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Search through an archive on Dealing With Debt:Just like losing weight or quitting smoking, dealing with debt can be a journey well worth the struggle. When we started this council a few years ago there was a group of three or four junior accountants and business students sitting in a room trying to deal with the mountain of debt our schooling had racked on. We were scared, confused and desperate for help.
That was back in 1971 when we had long hair not to save money, but because we were young and stupid. Fresh from graduating and knee high in debt we had a million reasons to do something. Each and every time we looked at our interest payments we thought of the other things we could spend that money on.
For all of us dealing with debt, it takes just one day to realize how much interest we owe and do something about it. The thing with interest is it's an unecessary premium we pay. Think about it - are you really willing to pay 17% MORE for a television? Why dont we temporarily postpone that television, work on getting our finances in order, and then buy the television in cash.
There's an infamous case of a man that spent 15 years paying interest but going nowhere. He was stuck in a perpetual cycle of refinancing to pay off his debt. Over and over again. It took him an epiphany and little more than one year to cut back on lavish expenses, postpone major purchases, and become totally debt free.
There are a thousand reasons people dont cut back on expenses, I've head them all before : a) i need luxuries b) i dont earn enough to save c) the debt is huge. The problem with all these reasons is that they worsen debt. Instead of making excuses, debt requires making difficult decisions and reevaluating priorities.
It's a matter of choice: struggle for a while or live in debt for the rest of our lives.
If you're serious about managing your debt, Microsoft has a nifty online tool to determine your savings over here.
