The most empowering way to take charge of debt

We’ve all been there at some point, and maybe you’re there now. I mean dealing with debt, and feeling the burden of owing money. Taking charge of debt can feel awfully impossible when you feel like you’re being crushed by its weight.

Then, there’s the shame around it, not to mention the sinking feeling that you just don’t have the resources to get rid of it, and maybe you never will. The feelings of shame and stuckness start building on each other, and the spiral keeps on going…

What can you do to take charge of debt, let go of the unsupportive emotions, and actually DO something about it?

Honestly, the answer isn’t a complicated one, but sometimes it can be a bit intimidating. Let’s talk about that right here.

Taking charge of debt is about knowing where you are NOW.

Here’s the thing with money. If you want to take charge of your finances, you have to understand them to start with. That is, to get where you want to be, you need to know where you are NOW. There’s no getting to the destination you desire without knowing where you’re starting from!

Now, what does this have to do with debt? It’s my favorite strategy for taking charge of any financial situation, debt included. It means that you need to take one simple but powerful action.

It’s something that I like to call “owning up to owing.”

This means exactly what it sounds like. To own up to what you owe, all you need to do is simply acknowledge your debt. Look at it, take inventory of it, and be honest about it. That’s the first step, and it’s a VERY empowering one!

I bet you can see why it could be a little bit challenging, though. One of the most difficult parts about asking for help is admitting that there’s something going on in the first place. But it’s that avoidance that keeps you stuck, and avoiding debt is no exception.

So my challenge to you today is to simply LOOK at your debt, and own up to owing.

This was a big step for me on my finance journey. But when I finally decided that it was time for me to stop avoiding my debt, and stop holding shame around it. Maybe, I figured, if I just look at it and let go of the judgment I held around it, I might actually make a plan.

This is exactly what happened. I looked at my debt, and I let go of judgment and shame as best as I could. It was then that I realized it just wasn’t as scary as I thought it was going to be…

Then, once I faced it my debt with courage, I actually took action and made a plan!

This is the true power of “owning up to owing.”

It’s about letting go of avoidance, facing what’s there, and making a real plan for real change.

Now, it’s not that I got rid of all my debt and never went into debt again. I still do have debt now, but I balance it into my overall financial plan. How does this work?

I’ve switched my mindset around debt over the last few years, moving from seeing debt as a completely bad thing to understanding where it fits in to my overall plan. The kind of debt I carry now is in the form of a mortgage, and I have a very specific purpose for the debt and a plan to manage it. And while I don’t necessarily love having it, I see its purpose in my big-picture scenario.

So taking charge of debt is all about first acknowledging your debt, then making a plan and taking action.

Now, here’s an action step that I challenge you to take today…

Set a timer for 5 minutes. Then, write down all of your debts. Include:

1-The vendor (to whom you owe the debt)

2-The total amount owed

3-The annual percentage rate, or APR (if there is one)

4-The total minimum due each month

You can write this down with pen and paper, or put it on word doc. Even write it down with glitter if you want to! All you need to do is write it all down, and acknowledge that it’s there.

You can do this on a word document, you can do it on old school pen and paper, you can do it in glitter, you can do it in Excel. You can do it any way you want, as long as you’re sitting down and writing down all of your debts.

For example, let’s say you have a Credit Card with a balance of $3000, an APR of 26.99%, and a minimum monthly payment of $79. Just write down all these figures. Then, do the same with all other debts.

Include everything–personal loans, student loans, credit cards, or anything else. Write it all down, and just LOOK at it.

What does this do for you? When you face what’s there and know where you’re starting from, it stirs up the energy in a positive way. It helps you take action and create momentum. From there, it makes it SO much easier to figure out your next steps, and how you’re going to take them.

I share all the details of this challenge right here in this short video!

Give this a try, and see how it feels! I’m guessing it will help you process the emotions with a lot more ease, let go of what’s been keeping you stuck, and actually make a plan. It did for me, and I’ve used it to help numerous clients do the same!

Can’t wait to hear how it works for you!

Until next time,

Love, light, and MONEY, honey…

Kaylee

P.S. If you liked this challenge, I invite you to check out the two previous challenges in this series! First, I share the secret to taking your money mindset to the next level, and you can find that one HERE. Then, I share the one shift I made that changed my finances for good, which I talk about HERE.