For most people, getting out of debt is their dream. And also their worst nightmare! Unfortunately, if all you do is dream, you'll never get yourself out of debt. Life doesn't work that way, unless you lucky enough to live like Major Nelson from the old "I Dream of Jeannie" TV series.

There are many steps people try. And try again. And again. And still are stuck in debt. Not because they don't work. But because these people are all missing the "one thing" they must do to get out of debt.

Here are a few articles I found recently that explain some of these steps. There are lots of good suggestions, so check them out:

Break The Credit Card Cycle from No Credit Needed.

4 Tips for Staying Positive About Your Finances from Money Ning.

But if you really want to get out of debt, it all starts with "the one". So, which one do you think is "the one"?

• Buying a lottery ticket. Nope.
• Signing up with a debt relief program. Nope.
• Doing the same things you've always done and hoping they work this time. Nope.
• Putting every penny towards your credit card bills. No.
• Setting up a budget. No.
• Borrowing money from your rich uncle or cousin (unless they are SO rich you don't need to pay them back). Not this one either.

All of these are good ideas for paying down your debt. And all will help you reach your goals. So you can certainly use a few of these tips as part of your strategy for getting out of debt.

But none of them are the ONE THING YOU MUST DO to get yourself out of debt.

What is that one thing? It all starts inside of you. In your mind. In your heart. Unless you are totally committed to getting out of debt, you won't. You'll quit when things get tough. You'll go back to your old, bad habits. You'll blame others for your troubles.

And none of this will help.

So...you must make a commitment to yourself to do whatever it takes to get out of debt. That is THE one thing you MUST do!

And keep trying no matter how hard it gets. Or how long it takes. If you do this, you have a fighting chance to succeed. Because the only thing you can truly control is your effort. And making that commitment means that you will give the amount of effort you need to get out of debt.

There's a reason why 75% of all people fail to stick with a debt relief program until the end - because its much easier to stay in debt. And whine. And complain. And to keep making the same mistakes, and spending the same amount of money.

So do yourself a favor and commit to YOU!

• Write down your ultimate goal (to pay off all of your debt).
• Then write a list of all your debts.
• And list the steps you need to take to pay off each one.
• Pick one and pay as much as you can, until it is paid off.
• Then add that amount to the next one. And so on.
• Also, put a time frame next to each step. You can put down a date for reaching your goal, or write down exactly what you'll do each month to reach the goal, whatever works for you.

Then - when you are totally committed to fixing your financial mess - you'll be ready to do whatever it takes to get out of debt!

Guest blogging has become very popular. Done correctly, it helps add value to the site posting the article, and helps increase the popularity of the author's blog. But for a while I had to stop accepting guest articles because most of them were just too brief and didn't contain much worthwhile content. So I thought I would come up with some guidelines that will help me get some great content, and make your link more valuable. So if you're up to the challenge, and willing to write something really special - something that adds actual value to this blog - then I'll gladly consider your guest article. If you're only going to spend 15 minutes writing your article, you will be better off submitting it to an article directory like EzineArticles.com or GoArticles.com. Read through the guidelines below VERY carefully and send it over to me for review.

GUEST ARTICLE GUIDELINES

First, your article must be something well written, unique, and fit into one of the categories below. It MUST be more than some generic "How to get out of debt" article. In the words of one blogger, it must be "epic sh@#" otherwise it's not worth publishing, for you or for me.

1. Something creative or with a "wow" factor - Anyone can write an article about "The 5 secrets to getting out of debt". In fact, I'm the king of those types of articles, so I don't really need any more. So find a unique way to cover a topic that people will spark people's interest. Here is an example:
   10 financial blunders that prove you're not smarter than a 5th grader
2. A newsworthy or educational topic - If there are new government regulations or there's a hot news story on some issue in the financial world, this is a good opportunity to offer your interpretation or advice. Here is an example:
   Are annoying debt collectors really getting nastier these days?
3. A personal story that changed the way you look at money - Tell us a story about the lessons you learned about money, or something that happened that changed your life. Here is an example:
   The 5 truths and myths I learned the hard way about fixing your credit problems

Second, here are the rest of the guidelines. Your article must be:

• Original & related to credit, debt, or saving money. Please don't send me something that has already been used elsewhere, or you plan to use elsewhere. If it is something that is valuable, I'm open to pretty much any financial topic. I'm less concerned with the type of topic and more concerned with the quality.
• Contain at least 750 words & be well written. No, this isn't English class. And I won't be counting every single word. But in most cases you can't write something really special in 15 minutes with less than 750 words. If spelling is not one of your strong points, have a friend or colleague proofread your article first.
• Properly formatted using html. That means tags such as <p>, <b>, <a href="http://www.yourlink.com">, you get the idea. And you can include 1 link in the text of the article and 1 link in bio (or 2 links in the bio).