Credit card debt can become a major burden, both financially and emotionally.  Every time you look at your credit card statement, you wish that you could have it paid off and be done with it.  If it’s especially high, receiving the credit card bill each month can be quite stressful.

But, how can you tackle that debt and eliminate your credit card debt?

Unless you happen upon a lump sum of cash you can use to pay it off, you’re going to have to take it one step at a time.  Here are some ways you can work towards eliminating that debt.

Ask for a Lower Rate

Many people neglect to do this, or know that it’s even an option.  You can call your credit card company and ask for a lower interest rate.  If you’ve been paying your bills on time and paying at least the minimum each month, point that out.  If you’ve been struggling to pay on time or to pay the minimum amount, indicate that you would have an easier time doing so if the interest rate were lower (if that is true, of course).

They may decline to lower your rate, but they might agree to it as well.  You don’t know until you ask.

Stop Spending Money

Of course, the obvious choice is to stop buying things and putting new charges on your credit card.  Sometimes, it doesn’t feel like that’s an option, however.  Something comes up and you need to put it on your credit card.  You don’t feel you have a choice.

But, you do have a choice.  If you keep putting new charges on your card because you absolutely need to charge it, eventually, you will reach your limit and you won’t be able to charge anything else.  At that point, when something comes up that you need to spend money on, you will have to come up with an alternative to using your credit card, since that won’t be an option.

So, instead of charging it to your credit card, come up with that alternative now.  Unless you know that you will have the money when the bill comes due to pay the excess amount you needed to charge, don’t do it.  And, be absolutely sure you will have that money; wishful thinking is not the same as certainty.  If someone owes you money and you know you can count on them to pay you before the bill is due, that’s one thing.  If you’re hoping that someway, somehow, you’ll have the money in hand before the credit card bill is due, that’s just wishful thinking.

Don’t put any unnecessary new charges on your credit card!

Also, take a look at any recurring charges you may have.  For example, are you being billed each month for a gym membership you never use?  Cancel it.  Do you get billed for magazine or newspaper subscriptions?  Do you really need them?  Look at what recurring products and services you can do without.

Consider alternative means to pay those recurring charges too.  Can you write a check each month instead of having it automatically charged to your credit card each month?

Add up whatever recurring monthly charges you have.  Make sure that, each month, you can pay at least the minimum due on your credit card (preferably more than the minimum!), plus the costs of any recurring charges plus any other new charges you have made.  If you cannot make that large of a monthly payment, you need to make more cuts in your spending habits!

Create a Budget

While you are looking at all those recurring charges, put together a budget.  Figure up how much you earn each month, and where the money goes.

From there, work out how much you can pay on your credit card each month.  If you pay only the minimum, it will take you a long time to pay off your debt.  You want to make more than the minimum payment.  The more you can pay, the better off you will be.

If your monthly expenses exceed your monthly income, you need to make more spending cuts.  You need to eat, but do you really need cable or satellite TV?  Consider cancelling your cable or satellite television service, at least until you can afford them again.  See if you can rent DVDs from your public library.  Cut anything you don’t really need.

Make Extra Money

Making extra money to pay off your credit card debt may be harder than it sounds, but it is something you should look into.  Can you find a second job—a part-time job—so you can use that extra income to apply toward your debt?

If you can’t find a formal part-time job, how about starting your own part-time business?  Are you handy with tools and making repairs around the house?  You could offer that as a service to people.  If you’re good at golf, maybe you could offer golf lessons to new golfers.  If you’re good at writing, you could try offering article writing services to local businesses or online.  Consider the things you do well and how you might be able to put those skills to good use to earn extra money.

Perhaps you can have a garage sale—maybe sell some of that stuff you accumulated by charging them to your credit card!  If garage sales are not your thing, try auctioning your excess goods on eBay or other auction sites.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that you need to do something to eliminate your credit card debt.  You may not be able to pay it off overnight, but, if you work toward eliminating it one step at a time, you can end up paying for it sooner than you might have imagined.  Even if you can’t pay it off all at once, you’ll still have the satisfaction of seeing your credit card balance go down each month instead of staying the same or, worse, increasing.

Take charge of your credit card debt and take a few minutes to do some of the things mentioned above.  You will be glad you did.