In a previous article, we wrote about how the mere act of telling others about your goal can help you have greater success. You can take this further by acting others for their support.
Just like having a workout partner can help you stick to a fitness plan, having a debt buddy can help you stick to your debt reduction plan. In a 2007 study by Richard Wiseman of over 3,000 people attempting to achieve new year’s resolutions found that for men, goal setting improved success by 22% and for women, 10% were more likely to be successful when they had the encouragement of others.
Having the support of others increases your changes of success by 10%. That’s pretty significant when you consider the low levels of success with New Year’s resolutions.
How can you ask others for success? Here are a few ideas:
- Find a debt buddy-someone who wants to reduce debt as well-and work on your goals together. Meet periodically and discuss how you’re doing on your goal.
- Identify activities that have caused you to go into debt and ask others to help you in these areas. If shopping is a problem, talk to those with whom you usually shop to help you with your goal. Have them suggest other activities or ask them to help you monitor your spending when you’re shopping.
- Tell your family and other close supporters about your goal and encourage them to ask you how you’re doing. Share your progress and setbacks with them so that they can encourage and support you.
Above all, don’t keep your goal to yourself. As you share your goal with others, you’ll find that you’re not alone. Over 45% of Americans have a debt problem and debt reduction was the #1 New Year’s goal in 2009. It’s likely that others you speak with will identify with your situation and be more supportive than you would ever have imagined.
Scott Crawford is CEO of DebtGoal.com, a do-it-yourself system for getting out of debt and lowering your interest costs. DebtGoal.com incorporates all of the techniques discussed in this post and can help users understand and get visibility to and manage their debt finances.
Tags: debt reduction, DebtGoal, Goal, support
