Remaining debt-free is not as hard as you might think. Becoming and staying debt-free requires that you consider your expenditures more carefully before making them.
This is not to say that you should allow yourself to become paralyzed by indecision every time you're thinking of buying something. Instead, you should take an honest assessment as to whether you've budgeted for the item in question and, if you haven't, what makes it worth stepping outside of your budget to buy it? Can you fit it into next month's budget and just wait a few weeks to buy it? Is there some other part of your budget that you can trim this month to compensate for the extra expense?
Keep in mind, as you start to take yourself through this process the objective is not to deprive yourself. The goal is to make your life easier and richer.
Getting out and staying out of debt requires you to be sensible when using credit cards. When used carelessly, credit cards can be the shovel with which you dig a deep financial hole for yourself. Therefore, a general rule is that if you cannot pay off the items in question in full at the end of the month then don't buy them. It's that simple.
Take a close look at the current state of your finances. What are your earnings? What are your expenses? When you subtract your total expenses from your total net income, is the remainder a positive or negative number? These are the questions that will keep you from sinking into debt. You'd be well served to get into the habit of knowing the exact condition of your finances at any given moment throughout the month.
Another integral part of remaining free of debt is to balance your checkbook on a monthly basis. You should record all deposits, ATM withdrawals, check card purchases and checks written in your ledger. Then balance your checkbook against your monthly statement when it arrives and make sure you iron out any inconsistencies. You can stow receipts in your wallet if you don't want to log purchases in your checkbook ledger at the counter.
To remain debt-free, the value of a personal budget cannot be overstated. Practice reasonable restraint at the checkout counter (real world or online) and keep a current and accurate tally of your financial activity. These two practices alone will assure you the greatest chances of becoming and remaining debt-free.
