Staying Motivated While Taking Action on Debt
At some point or another you may have decided that you needed to start doing something about the debt that seems to keep accumulating. Most people who are in trouble with debt get to that point – but the problem is that after a month, or maybe two, it starts to feel like they’re just chipping away at a mountain with no end in sight and so they end up slowly but surely giving up.
The hardest part about taking action on debt and tackling it once and for all is staying motivated. If you are able to stay motivated, you’ll be able to stick to whatever plan of action you’ve come up with to manage your finances – and that’s the real key to getting yourself out of debt. Unfortunately it isn’t easy when it seems so slow – but there are some steps you can take to help keep yourself motivated.
Have a Clear Plan of Action
Be sure that you fully plan out how you’re going to manage your finances and pay off all your debt. Ideally you should have a schedule that starts from right at this very moment and stretches all the way to the point in time when you’ll be completely debt free.
Pay Off Small Debts First
The big problem with staying motivated is that when dealing with debt it is hard to ‘see’ the results. By paying off your small debts first you can wipe them off the slate and that will help you feel as if you’re making progress.
Keep It Up Sign Card Motivation 2012 Girls on the Run Grand Rapids Montessori February 22, 2012 9 by Steven Depolo, on Flickr. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.
Get Help if Necessary
Sometimes it can help to talk to an expert or even have a support group. Make no mistake, there are tons of people out there that are in the exact same shoes as you – and finding mutual support is great. For example there are many places you can turn to if you need help with student debt.
Be Strict with Yourself
Don’t ever be tempted to tell yourself that you’ll deviate from your plan ‘just this once’. If you do, soon you’ll find that you’re deviating on a regular basis and that will just slow things down and make you lose motivation that much faster. Be strict about sticking to your plan and you’ll see results faster and get more motivated instead.
Although it may seem like the end is so very far away, if you keep at it you can certainly get out of debt. Do whatever it takes to stay motivated and keep yourself on track – it will definitely pay off in the long run and will help you to finally get to the point where you can be completely debt free.
