5 Tactics for a Person to Become Financially Independent and Free Themselves from Debt

The stress of financial issues is commonly cited as a reason for divorce in many cases. Constantly having to worry about paying bills due to living past a person’s means is far more common than many people think. There are plenty of people still recovering from the spending mistakes they made at a far younger age. Taking the time to assess personal financial issues as well as health honestly is the first step of getting out of debt. A proactive approach is what is needed as debt is never going to take care of itself. The following are tactics that a person can use to allow them to free themselves from debt.

Financial Education

The options online are endless for education on finance whether a person wants to take part in a Forex Academy or take a class on the basics of the stock market investment. Ignorance is no longer an excuse with the multitude of financial information at our fingertips. This is a far better use of a smartphone than surfing the latest social media craze or challenge. People just have to list out what parts of their financial life they are unsure of then simply do some reading.

Picking Up A Side Gig

Picking up a side gig whether it is bartending on weekends or doing freelance work online can help cut into debt quickly. The one aspect to remember is that this money will be taxed so put money away come tax time. There are so many opportunities online for those with skills like organization, writing, and design that there will be no shortage of supplemental income opportunities. Take the time to assess personal skills then embark on a side gig that can help dig a person out of debt.

Cut Down Monthly Costs

Cutting down monthly costs that are set is important as many people could be saving a lot per month simply by switching companies. The phone bill is one that comes to mind as smaller companies can help save money. These companies are usually on the larger carrier’s networks as it is so worrying about terrible coverage shouldn’t be done. The cable bill is another that can be eliminated in favor of a streaming service as there are plenty that even let a member watch live sports. Other expenses like car insurance can be lowered just by looking around but make sure to take quality of service or payout after a collision into account.

Use A Budget Tracking App

There are budget tracking apps that ask a user if they really need that 5-dollar cup of coffee or to go out to eat again. These can be great for those people that simply lose track of their spending which is far easier to do than many people realize. Take the time to look at the different saving apps as there are plenty which differs immensely in quality.

Create A Debt Payment Plan

Figuring out which debts to pay first can be difficult but those with the highest interest rates need to be knocked out first. For those debts with reasonable rates like that of a student loan, these should be paid but not prioritized until debts like that on a credit card be paid. There are debts without huge interest rates that might occur like owing money to the electric or water company. If unsure how to tackle this meeting with a financial advisor or friend that is very good with finances can be a huge help.

Climbing out of debt does not have to be impossible but it is going to take hard work as well as smart work. Do not allow debt to constantly impact quality of life negatively by eliminating it completely.

Melissa Thompson writes about a wide range of topics, revealing interesting things we didn’t know before. She is a freelance USA Today producer, and a Technorati contributor.