Credit card debt is the worst kind of debt to be in.

I speak from personal experience. When I was in my 20's, I racked up $15,000 in credit card debt.

Clearly, I had no idea how to manage my money effectively.

It was only once I got real with myself and changed my bad money habits that I was able to get out of debt and become financially free.

If you're currently in debt, I want to help you. Ready to discover how I paid off $15,000 in credit card debt, then became a millionaire?

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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There is nothing fun about debt.

The more that you ignore it, the worse that it gets. If you're in debt, you need to know that you're not alone. On average, each U.S. household with a credit card carries $8,398 in credit card debt and the average credit cardholder has at least four cards.

The first step to getting out of debt is understanding why you're in debt in the first place. Self-awareness is the key to changing anything in your life. If you don't learn from your debt experiences and take ownership of your choices, you will continue to make the same money mistakes.

In my personal life, I identified 3 reasons why I got myself into credit card debt in the first place.

First and foremost, I was living above my means. I was spending more money than I had coming in. Anytime that your expenditures are higher than your income, you will fall into debt. Secondly, I wasn't managing my money. I lacked awareness of where my money was going. In effect, I was digging myself into a hole.

Thirdly, I was avoiding the reality of my situation. I knew that I was in debt, but I avoided it because it was painful. It wasn't until I embraced the pain and hit an emotional threshold that I was finally ready to change my financial situation and formulate a plan to get myself out of debt.

Here are the steps that I took to get myself out of credit card debt.

1. I did a balance transfer

Credit card companies want to acquire you as a customer. This is why some companies will incentivize you by giving you a very low-interest rate to transfer your balance from one credit card to another. This is an opportunity for you to save some money and make sure that you're not paying a huge amount of interest on your credit card. In order to find these credit card companies, do a search on Google for the keyword, “credit card balance transfer.” This really helped me get ahead.

2. I learned how to manage my money

In particular, I started tracking everything that I was spending – all of my income and expenses. I stopped paying for things in cash because cash is hard to track. Instead, I used my debit card or credit card for every expense. Every week on a Tuesday I would log into my online banking and track everything that I was spending in an excel spreadsheet.

I looked at how much money I had coming in every single week and month. Then I started tracking all of my expenses, everything from rent to car payments to groceries. Every week I would update this spreadsheet.

Once I became aware of what my spending habits were, I was able to figure out where I was spending too much money. This is how I started to become a good money manager. It felt so empowering to be in control of my finances.

3. I started to create a budget and eliminate expenses

Once I realized that I was in a negative deficit every month I knew that my lifestyle had to change. I started creating a budget so that I wouldn't overspend. I looked at every single expense that I had in my spreadsheet and I asked myself the question, “How can I reduce this or eliminate this expense altogether?”

For example, I looked at how much money I was spending on my rent. At the time, I really loved my downtown Vancouver apartment. However, the reality was that I couldn't afford to live there. I was living a lifestyle that I hadn't earned yet. My options were to downsize my apartment, move back home, or find a roommate. I chose the third option. I lived on my friend's couch for one year and I paid him $500 per month. That's how I chose to save money.

It was very challenging and embarrassing at times. However, I accepted the fact that I had to make that sacrifice so that I could pay off my debt. Secondly, I sold my 1989 beat-up Honda Civic. I got $1,500 for my car and I started taking the bus. Doing so saved me a lot of money on fuel. Yes, it was really inconvenient but it forced me to start listening to audiobooks. I did all of this so that I could have some positive cash flow.

4. I found ways to make more money

I embraced any opportunity that would get me out of debt, even if that meant having two or three jobs. First, I started doing physical labor work. Not only did this job allow me to get into great shape, but I was also able to make some great money. That being said, this type of work was very hard on my body. I gave up my weekends when all of my friends were partying and invested that time into making extra cash flow.

On top on that, I also started doing freelance work as an online marketer.

Lastly, I decided to build an online business. I took advantage of self-education and learned from the people who had already achieved what it is that I wanted. In short, I was willing to invest my money into assets that could appreciate over time. Over time, I created multiple streams of passive income. Eventually, I paid off all of my debt. I can't tell you how good it feels to be debt-free.

This is how I paid off $15,000 in credit card debt, then became a millionaire.

I hope the steps that I've shared inspire you to get yourself out of credit card debt. I encourage you to look at your debt as a blessing. If you are willing to do anything and everything to get rid of it, I promise that your entire life will change for the better. The quicker that you become debt-free, the quicker you can start creating financial freedom and living the life that you've always dreamed of.

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Robert Kiyosaki is an American entrepreneur, educator, investor, and best-selling author.

His book changed my life forever. He helped me take control of my financial future and inspired me to become an Internet entrepreneur.

He is best known for his book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What The Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!, which is the #1 personal finance book of all time.

Ready to discover how you can use debt to get rich? Listen to Robert Kiyosaki!

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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Robert Kiyosaki is a financial expert.

His teachings have transformed the way that people around the world think about money. Robert Kiyosaki believes that most young people are brainwashed by the school system. They are sold the idea that if they go to university and get a good job, they will achieve financial security.

In today’s economic landscape, this is far from true. This is why we need to take it upon ourselves to become financially educated. In our interview, Robert Kiyosaki and I talk about his new book, Fake: Fake Money, Fake Teachers, Fake Assets: How Lies Are Making the Poor and Middle Class Poorer. In the book, Robert challenges conventional wisdom and empowers his readers to ask questions that will help them determine what is real and what isn't when it comes to money,

Let's dive in!

Do you mind sharing your “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” story?

I grew up in Hawaii. I'm a fourth-generation Japanese American. My poor dad had a Ph.D. and was the head of education for the state of Hawaii. However, I used to say that Ph.D. stood for poor, helpless and desperate. Our schools teach us nothing about money.

Even though I was a poor kid, I went to a rich kid's school. When I was 9 years old, I raised my hand and asked my teacher why others were rich and I was poor. She said, “If you stay in school you will be rich.” I said, “Don't B.S. me. My father has a Ph.D. and he is broke!” I kept raising my hand and she finally said, “The love of all money is the root of all evil.” I said, “It might be evil to you but I would like to have some.”

I kept asking my poor dad when he was going to teach me about money.

He said, “I can only teach what the government lets me teach and money is not one of those subjects.” That was my first wake up call that education was brainwashing. I went to a very good college and got a degree but I didn't learn anything about money. I started studying with my rich dad when I was 9 years old. He taught my best friend and I about money by playing monopoly.  Today, I own 7,000 rental properties and five hotels. All I do is play monopoly.

It's not that hard to get rich but you have to have good teachers.

There are a lot of fake teachers out there. That's why I wrote my book, Fake: Fake Money, Fake Teachers, Fake Assets: How Lies Are Making the Poor and Middle Class Poorer. Our school system is fake. Not only that, but we have fake money and we have fake assets in terms of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs. In my book, I write about the infinite return, meaning that the higher your financial IQ is, the less money that you need. In my opinion, if you need money, you're not using your brain properly.

What is your mindset when it comes to debt?

If you're going to be educated, you need to know the difference between credit and debt. All money today is credit. It doesn't exist. Credit is simply the power to spend.

The moment you spend it, you create debt.

When it comes to debt, there is a contractual agreement that you will pay it back. The trouble is that most people never pay it back. Look at the student debt crisis. Student loan debt is bigger than the subprime crisis that brought down the market in 2008. That is what we are dealing with when it comes to financial education.

What could someone do to educate themselves for a potential crash?

There's nothing wrong with crashes. They are actually really good. In 2008 when the markets crashed they also lowered the interest rates. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. My partners and I borrowed $300 million and we bought more property. Ten years later, we are now almost $600 million in debt but we got very rich off of our debt. However, this kind of success takes financial education. This is why I created the Cashflow Board Game because it encourage you to use debt to get rich. If you don't use debt, then follow Dave Ramsey's rule of living debt free.

Why is selling the most important skill someone can develop?

If you can't sell,  you don't have any income. My poor dad was very disappointed in me because he wanted me to get my MBA and fly for an airline. However, I didn't want to be an employee. Rather, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. My rich dad said that the #1 skill of every entrepreneur is selling. The only job I really had was with Xerox because they had a sales training program.

I became #1 in sales for that company.

I quit shortly after and started my own business. It was a nylon and velcro surfer's wallet business. I sold the hell out of that thing. The trouble was that I sold more than I could produce, which got me into trouble. It was a good lesson.  My poor dad didn't want me to be a salesman because he saw them as crooks. That is an elite academic mentality.

What inspired you to write your new book, Fake?

Fake is the graduate school for my book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad. In 1972, I was flying into Vietnam. Nixon took the dollar off the gold standard so my co-pilot and I decided to go look for gold. We didn't know what that was. We flew to a gold mine.

When I attempted to buy gold for $40, the Vietnamese woman wouldn't give me a discount, expressing that it was $50 dollars or nothing. She was one of the best teachers I ever had because she taught me about money. I learned from her that money is fake and gold is real.

We sailed to Hong Kong in 1972 and I bought my first piece of gold for $50. Today, South African krugerrand is worth $1450. Ever since that day, I only save gold and silver. I call gold“gods money” and the U.S. dollar “fake money.”

Are you ready to use your debt to get rich?

The experience and opportunity of meeting Robert Kiyosaki is something that I will never forget. His work has impacted my life and business in profound ways. I hope that his knowledge has inspired you to change the way that you think about financial wealth and abundance.

If you have yet to read his new book, Fake, I highly recommend that you do. Also, make sure that you subscribe to his YouTube channel. He's got a lot of great content for you to consume. If you are looking for ways to elevate your financial well-being, this is the man to listen to.

In the words of Robert Kiyosaki himself – “If you want to thrive in today's economy, you must challenge the status quo and get the financial education necessary to succeed.”

If you’re broke or struggling financially, I’ve got the secret for how you can change your financial situation, and make the shift out of scarcity and into financial abundance.

Money creates a wealth of opportunities, and affords us the freedom to invest in ourselves and enjoy life to the fullest. Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it does make the best things in life even better.

Unfortunately a lot of people can’t enjoy the opportunities that money offers, because they are floundering in financial debt.

If you’re broke or struggling financially, than what you are currently doing is not working. However, the good news is that you have the power to change your life.

In the words of Napoleon Hill, “Every individual has the power to change his or her material or financial status by first changing the nature of his or her beliefs.” Are you ready to learn a new strategy that will change your financial situation for the better?

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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If you make enough poor financial decisions, money has the power to take over your life. This is no way to live.

The moment that you take responsibility for the financial situation that you are currently in is the moment that you take back the power to change your life.

There was once a time in my life when I was broke and struggling financially. I had massive amounts of credit card debt and was living on a friend’s couch. It wasn’t until I took ownership of my financial decisions, that I was able to shift my life. I went from being broke, to where I am today, as a multi-millionaire.

If you’re broke or struggling financially, follow these steps to change your financial situation.

Step #1 – Have A Vehicle For Making Money

Have a vehicle, in the form of a job or a business, that will allow you to make immediate short-term money. I don’t care what kind of job it is, just take it, so that you can start the process of getting back on your feet, financially.

You will need to make a short-term sacrifice, but it’s a small price to pay for freeing yourself of debt.

Step #2 – Learn How To Manage Your Finances

If you aren’t able to manage your money effectively, that tells me that you are either living above your means, or at par, with the amount of money that you are making.

When it comes to managing your finances you need to do three things:

A) Track Your Income & Expenses

Tracking your income and expenses will give you the self-awareness of where you are spending your money, and the power to ensure that you spend less than what you are making.

You always need to make sure that your income is higher than what your expenses are, and that you have a ‘positive cash flow’, which will allow you to save money.

B) Budget

Once you know what your monthly income and expenses are, you need to budget and save money, which may mean that you need to downgrade your current lifestyle and make short-term sacrifices.

C) Allocate Your Money

I learned a simple, but highly effective method for how to manage your money for financial freedom from T. Harv Eker. He suggests that you break down the money that you make and your expenses into six jars:

Necessities (55% of your income)

Put 55% of your income towards necessities, in the form of rent, groceries, or car payments. A lot of people put 100% of what they make towards their necessities. This is not the route that you want to take if you have a desire to get out of the “rat race”.

Long-term Savings (10% of your income)

You should put 10% of your money towards long-term savings. Ideally, you want to build up a 6-month emergency reserve of money, in the event that you experience a financial crisis.

Financial Freedom Account (10% of your income)

Another 10% of your money should go towards financial freedom, which could be investments that you make, in the form of cryptocurrencies or stocks.

Education (10% of your income)

Another 10% of your income should go towards educating yourself. How do you expect to change your life if you don’t have the financial means to invest in yourself?

Investing in coaches, seminars, and training is what is going to allow you to achieve financial prosperity. I can confidently say that this is what has allowed me to build my business to where it is today.

Fun (10% of your income)

You should put 10% of your money towards doing things that are fun. Make time for things that bring a sense of joy to your life.

Personally, I was willing to sacrifice fun and invest this 10% into my education, so that I could pay off my debt faster, but it’s up to you how you want to allocate it.

Giving (5% of your income)

Lastly, you want to give 5% of your earnings to a cause or charity. Even if you don't have a lot of money to give, the act of giving trains your brain to live in a state of abundance.

Giving makes you feel good about yourself, and you end up attracting more wealth into your life as a result of doing it.

Step #3 – Invest In Yourself

It will be difficult for you to change your life if you do not invest in yourself. Warren Buffett once said, “The best investment that you can make is in yourself.” 

This has been the secret that has allowed me to achieve financial freedom, and one of the best returns on investment that I have ever had.

Step #4 – Create Wealth

Lastly, you need to create a vehicle for financial freedom and abundance, whether that’s creating wealth by starting an online business or learning how to invest in stocks. There is a simple formula for building wealth, which is:

1. Make more than you spend and invest the difference wisely.
2. Develop daily habits that result in wealth accumulation.

If you're broke or struggling financially, follow these steps to change your financial situation. If you can master this process, you will live the rest of your life, financially free!

Do you want to learn the 7 online business models that have made me an Internet millionaire in less than 3 years? CLICK HERE for instant access to my free course!

I would like to share with you some money management tips for getting out of debt. Debt is no fun, and the emotional burden that it can create in peoples’ lives can be overwhelming. Henrik Ibsen said it best, “Home life ceases to be free and beautiful as soon as it is founded on borrowing and debt.”

Have you ever wondered why so many people have outrageous debt? A large reason is due to the lack of having a well-disciplined budget and financial life.

Managing your money doesn’t have to be difficult. It’s about knowing how you are using your money. How would your life change if you were free of debt? Make a decision to get rid of it, once and for all.

Watch the video below:

Click here to watch on YouTube)

Are you ready to learn how to master your finances so that you can succeed faster? CLICK HERE to join my Life Mastery Accelerator program!

Below are 5 money management tips for getting out of debt:

1. Be Aware of And Accept Your Debt

One of the most difficult things to do when first getting on the debt pay-off journey, is to truly accept your debt. Oftentimes, the reality of debt is too painful to acknowledge or accept, so the natural response is to avoid that it exists. I speak from personal experience.

When I was in my early 20’s, I was in a lot of debt. I had to make sacrifices in order to manage my money more efficiently and become debt-free. It was the acceptance of my reality that allowed me to make a change in my life. If you are serious about becoming debt-free, you need to acknowledge its existence. Be proactive. Don’t live in fear. Instead, take action. 

2. Decide To Change your Spending Habits

Making a decision implies that you are about to take action. When you make the decision to change your spending habits, you are halfway there to financial freedom! Saving money is about changing spending habits. What are your spending habits?

In order to become debt-free, you need to address the actual money management habits that you are struggling with, that led to the debt in the first place. Ramona Pearson, a certified public accountant and personal financial advisor said that “Money habits are formulated at a very young age for most people.” Take the time to figure out why you're spending habits are the way they are.

Sure enough, this is the reason why a lot of people that win the lottery end up losing it all. They don't take the time to develop the discipline in order to manage their money properly.

Focus on cutting your expenses or your overhead in some way. This will allow you to have some extra cash flow every month. Then, you can use that cash flow to start paying off your debt.

3. Track Your Expenses

If you want to free yourself from debt, you need to start tracking your expenses. The best way to work out what you spend your money on and how much you have left at the end of every month, is to keep a record of all your expenses.

According to Pick The Brain, for two weeks you should write everything down that you spend. Record the time, the place, and how much it costs. Doing so will help you identify your spending patterns.

If you haven’t done something like this before, there is a good chance that you will shock yourself. How often do you track your money? If the answer is never, it’s time to get out a calculator and start doing the math!

4. Don’t Spend What You Earn

Once you start making money, don’t be tempted to spend MORE money. This is where people get themselves into trouble. You have to discipline yourself to NOT engage in this behaviour.

In his book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What The Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!, Robert Kiyosaki said, “Invest in assets, not liabilities.” An asset is something that puts money into your pocket, while a liability is something that takes money out of your pocket. Which category does everything in your life fall into?

If you can’t manage the money that you currently have, then there is no point making more money. If you adopt the mindset that making MORE money will be the answer to your debt issues, you are wrong. This is a recipe for disaster.

5. Reward Yourself

Adjusting to a new style of living involves sacrifice. Breaking bad habits, especially when it comes to spending money, is hard work. This is why it’s important that you reward yourself when you have practiced self-discipline.

Be kind to yourself and engage in mini-celebrations, now and then. Why? Because the MORE that you acknowledge and reward yourself for your successes, the more success you will have.

Charles Duhigg, New York Times reporter and author of The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, said “First, you have to pick a cue, like every single time that you get a pay check, you’ll move 5% of it into savings.” The key to making your habit stick is to give yourself a reward every time that you engage in a positive behaviour.

Debt is debt, but don’t feel that you have to punish yourself because of it. Honour the small achievements that you make every day, on your journey towards financial freedom. How you choose to manage and spend your money can have a profound impact on your life. I encourage you to follow these money management tips for getting out of debt.

Your ability to make good money decisions will end up shaping the direction that your life will take. Are you ready to be free of debt? Take control of your financial future now!

Are you ready to learn how to master your finances so that you can succeed faster? CLICK HERE to join my Life Mastery Accelerator program!

If you're in debt right now, then read carefully below to learn some of my best strategies for how to get out of debt.

It's important to understand that there's two types of debt: good debt and bad debt.

Bad debt is credit card debt or any kind of consumer debt that is at a high interest rate.  You want to avoid at all costs this type of debt, as it can be very challenging to get out of due to such high interest payments.

Good debt is debt that has a lower interest rate and the money is being leveraged to buy assets or investments that are bringing you are greater income than what you're paying in interest payments.  For example, a mortgage can be considered good debt as the value of the property or the income it's generating for you can be greater than what you're paying in interest payments.

With that being said, this article and video is geared towards the bad debt and how to get out of it.

Watch the video below:

(Click here to watch on YouTube)

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3 Tips For How To Get Out Of Debt

When I was in my early 20's, I had over $10,000 in credit card debt and it wasn't a fun place to be.

I had no idea how to manage money and unfortunately just neglected looking at my finances, which resulted in accumulating the debt.

It took immense sacrifice and hard work to get out of debt and get myself on track to being financially free.  It wasn't easy or fun, but after going through it I was much better off financially.  I had learned new money habits that have benefitted me today and also made a promise to myself I'll never forget:  I'll NEVER get into credit card debt again.

Here are some of the tips that I used to get out of debt that can be helpful for you:

1. Be willing to make sacrifices.

If you're in credit card debt and want to be free of it, then be prepared to make some sacrifices.  That means cutting back on expenses.  It isn't fun, but part of the reason why you're in credit card debt is because you've been over-spending.  The only way out is to earn more money to pay off the debt or to cut back on expenses.

When I was in credit card debt, I decided to make a big sacrifice: to move into my friends living room and live on his couch.  I figured this would allow me to save a lot of money every month and it could help me to pay off my credit cards.  And it worked.

I also gave up my car and started taking the bus everywhere.  I worked part-time doing renovations and construction work, to help pay off my credit cards too.  I had to be resourceful and make some sacrifices to get ahead.

2. Start managing your money weekly.

You need to get on top of your finances so that you NEVER get in debt again.  This is one amazing gift that being in debt brought me, is it helped me to learn how to manage my finances weekly.

You don't need an elaborate software or anything – just use an Excel spreadsheet (or Google spreadsheet) for now and start tracking all the income you bring in every week, as well as record all of your expenses.  You need to start to see what you're earning and what your expenses are, so you can make sure you don't over-spend and also make sure that you have money left over to pay off your debt.

This has to be a MUST for you if you want to get out of debt.  All successful people are good money managers and you need to become one yourself.

3. Transfer Your Credit Card Debt To A Low Interest Credit Card

There's many credit cards out there that will give you a 0% or very low interest rate for 12 months if you transfer your credit card balance over to them.  This is a great strategy to do, as you will be able to eliminate the high interest rate you're currently paying and get out of debt faster.

It's pretty easy and straightforward to do, too.  Just do a Google search and you'll be able to find a few options in your location.

The final tip I have on how to get out of debt for you is to be patient.  Execute your plan and take massive action.  It takes time, but with patience you'll be out of debt and will be better off for it.