You’re at start of a journey, but in many ways you’ve made the most important decision. You’ve decided to do something about it. In this first step we’re going to build a minimalist budget that exposes the hard inner core of our most unavoidable expenses.
You’re at the point of maximum frustration. You’ve tried a few things but realise that you need a more organised, comprehensive approach. You’ve finally decided that you have to do something about your debt situation.
But where to start?
There’s only a certain amount of effort and energy you can dedicate to a task. As you probably know from bitter experience, if you don’t put your effort in the right places, and you don’t see some results, you’ll get discouraged and it will become impossible to continue.
Flicking through websites, we find many people who claim to have paid off staggering amounts of debt in record time. They make it seem almost too easy. Just download their printable and you’re home free, right? But you already know that’s not how it works.
You can’t transform a difficult debt situation into a debt-free life at the flick of a switch, or by applying a simple “life hack”. It’s going to take time, effort and a plan. The plan focuses your effort where it has the most effect and helps measure progress towards your goal.
Before you leap, take a step back. Take control of the smallest and easiest and most essential thing of all: Your day-to-day essentials. Draw up a minimalist budget of your most essential costs. This will give you an idea of what it’s possible for you to save each month.
This article explains how.