The Debt Escape Plan: How to Free Yourself from Credit Card Balances, Boost Your Credit Score, and Live Debt-Free - Softcover

Harzog, Beverly

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1601633602 ISBN 13: 9781601633606

Verlag: CAREER PR, 2015

Inhaltsangabe

Winner of the American Society of Journalists and Authors' 2016 Outstanding Book Award in the Self-Help category

Praise for Author's Last Book:
"Confessions of a Credit Junkie is presented in a conversational tone, without confusion, techno-speak complexity or excessive industry jargon. The book breaks through delusion and naiveté and can, given a chance, inspire even the most wide-eyed spender to avoid the pit of debt that snared Harzog and so very many others.
--Creditcardinsider.com

If you're in credit-card debt and you're tired of being told that all you need to do is give up your daily latte--and cut up all your credit cards--this is the book for you.

Former credit junkie Beverly Harzog racked up thousands of dollars in credit-card debt during a decade of overspending. When she decided she wanted to break free from debt, she found that conventional advice about personal finance didn't work for her.

So, Beverly created her own unique debt escape plan and succeeded in paying off more than $20,000 in credit card debt in two years.

In The Debt Escape Plan, you'll find easy-to-follow advice, often laced with a touch of Southern humor, to help you conquer--and stay out of--credit-card debt.

In this much-needed book, you'll learn:

Why a one-size-fits-all approach to credit card debt doesn't work.

How to use the Money Personality Quiz to customize your own debt escape plan.

The nine biggest debt mistakes and how to overcome them.

Seven secrets for giving your credit score a quick boost.

how to overcome the hardships of medical bills.

How to debt-proof your future so this never happens to you again!

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorinnen und Autoren

Beverly Harzog is a nationally recognized credit card expert, author, and consumer advocate. She's appeared on Fox News, CNN Newsource, ABC News Now, and top media markets across the country. She is a frequent guest on syndicated radio shows, and her advice appears regularly in print and on major Websites, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, SmartMoney, Money Magazine, U.S. World's News Report, New York Daily News, the Washington Post, MSNMoney.com, CNNMoney.com, and many more.

Beverly runs a popular credit card blog on her Website and has coauthored two books, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Person-to-Person Lending and Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits! She lives in Johns Creek, Georgia, with her husband and two children.

Beverly Harzog is a nationally recognized credit card expert, author, and consumer advocate. She's appeared on Fox News, CNN Newsource, ABC News Now, and top media markets across the country. She is a frequent guest on syndicated radio shows, and her advice appears regularly in print and on major Websites, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, SmartMoney, Money Magazine, U.S. World & News Report, New York Daily News, the Washington Post, MSNMoney.com, CNNMoney.com, and many more.

Beverly runs a popular credit card blog on her Website and has coauthored two books, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Person-to-Person Lending and Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits! She lives in Johns Creek, Georgia, with her husband and two children.

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The Debt Escape Plan

How to Free Yourself From Credit Card Balances, Boost Your Credit Score, and Live Debt-Free

By Beverly Harzog, Kirsten Dalley

Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

Copyright © 2015 Beverly Harzog
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-60163-360-6

Contents

Introduction, 
Chapter 1: 9 Mistakes That Keep You Stuck in Debt, 
Chapter 2: Look Your Debt in the Eye and Own It, 
Chapter 3: What's Your Money Personality?, 
Chapter 4: Be the Boss of Your Budget, 
Chapter 5: (Almost) Pain-Free Ways to Increase Your Income, 
Chapter 6: Create Your Debt Escape Plan, 
Chapter 7: Staying Motivated When Things Go Wrong, 
Chapter 8: What If You're in a True Debt Disaster?, 
Chapter 9: 7 Simple Strategies to Boost Your Credit Score, 
Chapter 10: Debt-Proof Your Future, 
Appendix A: Glossary of Key Terms, 
Appendix B: Resources, 
Index, 
About the Author, 

CHAPTER 1

9 Mistakes That Keep You Stuck in Debt

Being in debt is a horrible feeling, isn't it? Anyone who has ever been in debt knows that. I've been there to the tune of $20,000, so I really can empathize. But you know what's even worse than feeling like you're about to go under water? Making mistakes that cause you to sink even lower into the depths of debt hell.

I've actually committed all of the mistakes I'm going to cover here. Yep, all nine! It's not an achievement I'm particularly proud of, but by sharing it with you I'm hoping you'll benefit from my past misery. Some of these mistakes I made just as I was starting to sink into debt. They're what I like to call "gateway mistakes"; once you get comfortable with these mistakes, you're just a few steps away from the bigger mistakes that take you all the way down the rabbit hole.

So, I know firsthand how screwed up things can get. I also know that these nine mistakes kept me in debt far longer than necessary. And that means I paid a whole lot more in interest than I would have if I'd come to my senses sooner. Here's the deal: Face these mistakes head-on so you can nip them in the bud and get on with fixing your life. Of course, if you're afflicted with Mistake #1, I know that this is easier said than done.

Mistake #1: You Have an Acute Case of Head-in-Sand Syndrome

When you're in debt, you kind of wish you could have a do-over with your credit cards. This is especially true if you've taken the time to learn about your finances since you got into debt. If you could climb into a time machine and go back a few years, you definitely would not buy those designer shoes. And you wouldn't even think about getting that awesome flat-screen TV again. In fact, if you could bargain with the shopping gods, you'd never buy anything again, ever!

If you could only erase the damage, you'd be the best cardholder who has ever lived. See, this is the kind of thinking that leads to depression, because you know you can't have a do-over with your credit card debt. And this, my friends, is what makes you vulnerable to head-in-sand syndrome (HISS).

Here are some of the unpleasant side effects of HISS: When you're in the acute stage, you might start making late payments. Or worse, you might even stop paying your bills altogether, as I did. Other side effects include plunging credit scores, mail-induced nausea, and non-existent self-esteem. It's not surprising that some of us start to pretend that the whole debt thing doesn't even exist. I mastered this approach when I was in debt. Fortunately, this syndrome is curable by taking a large dose of reality. I call this "staring down your debt," and I show you exactly how to do just that in Chapter 2.

When I was in debt I had seven credit cards, and they were all maxed out. Every. Single. One. You know what happens when you're in this situation? You get lots and lots of bills in the mail. Yes, I mean snail mail. It was the '80s, and if you could breathe, you could get a credit card. And these were the days before the Internet and digital statements. If you're under the age of 35, this situation is probably difficult to imagine.

My problem wasn't just the amount of debt, though. I had so many high minimum monthly payments, I couldn't pay all of my monthly bills. The electricity, my rent, you name it. Not happening. Fortunately my car was paid for, or I surely would have ended up walking to work. It became overwhelming, and honestly, I wasn't yet ready to face what I'd done. So I made what I considered a logical decision at the time: I stopped going to my mailbox. No mail, no bills, no stress. Problem solved!

I talk about this a bit in my book Confessions of a Credit Junkie, and how I went on like this for weeks. But one day I was ambushed by the postal carrier who could no longer stuff any more mail into my mailbox. He happened to be there when I went home for lunch one day, and he said he thought I'd moved and had neglected to fill out one of those mail-forwarding forms. I fibbed about losing my mailbox key and he promptly handed me all my mail. That day, my lovely imaginary life got a jolt of reality.

Unfortunately, during my break from reality, everything had deteriorated to the point of ugliness. Some of my accounts had gone to collection agencies. My electricity was about to be turned off. Serious stuff was happening because I refused to live in reality. Would you believe I continued on in this semi-comatose state just a bit longer? When you feel like the walls are closing in on you, you cope the best way you can while you try to figure out what to do next. It might look to outsiders like you're making insane decisions. But this is why I never, ever judge the decisions people make when they're in debt. It's kind of like floating in the ocean, hanging onto a life preserver during a big storm. You're just trying to keep your head above water while you wait for things to calm down.

But the only way to keep from drowning is to face reality. Trust me on this. When I finally came to my senses, I had a strangely Zen type of feeling. I think I was relieved that the credit ride was over. Now, I just had to figure out how to take back my life.

Of course, I regretted not having this epiphany sooner. My head-in-sand time made things worse than they already were, which made my credit comeback more difficult. But I still managed to recover from this mistake, and you can, too.

Mistake #2: You Believe You're a Victim

This one is complicated. I want to be sensitive here because there really are unfortunate circumstances, such as a health crisis or sudden unemployment, that make it difficult for people to pay their bills. In these cases, I'm not criticizing you for feeling like you've been dealt a bad hand. But until you can stop identifying yourself as the victim, you won't be able to pay off your debt. You'll be too angry to stay focused, because getting out of debt isn't for the faint of heart; it's hard work, and you have to be all in.

Let's take a look at the two most common complaints I hear from those who get stuck in victim roles. We'll take a look at each scenario and I'll explain what I mean.

"The credit card companies tricked me."

Some personal finance experts will tell you it isn't your fault. You couldn't resist the advertisements. They were too powerful, and you got sucked into buying stuff. Well, I'm not one of those experts. I happen to think that you're smarter than that and not weak-minded enough to get continually sucked into purchases you don't need. Sure, we all indulge in impulse buys...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: CAREER PR
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2015
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1601633602
• ISBN 13: 9781601633606
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 288
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: GS1 Slovakia; https://www.gs1sk.org; ; Nantersk� 23; Žilina; 010 08; Slowakei