Getting rid of debt is very essential. The more debt you have, the more interest you are going to pay on it, and this in turn will increase your debt further. It's a vicious cycle and is not easy to come out of. You will need various debt management strategies to eliminate debt. Eliminate Unnecessary Expenditure Take stock of all your expenditures in the previous few months. Study all your bills and try to figure out the purchases which were totally unplanned and unnecessary. Now, in order to have a debt free existence, eliminate all such expenses in the future, so that there is no further addition to your debt. Eliminating unnecessary expenditure consistently will save you from such situations in the future. Save Money Save money for the rainy days. In the beginning of every month, make a budget listing of all your expenses and income. Stick to this budget, as far as possible. Keep a provision for savings too. Decide a fixed amount which you are going to save every month, whatever may be the case. If for some reasons, your expenses for the month increase and you are not able to save as much, take an extra job or do overtime at work to compensate. Plan your Payments Make planned payments. Check the interest rates that you are paying on the various credit cards and make a list of all your debts, starting with the ones on which you are paying a higher interest rate. Start eliminating your debts one by one. If you find that the debt on a particular credit card is really small, you may eliminate that first. However, if you are really short of money, pay the minimum amounts due for the time being. Use One Credit Card Most of the debt that is incurred these days is due to the credit cards. So, stop using them altogether and shift to using cash instead. However, if that's not possible, keep one credit card and do away with all the others. With one credit card, it is easier to keep a track of your expenditures and possible debts. Negotiate with the Creditors Negotiate the debt amount with your creditors. Make the creditors aware of your debt situation. Tell them that you will make the payments due to them, within a certain time period, if they reduce the debt amount. Since the creditors too fear losing their money, they might accept your offer. You may negotiate with the credit card company too for credit card debts. Negotiating might not be an easy task, but it sure is worth a try. Consider Debt Consolidation and Credit Counseling You may opt for either, credit counseling or debt consolidation to eliminate credit card debt. If you're found eligible for the debt management plan of a Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS), the CCCS will negotiate with your credit card company to lower the interest rates. The CCCS will also pay the credit card company on your behalf. For these services, you have to make monthly payments to the CCCS, of a predecided amount. Another way to get rid of debt fast is to opt for a credit card debt consolidation. Debt consolidation means shifting all your credit card balances to just one credit card. It has two benefits, namely, first, the overall interest rate on the accumulated debt comes down. Second, debt repayment gets simplified. A debt free existence, facilitated by cutting down on unnecessary expenditure and a saving habit, is the key to a happy and stress-free life.