Got something hanging over your head?

Whatever it is, take a minute to examine the thing. Could be a million different things. Life throws a lot of curve balls at us. I’m focused here on money matters. Could be looming college bills. Maybe a credit card bill. Expensive noise coming from under the hood of your car.

This is all about understanding what you’re facing and developing a plan to address it. If your worry is debt, start by writing it all down. Take a look at every credit card statement and write down these things:

Credit card company

Amount owed

Interest rate

Minimum monthly payment

Don’t stop with your credit cards. Write down that same information for all of your debts (except your home mortgage) - auto loans, student loans, furniture loans family loans.

Now that you have it all in black and white, you know what you’re up against. Let’s talk about how to tackle the problem.

Sort the debts with the smallest loan amount at the top. Go after that loan first. Keep making the minimum payment every month, but add to that minimum payment any amount of extra cash you can find every month. Forget about the other loans for now. Keep making minimum payments there too. But all extra cash goes toward this smallest loan until it’s gone. By focusing your attention on the smallest loan first you’ll quickly score a win. Then go on to the next biggest one.

Don’t get me wrong. This is not an easy process. It is simple, but not easy. It takes diligence and focus, but it does work if you stick with it.

If it doesn’t make sense, or if you need some coaching or accountability to make it work, click the “Connect” link above to get in touch. We can help.