Simone is the author of the internationally acclaimed book ‘Joy of Business’ (currently available in 11 languages) and her brand new book, ‘Getting Out of Debt — Joyfully’. You can find out more about Simone by visiting her website at http://www.gettingoutofdebtjoyfully.com
Originally published at medium.com