I Used to Have $9K in Credit Card Debt. Here's How I Got Rid of It

Nearly five years ago, I noticed my credit card balances slowly creeping up. I finally brought myself to tally up the total and realized I had just over $9,000 in credit card debt.

I'm certainly not immune from making frivolous purchases, but for the most part, my debt wasn't the product of chronic overspending. I'd racked up debt buying furniture when I moved into a new house after a break-up and had also had a few big vet bills. So when I reviewed my budget, I didn't have that much fat to trim.

Yet I managed to pay off my $9,000 in credit card debt in about nine weeks, then I paid off the last $3,000 I owed on my car. In all, I paid off $12,000 in debt in 12 weeks. Here's how I did it.

I took on a side hustle

First, let me note that this isn't a blueprint for how anyone can get out of debt fast. But I decided that I could either spend a year or two living frugally to get out of debt -- or I could work REALLY hard for a few months to crush my balances. I chose the latter.

I found two writing and editing freelance clients. Then I devoted pretty much every waking minute I had for the next three months either performing my full-time job or working on my side hustle -- about 80 hours a week. Note that I had the luxury to do so because I don't have kids and my job isn't physically taxing, plus it's easy to do my work remotely.

This approach won't work for everyone. But the bottom line is, if you can find a way to bring in extra income, that may be more viable than cutting all your expenses to the bone. Working all the time isn't so bad when there's a goal and an end date in sight.

I cashed in my credit card points

I'd dreamed of using my credit card points on travel, but I opted to use them for statement credits to eliminate about $400 worth of balances. Was this the most efficient way to use credit card points? No. But when you're carrying a credit card balance on a card that's accruing interest, the amount you pay quickly wipes out the value of those points. I decided I could focus on earning travel rewards once I'd paid off my debt.

I paid off my 0% APR card first

One thing that motivated me was the fact that I had a credit card with a 0% APR on new purchases, but the interest-free period was fast approaching. So I prioritized paying that card off in the first month, which was about $5,000 worth of my credit card debt. Then I used the debt snowball method to pay off my other three cards, each of which had a relatively low balance.

I bought myself time

I probably spent slightly more in the months when I was laser-focused on paying off debt than I typically do. That may seem counterintuitive. But your time is your most valuable resource. So I allowed myself to spend money on Instacart and Uber Eats. I also paid someone to clean my house every other week. Because I could earn more money doing my side hustle than I'd spend by outsourcing these tasks, the trade-off was worth it.

One thing I'd do differently

There's at least one thing I'd do differently if I were staring down $9,000 of credit card debt right now: I would apply for a balance transfer credit card or two to buy myself a bit of breathing room. This strategy could have helped me lock in a 0% interest rate on some, if not all, of my credit card balance.

To learn more about your options, check out our picks for the best balance transfer cards -- some have a 0% intro APR for 18 to 21 months.

If you're looking to get out of debt quickly, take careful stock of your income and spending, then decide whether you need to earn more, make spending cuts, or a combination of the two. There's no single strategy that will work for everyone. It may take some trial and error to determine which approach works best for you.