If You Have Credit Card Debt….

If you have credit card debt, and I mean any credit card debt:

• Cancel your cable.
• Don’t buy a top-end cell phone.  Buy a $100 android phone and sign up for Republic Wireless or one of the other, cheaper cell phone providers.
• Don’t waste money at the bars.  (Ok to buy one drink occasionally at a bar if your social world revolves around that.)
• Buy a used, high-quality car.
• If you are not accident prone, push up the deductible on your car insurance as high as you can afford.  This will reduce your insurance premiums.
• Don’t buy your coffee or tea at Starbucks.  Brew it at home or at the office.

This is just a starter list.  You get the idea.  The point is: take massive action now and get this under control.  If you don’t, you will hurl thousands and thousands of dollars out the window.

Mighty Investor does not advocate a life of penny pinching austerity.  We believe in a balance between offence and defense, earning and saving.  However, that balanced strategy goes out the window if you have any debt (other than a mortgage on your primary residence).  For most people, credit card debt is a function of low quality decisions, not life circumstances.  (Yes, there are exceptions.)

Own your situation.  Treat this as an emergency.  If you have credit card debt, crush it.  Now.

We can then start building your ideal life over time.

(We will address the option of personal bankruptcy in a later post.  Not something to do lightly.)