Many people today are getting fed up with living pay check to pay check and constantly only being able to make the minimum payments on their debts. They want to be able to pay off debt but can’t seem to find the extra money and even when they start making progress it gets interrupted by an emergency or other unexpected event which causes them to lose motivation. One of the most important parts of successfully getting out of debt and living debt free is remaining motivated until everything is paid off. While that can be difficult, there are many tips and tricks which can help.
Make a List of all your Debts
Go through your credit report or other documents and get a list made of every company or individual which you owe money to. This includes everything from the $20 you borrowed from a friend for lunch to the mortgage on your house. Writing them down and keeping them in a location where you will regularly see them will help keep you focused on them, which for many people can keep them motivated.
Pay the Debts off in a Logical Order
Once you have the list put together, put the ones you’re going to focus on paying off first on top and the last ones at the bottom. For some people it is more motivating to pay off the smallest dollar amount debts first because they can then quickly cross them off which can help motivate them by building momentum. For other people it is more motivating to list the ones with the highest interest rates first and pay them off because it will save them the most money in the long run. Each person is different so just figure out which of these, or an entirely different way, works best for you.
Put ALL extra money on the Top Debt
Once you have your debts in the order which you’re going to pay them off, make ONLY the minimum payments on everything except the top one. Every extra dime you can scrape together should be put directly on the top one until it is entirely paid off and the account is closed. When you are paying off debt in this very focused way, you will quickly see yourself accomplishing things which is very motivating for many people.
Roll Your Payments Down the List
One of the best things about paying things off in this manor is you can take the entire payment you were making on the top item, and move it to the second one once it’s paid off. This quickly allows you to pay off debt faster which is helpful when attempting to stay motivated and focused. As you continue down the list the payments you are able to make will continue to grow and grow which will help you pay off debt faster and faster as you continue. This is considered by many to be the most effective way to pay off debt quickly and effectively. The trick of how to be debt free, for many people, begins with learning how to motivate yourself to pay off your debt as quickly as possible.