Instead of Ignoring Debt, Try These 3 Momentum-Building Moves

I'm going to say something that might sting a little, but I say it with so much love: it's really, really hard to invest for your future when you're still paying for your past.

Most of us are not actually dealing with our debt. We're just living with it. We don't look at the statement, we don't add it all up, we just exist in this low-key anxiety month after month, year after year. And the longer you ignore it, the bigger it gets.

Today I want to give you three moves that are going to help you stop ignoring it and start actually tackling it — because your future is waiting on the other side of this.

What Ignoring Debt Is Actually Costing You

Think about weeds growing in the back corner of your yard — tucked away, out of sight, so you don't deal with them. And because you're not dealing with them, they just keep growing. Before long they've taken over the entire corner. A project that might have taken 20 minutes six months ago now requires a whole weekend, rented equipment, maybe even calling someone in.

That is exactly what's happening with your debt when you ignore it. It doesn't sit still. It doesn't wait patiently for you to be ready. It grows. The interest compounds. The minimum payments eat up more and more of your monthly budget. And before you know it you're years into this thing wondering — how am I still here? How has nothing changed?

Here's the math I want you to sit with, because I don't think most people have ever actually done this. Let's say your minimum payments total $1,500 a month — which honestly isn't far-fetched between a car payment, a couple of credit cards, and a student loan. Now imagine instead of sending that to debt, you were investing it every single month. At a 9% interest rate over 25 years, that is over $1.5 million. If you're 35 right now, you could have $1.5 million by the time you're 60 — starting from zero.

That is what debt is quietly costing you. Not just the interest, not just the monthly payment — but the future wealth that money could have been building this entire time. I'm not saying this to shame you. I'm saying it because I want you to feel the urgency. I want you to see what is actually at stake.

Because when you see it that way, debt stops feeling like a monthly annoyance and starts feeling like the thing standing between you and an entirely different life.

Proverbs 22:7 says the borrower is slave to the lender. I kind of flinched when I first heard that. But I want you to think about whether this is showing up in your life right now. Are you staying in a job that is draining you because it brings in a steady paycheck to cover those debt obligations? Are you living somewhere that no longer feels like home but moving feels impossible because of the financial weight you're carrying? Are you saying no to opportunities and callings that the Lord has opened the door to because the debt makes walking through it feel too risky?

That is what chains look like in real life today. Not dramatic. Just staying stuck, staying safe, and staying in situations that are slowly draining the life out of you. You deserve better than that. Your family deserves better than that.

So let's talk about what to do.

Move #1: Calculate the Real Cost

Log into every account — credit cards, car loans, student loans, personal loans — and find two numbers: your total monthly payment and the interest portion of that payment. This does not include your mortgage.

Create three columns — what the debt is, the total payment, and the interest charge. You need to see how much your payments are adding up to, because $200 here and $300 there adds up to that $1,500 faster than you think. And the reason I want you to see the interest specifically is because that money is going absolutely nowhere. It's not building equity, not investing in your future, not feeding your family or funding a vacation. It's just gone every single month.

Have you seen what some credit cards are charging these days? We're talking 25, even 30% interest. You are paying that instead of earning it. Let yourself get a little angry at that number — because that anger is going to fuel your momentum.

Move #2: Build the Vision

This one might feel unconventional because it's not a spreadsheet tip. It's a vision exercise. And I really need you to do this.

Open your budget or grab a piece of paper and build a mock budget — but this time, remove every single debt payment from it. Every minimum payment, just gone. Now look at what's left.

How do you feel? What would you do with that money? Would you invest more, give more, experience more with your family?

That number is your motivator. That is the life you are building toward. Write it down somewhere you can see it every day. Because when paying off debt gets really hard — and it will get hard — that vision is what keeps you going.

Move #3: Pick a Payoff Method and Commit Today

Not Monday. Not next month. Today.

There are two popular strategies and I want to walk you through both so you can choose what works for you.

The debt snowball is where you list your debts from smallest balance to largest and attack the smallest one first while making minimum payments on everything else. Once that first debt is gone, you roll what you were paying toward it into the next smallest — and it builds like a snowball. We used this method and I love it because it gives you quick wins fast and builds real momentum. And momentum is everything when you're trying to stay consistent on a long journey.

The debt avalanche is where you list your debts by interest rate, highest to lowest, and attack the highest interest debt first. Mathematically, this may save you a little more money. But honestly, I found the snowball works better psychologically. If you want every last dollar to work for you, go with the avalanche. If you need the motivation of quick wins, go with the snowball. Either way, just pick one and start.

A Quick Recap

Move #1: Calculate the real cost. Find out exactly how much your payments are — including the interest portion — and let that number light a fire under you.

Move #2: Build the vision. Create a mock budget without your debt payments and let that margin motivate you. This is the life you are working toward.

Move #3: Pick your payoff method and make an extra payment this month. Snowball or avalanche — just pick one and start.

Those weeds in the backyard are not going to pull themselves. The debt is not going to disappear while you're not looking. But here's the good news — you don't need a perfect plan or a huge income to make progress. You just need to decide that today is the day you stop ignoring it and start facing it.

Paying off your debt is one of the most faithful, intentional, God-honoring things you can do with the money He has given you. It may feel like a huge scary monster right now. But you can do this — one bite at a time.

If you liked this blog post, make sure to head over to our podcast and listen to the full episode!

Episode 12 | You Need This Wealth Protection Tool

Listen To The Episode

Ready to stop doing this alone? Here are some resources so we can start working together!

• Sign up for my FREE weekly newsletter

• Grab my FREE financial freedom calculator

• Watch the FREE crash course: How $10 this week can turn in $20,000 by your kid's 18th birthday