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In debt and need some relief? You have lots of company in this situation. Here are some tips on how to help yourself.

1 - Stop Paying With Credit Cards

If you haven't done this one, then this is where to start. Put the credit cards and line-of-credit checks under lock and key, and operate as if you don't have them at all. Figure out how to make more income and pay cash instead. This is the single most effective action you can take.

2 - Don't Obligate Your Company To Pay More Than It Is Making In Income

You commit your company's future production to the credit company when you pay for an item with a credit card. That is economic slavery. Ask yourself if you just want the item or if you really need it to increase the production of income. If you really need it to produce more income, figure out how to make the cash to pay for it over a short period of time, rather than buying on credit. Find ways to increase the company's income and use it to pay both current expenses and pay off credit debt.

3 - Never Pay Just The Minimum Payment Amount Required

An effective way to reduce the debt every week is to take 10% to 15% off the top of the company's income and use it to pay down the debt. Establish a goal of paying 3 to 5 times what the minimum payment is on every credit card. Set aside a portion of the payment money each week until the statements arrive in the mail. It's always easier to stash away smaller amounts over 4 weeks than to try to come up with a big chunk in one week.

Your debt reduction program should also include the strategy of paying more on the highest interest rate card. Another effective tactic is low balance cards as quickly as you can. After paying those lower balance cards off, you free up more cash to use on the high interest rate cards.

4 - Do Not Spend Over The Card Limit Or Make A Payment Late

Getting hit with $25 to $39 late payment or over-the-limit fees on which you'll be charged interest is a sure-fire way to set your debt reduction program back one giant step. In addition, if your payment arrives more than 30 days late, that black mark stays on your credit record for 7 years - a harsh penalty to pay.

Recently a Vice President of a U.S. bank appearing on the news stated that more than 24 Billion dollars was paid last year in fees for interest, late charges and over-limit charges. Don't think the credit card company really minds if you pay late or go over your limit. They make billions when that happens.

5 - Find Ways To Cut Expenses

An effective program to reduce debt requires as much extra cash as possible and as fast as possible. Examine what your company income is being spent on and cut back on any expenses that do not contribute to increasing the income. Before you spend, figure out how much money that particular purchase is going to bring back in to your company.

TIP: Always keep promoting your your company and its products to everyone - never stop promotion activities. Just make sure your promotional spending is bringing more money back in than what was spent.

Correctly managing the money in a business to make sure it survives takes more than a program to reduce debt, but this is an excellent place to begin. There are other tactics you can use to increase the business' income, pay bills on time, have cash reserves for emergencies, increase profits and pay yourself more money. Who doesn't want that, right?