It's not easy to live debt free. Avoiding debt means a certain amount of sacrifice, but it's not as difficult as you might think. It may be that you're actually not sacrificing much other than keeping us with the Joneses. This is no way to get ahead. Sacrificing when everyone else around you is buying things whether they really can afford it or not is tough, however, the path to live a debt free life is well worth the extra effort. That path will lead you to peace of mind and financial security.
Living debt free means that you have to pay off all your debts including your mortgage, car loans and credit cards and this can take years to accomplish but with hard work, it's possible to only carry the expenses of everyday living such as gas, food, utilites etc..
Start with self reflection and ask yourself if you really need those credit cards. Credit cards didn't always exist and we survived without them for decades so get rid of your cards and work on paying off your credit card debt. Once your credit card debts are eliminated this will free up some monies which can be used towards extra payments to your mortgage or car.
Making the transition from credit to debit is not going to come easily but when this happens you start to condition yourself to live within your means as you can no longer rely on credit. Beginning this lifestyle will force you to save for the items that you want. Saving for the item you want not only saves you money from not paying interest but can actually earns you interest while you save.
The New Year is approaching and there is no better time than now to start working on your debt free goal. You will have a few ups and downs and may drive down a bumpy road but seeking debt relief allows you to take back the control you lost. Also remember that once your debt free, you want to remain debt free!