Getting Out of Debt with a Debt-Elimination Calendar

Being in debt is a serious burden. Although there are periods in our lives that we have no other choice but to borrow, getting out of debt-and staying there-should be a priority for us all. It takes discipline, commitment, and hard work. No one telling the truth will tell you it's easy, but it is going to be what ultimately gives you financial freedom.

Debt is bondage. There's no way to be financially free without eliminating personal debt first. From my own experience, being in debt can be overwhelming. It's hard to live a normal life when you know you're in debt and everyday is getting worse because of the increasing interest that you will now owe too.

Make the decision today to put things in order to get out of debt. The actual paying off your debts likely won't happen overnight, but your commitment to that path of action can. It's easy to not know where to start, and consequently, not really start at all taking the steps you need to take in order to obtain financial freedom.

You can't pay off everything, so why is it important to pay off a little now? Because of interest. Don't fall prey to the foolish wisdom of thinking later it will be easier to pay off debts than now. The threat of compound interest is real, and people within the grasp of its bondage should never forget it.

In explaining the power of consumer interest, J. Reuben Clark, Jr. offered this warning back in 1938, which was repeated by Gordon B. Hinckley in 1990: "Interest never sleeps nor sickens nor dies; it never goes to the hospital; it works on Sundays and holidays; it never takes a vacation; it never visits nor travels; it takes no pleasure; it is never laid off work nor discharged from employment; it never works on reduced hours; it never has short crops nor droughts; it never pays taxes; it buys no food; it wears no clothes; it is unhoused and without home and so has no repairs, no replacements, no shingling, plumbing, painting, or whitewashing; it has neither wife, children, father, mother, nor kinfolk to watch over and care for; it has no expense of living; it has neither weddings nor births nor deaths; it has no love, no sympathy; it is as hard and soulless as a granite cliff.

J. Reuben Clark, Jr. continued, "Once in debt, interest is your companion every minute of the day and night; you cannot shun it or slip away from it; you cannot dismiss it; it yields neither to entreaties, demands, or orders; and whenever you get in its way or cross its course or fail to meet its demands, it crushes you."

Until your debts are paid, interest will continue to loom over your life. J. Reuben Clark's frightening statements weren't shared in some great financial conference or some business meeting, they were broadcasted over a religious pulpit aimed at anyone who would listen. President Clark knew, just as we know today, financial debt does not confine itself to affecting only our financial lives. Every part of our lives can be affected when under the stress of being in debt.

Start now paying off your creditors and getting out of debt.

Marvin J. Ashton, having been a religious leader as well as a financial expert, wrote several pieces on how to successfully manage finances. In one of his great guides, he explained what a debt-elimination calendar is and how it can be helpful in reducing personal debt.

To see a debt-elimination calendar sample, you can visit Elder Marvin J. Ashton's Guide to Family Finance and scroll down to the bottom of the page to view the calendar.

He also explains, in words, how to create a debt-elimination calendar.

"Mark off several columns on a piece of paper. In the first column on the left, write the names of the months, beginning with the upcoming month. At the top of the next column, write the name of the creditor you want to pay off first. It may be the debt with the highest interest rate or the earliest pay-off date. List the monthly payment for that creditor until the loan is repaid as shown [on the website]. At the top of the next column, record the name of the second creditor you want to repay, and list payments due each month. After you have repaid the first creditor, add the amount of that monthly payment to your payment to the second creditor. Continue the process until all loans are repaid."

Debt-elimination calendars aren't revolutionary; they don't contain any gimmicks or tricks. They're simple, but they're effective. The calendars help you visualize, prioritize, and keep finances in order.

As you create your own debt-elimination calendar and follow through with payments to creditors, a great deal of satisfaction and self-pride can come to you from crossing out columns and from knowing you are getting back on track. And as you complete your payments and are able to free yourself from the final shackle weighing you down, you can feel the burden of debt being eliminated from your life.

Sources:

Ashton, Marvin J., "Guide to Family Finance." Lds.org.

Hinckley, Gordon B., "First Presidency Message: 'Thou Shalt Not Covet.'" Lds.org.