Paying off credit card debts as soon as possible was my new year resolution when my credit card debts dropped to $14,911. But then in May, I decided to shorten my journey to becoming debt free in 3 to 5 years.

Let’s face it - the journey to becoming debt free is filled with obstacles, challenges, and disappointments.

I was supposed to blog about my latest credit card debts a few weeks ago, but had to put it off. The main reason was that my uncle was diagnosed with stomach cancer recently. According to the oncologist, it’s terminal stomach cancer.

The news did come as a shock as my uncle had been very healthy. Besides, it was barely a month after my youngest uncle passed on. My family and I found it hard to accept the news at first. But after the truth finally sank in, everyone in the family has to put the grief over the death of my youngest uncle behind for the time being and try our best to support my uncle.

Hubby is a Foot Reflexologist, therefore he has to be in the hospital twice a day doing foot reflexology treatment on my uncle. Both hubby and I travel to the city on Monday and stay at my aunt’s place until Saturday. This is the second week we are in the city.

Doing foot reflexology treatment on my uncle in the city means that hubby has to stop all his existing patients’ treatments for at least a month. There is zero income from his part for at least a month or even longer.

As for me, my income is also affected slightly. To date, my online income is still less than $1,000 per month. Not being able to accept more assignments to do and submit articles for my various niche blogs has so far decreased my income and slowed down my money making project of building niche blogs for affiliate programs.

For the time being, I can’t apply one of the debt reduction tips - Increase Your Income. Let me share with you that increasing income will not help you in reducing your credit card debts if you do not cut down on your expenses. Only when you cut down spending and increase income simultaneously that you will see yourself pay off your credit card debts faster.

I can still use the rest of the credit card debt reduction tips to help in paying down the debts bit by bit.

Cut Down Your Expenses. As a work at home mom who was once loaded with $20,321 credit card debts and able to pay down the debts to $13,632, I must admit that reducing expenses is important. You must know where your money goes to. Not realizing this and without knowing it are spending what adds up to be a significant amount each month on little things.

Write down everything you are spending, including cups of coffee, magazines, sodas, snacks and money spent eating out. If you don’t know exactly where your money is going, you can’t make any affective changes, save money or take control of your finances.

Hubby and I don’t drive to the city this month, so we are able to save money on fuel consumption, toll fee, and parking fee. Each trip to the city costs approximately $60. On the other hand, taking bus to and in the city costs only $36.

Stop Using Credit Cards. Understandably, emergencies such as car repairs, home improvements or medical expenses arise that justify using credit cards. On the other hand, if the bulk of your credit card expenses revolve around shopping sprees, vacations, or entertainment, a radical lifestyle change is then needed.

With the high price of gas and food, it is very tempting to use your credit cards and charge up the balances. To avoid using your credit cards unnecessarily, remove all credit cards from your wallet.

Pay More Than the Minimum Payments Monthly. The minimum payment is designed to keep you on the hook longer. The credit card companies are in this business to make a profit and want to have you paying them for years to come. Even a little extra each month makes a big difference in the long run and may cut years off your payments.

It may seem tough to pay down credit card debts fast once in a while. But John Quincy Adams once said that “Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”

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