Personal debt is now at the highest level that it has been in history. Financial problems are the leading cause of a number of personal problems, such as depression and divorce. Imagine the weight that could be lifted off your shoulders if you could realize the dream of debt free living.
I'm now find myself in the middle years of my life and for many of my previous years I knew nothing besides living in constant debt. The pressure on my physical and mental health, relationships and emotions was beyond measure and is something I never want to experience again. To help you avoid enduring the same pain that I did I am laying out the 7 steps (I won't say they are easy) to debt free living.
1. Accept that change is neccesary. Doing the same things you've always done will only result in the same problems repeating themselves.
2. Where Are You? Take an afternoon to write down your existing debts, all your current assets (house, car, etc), and your total monthly income and total monthly expenses (cash flow).
3. How would you like your life to be? This is the time for some serious soul searching. Don't spend time on little items but really ask yourself - What are my core values? What do I really want to get out of life? Use these as your defining goals and make every decision from here on around those goals.
4. What options do you have? Everyday you're faced with decisions that affect both new streams of income and how you spend your money.
5. Choose your options. Evaluate the answers from step 4 and make the difficult decisions. Finding part-time work? Internet business? Turning off cable TV? Reduce your cell phone plan? These are the hard decisions you need to make.
6. Make a plan of action. Now that you've chosen your options put a plan down on paper. This is the guide that you use to make the daily decisions that are necessary to meet your long term goals.
7. Stay focused. Measure your progress and find ways to reward yourself for small successes along the way. Make adjustments if you find any faults in your plan. You'll soon have financial freedom that many can only dream about. - 29971
I'm now find myself in the middle years of my life and for many of my previous years I knew nothing besides living in constant debt. The pressure on my physical and mental health, relationships and emotions was beyond measure and is something I never want to experience again. To help you avoid enduring the same pain that I did I am laying out the 7 steps (I won't say they are easy) to debt free living.
1. Accept that change is neccesary. Doing the same things you've always done will only result in the same problems repeating themselves.
2. Where Are You? Take an afternoon to write down your existing debts, all your current assets (house, car, etc), and your total monthly income and total monthly expenses (cash flow).
3. How would you like your life to be? This is the time for some serious soul searching. Don't spend time on little items but really ask yourself - What are my core values? What do I really want to get out of life? Use these as your defining goals and make every decision from here on around those goals.
4. What options do you have? Everyday you're faced with decisions that affect both new streams of income and how you spend your money.
5. Choose your options. Evaluate the answers from step 4 and make the difficult decisions. Finding part-time work? Internet business? Turning off cable TV? Reduce your cell phone plan? These are the hard decisions you need to make.
6. Make a plan of action. Now that you've chosen your options put a plan down on paper. This is the guide that you use to make the daily decisions that are necessary to meet your long term goals.
7. Stay focused. Measure your progress and find ways to reward yourself for small successes along the way. Make adjustments if you find any faults in your plan. You'll soon have financial freedom that many can only dream about. - 29971
