The Mindset

I want to get out of debt, and really it is a mindset.  Just think about it for a moment.  The last time you got a raise, where did the money go.  Most people have it spent before they even get it. We earn it, we spend it.  Many of us spend it in our heads before we even earn it so that when that raise finally comes we’ve already got it spent or committed to something else.  Just stop and think for a moment.  You survived on less income just before you got a raise, so any extra income you earn could be used to get out of debt.  It’s time to change your mindset on debt.  When you pay off a debt, you have that extra income each month, it’s like a recurring payment to yourself.

Here’s a few tools you’ll need to get the right mindset to get out of debt.

Desire

Napolean Hill stated it best when he wrote: “Desire: The starting point of all achievement.”  It’s no wonder this is first on the list, because if you don’t have the desire to get out of debt you will not.  You also have to realize that you will have other desires in your life and some of those will be strong.  Can you make your desire to be debt free greater than the others?

Focus

Once you have that strong desire to get out of debt you need to focus that energy.  Bruce Lee stated,”The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.”  You need to focus on the goal of getting out of debt and channel the energy that your desire has given you to see all of the working parts to accomplishing your  goal.  This is where you take a look at all of your debts closely, compare it to your income and focus on a plan for paying it down.

Envision a Plan

In your focused state you must create an effective plan.  Planning will help you map out the way to your success and help you continue to focus on the concept of living a debt free life.  Your plans might not always go as you laid them out but having a plan will help you cope with the obstacles that cross your path.  As Dwight D. Eisenhower said,”In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”  When you envision your debt payoff plan you might want to consider using the Snowball debt reduction method or possibly the Avalanche debt payoff plan.  Both work great and depending on your preferences you may want to choose one over the other.

Determination

“I’ve always found that anything worth achieving will always have obstacles in the way and you’ve got to have that drive and determination to overcome those obstacles on rout to whatever it is that you want to accomplish.”  – Chuck Norris.

Rest assured that as you work through your get out of debt plan you’ll face many obstacles along the way. Some will be simple decisions and some will affect your ability to accomplish your goal to be debt free and ultimately become financially independent.  The amount of determination you apply to your plan will have a direct affect on when you accomplish your goal.

Perseverance

Getting out of debt is not a quick and easy task.  It takes desire, planning, focus, determination and perseverance.  For most people perseverance will be a major factor in the overall success as likely it will take years to get out of debt, especially if you own a home and have a mortgage.  It is possible though.  As Newt Gingrich said, “Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”

Here are some action Items for when you ask yourself, YMIDoingThis?

1.  Review your mindset.  Are you ready to get out of debt?

2.  Set some SMART goals with our FREE SMART Goals Worksheet.

3.  Create a Snowball Debt Management Plan.