You can start being more aggressive with your debt pay off by making a list of your accounts and the amount you owe. Review your budget to figure out if you can spare a little more to attack your balance then start paying off your debts one by one. No more excuses.
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7 Excuses Keeping You In Debt
You may think it’s the money or the size of your debt that’s keeping you in debt. Or, those may only be excuses that you’re making to avoid dealing with your debt. If these excuses are keeping you in debt, it’s time to stop making excuses and start making progress to rid yourself of debt for good.
1. I Don’t Make Enough Money
Have you taken a look at your budget and spending to confirm that you don’t have enough?
Probably not. If you take a closer look, you may find places that you can cut back to get more money to pay off your debt. But, even if your income isn’t that high, perhaps you can find other ways to make money for your debt like turning a hobby into a side business or taking on a part-time job.
2. I’ll Pay it When I Get a Raise
What if it takes longer than you expect to get a raise? Or what if you never get one? It’s worth it to start chipping at your debt sooner rather than later. The longer you hold on to debt, the more interest you end up paying.
3. I Have Other Financial Goals
It’s hard to prioritize debt over other goals like saving for retirement or putting money towards your child’s college tuition. However, keeping your debt around could do more harm than good. Rather than putting off your debt for another time, find a balance between paying off debt and achieving your other financial goals.
4. I Will Never Pay it Off Anyway
Use a debt pay off calculator to plug in your debts and get an accurate idea of how long it will take you to pay off your debt based on the payments you can make. You may be pleasantly surprised to find out that it won’t take as long as you expect. While you’re working with the calculator, try increasing your payment amount to see how much time you can shave off the debt payment time if you can manage to put just a little more towards your debt.
5. I Don’t Have Time to Focus on It
It’s hard to take the time to focus on your finances when you already have a lot on your plate. If you can carve out a few hours each month to review your budget, assess your debt standing, and decide what you can pay towards your debt each month, it will go a long way towards improving your finances. Paying off your debt will give you one less thing to worry about so the time spent is well worth it.
6. It’s Not Hurting Me
Just because you don’t see the effects of being in debt doesn’t mean they aren’t there. Think about how much you’re paying towards your debt each month. Then think about what you could do with that money if you weren’t spending it on debt. And, unless all your debt is interest-free, then you’re making your creditors rich instead of using that money to achieve your own financial goals.
7. Everyone Has Debt
While it’s true that a large number of Americans have debt, that doesn’t mean it’s ok to have debt of your own. When you were growing up, your parents may have used the “If all your friends jumped off a cliff…” rationale to teach you that you don’t have to do what everyone else is doing. The same thing goes for being in debt. Plus, it’s just not true that everyone has debt.
