The No-Debt Vow
Everybody always asks me what the first step to getting out of debt is, and the answer is always the same — stop digging. If you have already put yourself in a very deep hole, the only way to start getting out of that hole is to stop digging. Debt reduction may seem like a tricky thing, but in many aspects it is not. If you are serious about getting out of debt and beginning to live a financially responsible life, you have to kill all bad habits before you can begin to heal the wounds.
So if you have made the no-debt vow, how do you force yourself to stick to this regimen? Well look at it as if it was a diet, as if you are trying to reduce the amount of debt in your financial meals every day. The extra debt you have added on by irresponsible spending and gorging you must now eliminate by frugal spending and wise expenditures. Fancy gadgets and expensive toys will pop out of nowhere to tempt you, but it is up to you to fight such temptations and limit the amount of money you spend.
Now what is the best way to avoid these temptations? Well in many aspects it is impossible because we don’t always know where these temptations will come from. However, sometimes we do. Therefore we must find a way to limit our exposure to the things that we know are weaknesses for us, meaning things we know we have a soft-spot for and may end up costing us. If you are able to limit your own exposure to such items you are limiting the possibilities of you relapsing and adding to your debt collection.