Okay, so we have all read all of those posts about how people pay off massive amounts of debt by starting a side hustle.  We think good for them! But what about me? I have no extra time for a side hustle. How can I pay off debt without a side hustle?

Truthfully, your debt payoff will go much faster with more income, ie. a side hustle.  As Dave Ramsey says, if you have a big hole (amount of debt), you are going to need a big shovel.  Working with a smaller shovel makes your debt payoff slower. Not impossible, but slower.

So, if you can’t increase your income, how can you pay off debt?  The only other option you have for coming up with extra money for debt payoff is to decrease your expenses.  Along with decreasing your expenses, there are some other things that can really help you free up some of your cash.  These have all been tested by yours truly!

5 Ways to Accomplish Debt Payoff Without a Side Hustle:

1.  Budget

Come on!  You knew this was coming.  You absolutely need to have a budget set up.  Without knowing where your money is going every month, it will be very hard to decrease your expenses.

The point of the budget is to know where every single dollar you have is being spent.  This allows you to assess how much you are spending so you can then cut things back and free up more money for your debt.

Most people feel like they have had an increase in pay once they actually watch where all their money is going.  Seriously! Once you know where all your money is, you realize how much you have!

If you don’t have a budget yet, start here:

What is the best type of budget?

Quickstart budget set up.

Mistakes newbie budgeters make and how to avoid them.

What to do if you go over budget.

Get our Free Quick Budget Set Up Worksheets to get started right now!  Sign up below and get the instant download.  No excuses!  Start right now.

Once your budget is set up, you should then see how your spending fits with the recommended averages.  Find out if you are majorly overspending in one area or another.  This will help you see if you can free up some of your hard-earned money to put more toward debt.

Take the FREE Money Spending Assessment to see if you are on track with your spending or if you have room to improve!  Take it instantly by signing up below!

2.  Cut Expenses

When it comes to decreasing your expenses there are tons of ways to go about it:

• Stop eating out.
• Make coffee at home.
• Cut cable.
• Downgrade your internet package.
• Change cell phone providers.  (This one is my favorite!!)
• Put all vacations on hold.
• Cancel gym memberships.
• Stretch the time between haircuts/salon visits.
• Stop going to the movies.
• Stop buying new clothes.
• Cut up your credit cards.
• Stop all 401K contributions.
• Use less product at home (laundry soap, dish soap, shampoo, etc.)
• Reconsider adding pets to your life.

You can read more about all of these changes here.  All of these changes could quickly save you $1,000!  Changing cell phone providers alone could save you up to $2,000 a year!

3.  Meal Plan

If you look at your budget, food is always the category where you have the most opportunity to decrease your spending.  Most likely, you are spending money on groceries (without a plan for them) and then eating out on top of it because you have “nothing to eat for dinner.”

This is so common, and I have lived it.  Meal planning is the answer if you are wanting to cut down on eating out and decrease your grocery budget.  There are some key things you can do to make sure you stay within your budget. But, the biggest thing you can do is meal plan.  This will totally change your life.

This is how to get started with meal planning.

This is a BASIC meal plan for $100 for a month of meals.

This is how to automate your meal plan with a 12-week rotation.  Ie. your meal plan is on auto-pilot.

Even if you have reservations about meal planning, it will be the best thing you do.  Here are 6 reasons you definitely need to meal plan. Just start slowly with it and don’t be overcomplicated.  Do you want to eat a bowl of Lucky Charms for dinner? Awesome! Easy, cheap and delicious AF! Just take it one month at a time.

Get started meal planning with all of our helpful resources including a meal planning calendar, meal plan by theme, a basic meal plan with grocery list and more!  Sign up below to get started!

4.  Downgrade your major expenses.

If you live in a home with a mortgage that is killing you, move.  If you have a car payment you can’t afford, sell it. If you have a huge payment, you need to change it.  These things are a money suck. They just take all of your money when you could be making do with an apartment or a cheaper vehicle.

This can be an easy way to find tons of money fast.  All that extra money you would have spent on a mortgage payment can be turned toward your debt instead.  If you are resistant to making these major changes in your life, just remember all of this will be temporary.

As soon as your debt is paid off, you can get that house back, you can get that car back and start living the life of your dreams.

5.  Commit to the change.

Debt payoff is a new mindset and a way of living.  Once you decide to get out of debt, your entire focus in life shifts.  Everything you do will be focused on achieving freedom from debt. If you are not committed 100%, you will find excuses not to put every extra penny you have toward your debt.

Debt payoff will just be a season of your life.  If you approach it with that attitude, even if it is going to take 3-5 years, it makes it much more do-able.  When you are just plugging away at it without intensity, it seems like it will take forever (and it usually does).

When you are all in and laser-focused on debt payoff, this season goes much faster.  Often times, even if you think it will take 5 years to accomplish your debt free goal, you likely will accomplish it even faster.  When you are completely committed, you are able to accomplish that much more. It is the same reason, Olympians have become World Champions.  It was their only focus with 100% intensity.

If you employ these 5 tactics, you will achieve debt payoff.  A side hustle is not a necessary component for a debt free journey in all cases.  If you can make some of these changes, you may find you can accomplish your goals much sooner than you thought.  Who knows? Along the way, you may actually want to start a side hustle to accomplish your financial freedom that much sooner!  Start today, with these changes and commit to paying off all that debt!

You got this!

Do you have any other awesome tips to pay off debt without a side hustle?

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