Debt.

One of the worst 4-letter words I know.

Unfortunately, debt is a very real part of life.

I have been living with credit card debt since I got my first credit card over 20 years ago.

My Journey With Credit Card Debt

Not having very much financial education, being a stupid teenager, and the fact that my bank willingly gave a naive college student a credit card, started me down a path of debt.

I have always carried a balance on my credit card from month to month. Not caring about how much interest I was paying, and ignorant of the negative effect every late payment had on my credit score.

How important is a credit score anyway?

Finally, when I was in my 30s, I wisened up a little bit and did some self-education about personal finance.

I knew it was important to keep my credit card balance as low as I could manage.

My priorities had changed, I was no longer a selfish single person in my 20s. I was a mature adult (ha!) with a family and was saving for a downpayment.

I needed to be smart with my money.

With that being said, do you think anything changed?

No.

My spouse was earning great money at the time, so we were able to save for a downpayment for a house.

However, we kept the same spending habits, buying unnecessary luxuries, and pulling out that credit card when we were short on cash, which was far too often. 

Old habits are hard to break.

Don’t get me wrong, I had some good periods where I budgeted and watched my spending and was able to make a big dent in my credit card balance.

But it wasn’t enough.

When times were good and I had a surplus of money, I spent it (well, my partner and I both did, but I will just be speaking for myself in this article.) 

I thought, ‘Well, I don’t need to budget right now, there’s lots of money in the account.”

Not for long.

It’s very easy to spend. 

It’s a lot tougher to stay disciplined and put excess money towards debt and long-term savings.

The Turning Point

It took a life-changing event to change my spending patterns. 

My partner and I separated.

At the time, I had been a stay-at-home mom for almost 10 years.

I was starting over.

Together, we had horrible finances. 

Too much spending.

Too much debt.

In my experience, it is extremely difficult to straighten out your finances when the two people involved are not on the same page, or even reading the same book.

If only one person in a relationship is committed to spending less and saving more, it’s not going to work.

I admit when I saw that my partner was spending needlessly, so did I.

I would think, “If he doesn’t care, why should I?”

And then I would spend needlessly.

Petty, yes. But true.

It was not a good cycle to be in, to say the least.

So, when we separated, I knew I could finally do some damage to my debt. (I had a credit card that was exclusively mine, so I took on that debt myself).

Mind you, this didn’t happen right away, we had been separated for over a year before I got serious about paying off my credit card debt.

Here’s how I did it:

1. I made a plan.
2. I stuck to the plan.

My Plan To Pay Off My Credit Card Debt

I started by figuring out how much money I could comfortably pay every month toward my credit card.

To do this, I had to use my budget and calculate my cash inflow and outflows. 

If you’re not sure how to do this, click the link above or please leave me a comment. I didn’t know any of this stuff until I started taking a financial planning course. 

I truly believe we should all know about personal finance, and that’s why I started this blog and my YouTube channel.

I want to educate as many people as I can about the importance of personal finance and how to take control of your money.

Anyway, I digress.

Once  I figured out how much I could pay each month toward my debt, I calculated how long it would take to pay it off.

I ended up being able to pay off $1000 each month.

My balance was $3823.16, so it would take me approx 4 months to do so.

*Please don’t use my figures as a guide. Your personal circumstances are different than mine and you may be able to put more or less money towards your debt each month. Don’t get hung up on the figures, this is just my personal experience, yours will be different and that’s OK.

As well as dedicating $1000 a month to debt repayment, I did not use the credit card for any more purchases. 

I had a few recurring expenses coming out of that card every month, so I moved those expenses to a low-limit credit card which forces me to pay it off every single month.

In a perfect world, I would not have any expenses being put on my credit card, but there are a couple of expenses that I pay monthly that need a credit card.

That being said, it is a good idea to take a good, hard look at any recurring expenses and question whether or not you need them.

Lastly, I stuck to my plan. 

The last step may be the hardest.

Countless times in the past, I have come up with a plan to pay down debt, only to completely abandon it for the quick rush of an Amazon product or a night out. Only to regret it when I was once again reminded by my bank statement that I couldn’t afford it.

How It Feels To Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt

Let me tell you, now that I have been credit card debt-free for a couple of weeks now, that the feeling of having a $0 balance on your credit card is one million times better than the temporary joy of purchasing something that you can’t afford.

The feelings don’t even compare.

The weight off my shoulders is an almost indescribable feeling. I can breathe again. I am no longer drowning in debt. 

The Takeaways

Let me sum this up:

1. Calculate how much money you can put towards your credit card debt consistently every month.
2. Do not put any more purchases on your credit card.
3. Remove any recurring expenses from your credit card, including deleting it from Amazon.
4. Stick to the plan until it is paid off.

This plan is simple, yes, but not easy.

It requires a strong desire to get debt-free and persistence to keep going.

Please leave any comments or questions below.

I would love to hear from you and help in any way I can.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius