Money Matters: Defeat Debt One Step at a Time

Dave Ramsey’s daily reflections are a great reminder that debt can be defeated one bill (demon) at a time! If you’re familiar with his ‘baby steps’ program, you understand that you can’t just make a list of debt snow balls that you want to eliminate and watch them disappear over night. Eliminating debt is a process that begins with a plan.

Begin with listing your debt on paper. Involve the family. Devise a plan. Then stay on course to conquer that debt.

If you’re swimming in medical debt (like my family has been for several years), know that you’re not alone. Although we have not reached the final medical payment yet, we have come a long way. Each month I pay off the minimal amount that I’ve set up with each medical facility and/or debt collector. Then, I target the smallest one. I attack it with the MAX number of payments (or dollars) that I can possibly pay on it. Over a course of months, it disappears. Recently however, I was able to settle the oldest & largest sum of medical debt that we owned with a savings of 30%. I was approached to paying it off early to save 20% but I didn’t jump at the opportunity. I kept making minimal payments and continued to ask if I could possibly save more if I was paying it off in full. I was declined two times so I just made a minimal payment. When I asked the third time, I was granted an additional 10% savings. That money can easily be allocated to other medical payments.

Regardless of where you are in your journey with money, take baby steps to reach your goal(s). Begin with the end in mind and remember “don’t try to do everything at once.”

This month, I’m meeting with a friend’s client that lost her job and doesn’t know how to save money. Thus, I encourage each of us to have a money plan before life happens. Devising a ‘what if plan’ even if you are not in debt allows you to live freely now and later. Dave calls it an emergency fund. Take the time to plan your life’s emergency fund today.

Photo Credit: Dave Ramsey Facebook (Dave Daily)

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Litsa @How to Have it All

Litsa is a stay at home mom to a beautiful little girl. She is a native of Greece and now resides in Tennessee. As a former teacher, Litsa wears many hats that it takes to make a home a functioning home!