When people realize they want to get out of debt quickly, they traditionally run into an emotional slap in the face and then, like the pain of the obligation to vanish – pronto! This leads them to fall for just about any old get-out-of-debt scam or blindly believe the claims made by many debt relief companies without question.
Over the years, I’ve learned many lessons after helping thousands and thousands of people deal with debt. The most important of those observations is that people in debt have the wrong mindset to best deal with their situation.
You don’t think straight and clearly when in the middle of panic, depression, hopelessness, guilt, shame, and other negative emotions. You certainly don’t think logically, rationally, or reasonably.
People are Corporations Too
While Mitt Romney was running for president he was making a speech and uttered that infamous line that he then went on to be heckled for. “Corporations are people,” said Romney.
And I understand his point that as far as the law is concerned, corporations do have some of the same rights and responsibilities as natural people do.
But the reciprocal is true of his statement as well. People or families can be thought of as their little corporations. They are their little business units that have income and expenses and hope to operate at a profit.
In the middle of an emotional storm, we forget to operate like that, and our objective evaluation of our situation flies out the window.
American Airlines Goes Crazy
Imagine if corporations operated the way people do when they get into debt.
Picture this; you go into the airport to check in for a flight. Unfortunately, the person behind the counter can’t check you in. American Airlines just announced its last quarterly earnings, and the person behind the counter is now hyperventilating. All the counter employees are in a state of panic.
Some don’t know what to do and send people to Delta to check bags others are paralyzed with fear, depressed and confused because the earnings report is down.
You finally make it to the gate. But unfortunately, the gate staff is so distracted they have no plan on how to board people; it’s a free-for-all, the flight attendants are not sure if they are going to fly, and the pilots are on the phone with some airline relief company looking for an instant magic solution.
Nobody is going anywhere. Not the airline, not the staff, and certainly not you.
It’s chaos, and everyone gets hurt in one way or another. The airline loses customers, you can’t get where you are going, and the financial losses stack up. It’s not a good way to deal with the situation.
That’s a ridiculous example, and you would never expect to see that situation in reality.
And you want to know why you would not see that happen? It’s because the people at headquarters are carefully evaluating their options and deciding how to deal with the best situation for the airline. So they will take action to prevent a situation like that, and they will take action that will allow the airline to move forward instead of stranding all future passengers.
On November 29, 2011, American Airlines filed for bankruptcy protection to reorganize its debt so it could continue to operate and plan for a better future.
Many entities have to make financial compromises as part of the bankruptcy, but investors and Wall Street applaud the decision as responsible.
Stop Thinking Like You Are Drowning
People make the worst decisions when facing problem debt. I’ve covered that. And those emotional or brain chemistry reasons cause people to make bad decisions.
Ideally, when people run into trouble, they would carefully and cautiously evaluate all of their options for dealing with their debt. Then they would identify the goals they want to achieve and weigh the pros and cons of each option to meet their goals.
American Airlines wanted to survive to continue operating as an airline and came to the decision they could do that by utilizing the legal rights afforded to them to reorganize their debt.
What if you looked at your situation and identified your goals: get back to saving for retirement, building an emergency fund, and living within your means? Would it not be rational and logical sense to pick the right solution to achieve those goals rather than emotionally reacting to some lesser priority goal, like not hurting your credit report or avoiding bankruptcy?
When attacking your financial fire, you need to look at your income, expenses, obligations, and goals and make clear and levelheaded decisions about the best plan for you that are not based on emotional decisions.
You Need to Think Like a Corporation
Like the American Airlines case, the company weighed its options and decided to reorganize its debts to fit its income without sacrificing passenger safety. Moreover, they did so in a way they could be productive and operate moving forward.
To Get Out of Debt You Need to Think Like a Corporation. – Click to Tweet
If you want to get out of debt quickly, that’s the way you need to think.
To get out of debt, you must change your mindset, stop thinking like an emotional hot mess, and start holding your boardroom meeting around your kitchen table.
The GetOutOfDebt.org site is full of so much information that is free for you to read and study to educate yourself about how to get out of debt in a way that is best for you. So please, take the time to review the information, educate yourself, and then make a decision that best meets your family corporation’s needs and goals moving forward.
You can use the free How to Get Out of Debt Calculator to review your options.
Once you’ve done that, and if you still have questions, ask me for help. I’ll gladly help you talk it through to see if your plan makes sense.
You are not alone. I'm here to help. There is no need to suffer in silence. We can get through this. Tomorrow can be better than today. Don't give up.
Do you have a question you'd like to ask me for free? Go ahead and click here.
I am currently using HELPS. I like to watch their videos on my tablet every night. Eric Olson, who was a bankruptcy counselor at one time, is the type who seems very easy to talk to. I also had a cousin by marriage who was a bankruptcy counselor; he passed away about three years ago due to myasthenia gravis and he also had cancer. Let this be our little secret – divorce and remarriage is quite common in my family so I adopt and disown relatives quite a bit
He is a great guy. HELPS can be found at https://helpsishere.org
I agree its not just about needing more money its about changing how you think and act. People are quick to think they need more money when they just need to change how they handle things especially bills and spending.
Awesome post Steve. This is spot on. I see it every day.