Start to Get Out of Debt This Month

1. Deal with the present, focus on the future. One if the worst mistakes you can make when you try and get out of debt is to dwell on how bad things are right now.

Yes, you need to pay attention to your troubles so you can fix them. But even if you don't care much for the Law of Attraction (you really should…), focusing solely on your problems is a bad idea. Grinding over the bad financial spot you're in will not help you get out of debt--it will only keep you depressed and worried.

Focus instead on how good things are going to be when you finally do get out of debt. It's not hard to train yourself to switch to this thought every time you start to worry about the present. After all, you've finally decided to take your finances into your own hands, so the future is bright--even if it's not as close as you'd like it.

2. Be careful about that "emergency credit card." It seems that almost everyone wants to keep one last piece of plastic around, "just in case of emergency." Unfortunately, this has been the downfall of many people who want to get out of debt.

If you absolutely must keep an emergency credit card, make sure it's hard to get to. The best idea I've heard so far is to freeze your plastic in a bowl of water. There's a pretty good chance you won't be getting that out for anything short of an emergency. (And if you do, you're probably going to feel pretty silly by the time you hack or melt your way through the ice.)

3. Get a plan. A plan is your map to steer yourself away from your debt. Without a plan on how you're going to get to financial stability, you might as well sign up for a new loan and take out a couple of new credit cards.

Please take note that a budget is NOT a plan. It is definitely part of a plan, but it is not a plan unto itself.

A good plan will set down not only how much money you're going to spend on living expenses every month, but which debt you are paying off first, how much you pay off each month, and more.

4. Get a mentor. This step will help you with the previous step--which will literally help you with everything else that will take you into financial security.

A mentor can be a member of your family who's gotten themselves out of debt, or someone from your circle of friends who has done the same. Or, they can be a hired hand such as a financial advisor, coach, or someone from a mentorship program.

The important thing is that you work with someone who does actually know how to get out of debt, whether through personal or professional experience. Someone like this can take thousands of dollars and months (or years) off of your efforts to get out of debt.