即使你只有一份收入,你也能不欠債

It was a crazy thought - paying off and cutting up every single one of my credit cards. It was an even crazier thought that one day we may not owe anyone a single dime.

這是個很瘋狂的想法--還清一切欠款，剪掉每一張信用卡。下面的想法更加瘋狂：也許有一天，我們可以不欠任何人一分錢。

Our family members looked at us like we had lost our minds when we told them we no longer had a credit card for "emergencies".

當我們告訴自己的家人我們沒有用於"緊急情況"的信用卡時，他們的神情就好像我們瘋了一般。

My friends thought I was insane when I started walking dogs for extra money to pay off our debt even faster. "Uh, you're hugely pregnant and you're walking dogs in this heat?! Y'all must really need the money."

當我開始遛狗掙外快以儘快還清債務時，我的朋友們都以爲我瘋了。"額，你的孕肚這麼大，你還在這麼熱的天遛狗？！你肯定急需這筆錢吧。"

And the truth is, we did need the money. We needed every penny because we had a crazy plan of paying off all our debt. And this year, we are going to finish that plan and pay off our house. It hasn't been easy, but then again, nothing worthwhile ever is. If you want to join my family in the crazy and pay off debt, here's how you get started:

事實是，我們的確需要這筆錢。每分錢我們都需要，因爲我們制定了一個還清全部債款的瘋狂計劃。今年，我們打算完成這一計劃、還清房貸。這不是件易事，但沒有什麼比這更值得做了。如果你想加入我們這一瘋狂的還債計劃，那就這樣開始吧：

1. Stop Using It

1. 停止欠債

In order to completely become debt-free, you have to make a commitment to stop using debt - of any kind. That means no more credit cards, no more taking out loans of any kind, and no more borrowing money from a relative.

爲了還清欠款，你必須發誓不再欠債。這就意味着你將沒有信用卡、不能貸款、也不能和親戚借錢。

It'll be scary at first, like real scary. You'll feel a little panic like you won't know what to do if this or that happens, which is why you must do step two . . .

剛開始的時候十分可怕，真的很可怕。你會感到不知所措，發生事情時，你不知道該做些什麼，因此你必須採取第二步……

2. Start Saving

2. 開始省錢

Trust me when I tell you this - once you make the declaration to become debt-free, all of a sudden all these worries and panic will hit you. You'll start worrying how you'll pay to fix the car when it breaks down or how you'll pay your insurance deductible if an emergency happens. This is why you must absolutely start building up an emergency fund.

這點你該相信我--一旦你決定不再欠債，擔心和恐慌會突然間向你襲來。你會開始擔心如果車出了故障你該從哪拿錢修車，又或是如果發生了緊急情況，你又該如何支付自負額保險。正因如此，你才必須建立應急基金。

Start with your starting point - talk to your spouse about how much you want to save first. It could be as little as $500 and as high as $5,000. The point with the starting point is to pick a number that works well for your family but is not overwhelming.

從起點開始--和另一半談談剛開始的時候想存多少錢。可能至少500美元，至多5000美元。起點的意義就在於選擇一個你們家可以承受但又不會感覺壓力太大的數字。