There are many parallels between trying to get out of debt and trying to lose weight. Both of them require dedication and patience, basically forcing you to play “the long game”. The quick fixes are only going to be surface level and to make lasting change– you are going to need to change both your mindset and your behavioral patterns.
However, the biggest parallel of all is the fact that you have to learn to deal with frustration and setbacks. If you let disappointment get you off of the path, you can quickly erase weeks and months of good progress.
Like many people, I have been on a bit of a weight-loss roller coaster for the better part of the last decade. I find success with a specific diet or workout regimen for weeks a time and start to see some good results. My pants get a little bit loser, the scale starts to whisper sweet nothings into my ears, and I start to get excited about finally hitting my goals. But right about that point, life seems to always happen; I get sick or injured, work becomes stressful and starts requiring long hours, or something happens with the kids that makes it so that I can’t get to the gym for a bunch of days in a row. Sadly, this often leads to me completely falling off the train and it can take some time to get my “mojo” back to the point where I am ready to climb back aboard.
Of course, getting out of debt is almost exactly the same. You can start to pay off your debt, and zero out a balance or two. You start to earn some side income by doing focus groups or picking up an odd job. At this point, you start to feel like this debt dragon can finally be slayed and you are well on your way to financial freedom. But much like the weight loss roller coaster, any debt payoff story will also have cliffs and valleys; Your car will need $500 worth of work, you will get hit with some medical bills (which is what has caused most of our financial issues in the last decade), or your home will need some repairs.
Of course, the impact of financial hardship on a debt payoff journey can be mitigated by having an Emergency Account properly funded to handle these challenges. The worst thing you can do when trying to get out of credit card debt is to pull out your credit card and start charging things (even for emergencies).
The important thing to remember when trying to lose weight or trying to climb out of debt is the overall trend line. You don’t necessarily have to measure it day by day or week by week. Instead, thing long-term. I recommend taking stock on the first day of each month. Track this in a spreadsheet or somewhere that you can easily see the differences. Right down your balances from each account, and make sure they are trending in the right direction. If you are sticking with your plan and cutting discretionary spending and looking for ways to climb out of debt, your trend line will show progress. And with progress comes hope. And eventually, your progress will begin to snowball and you’ll find yourself debt free.