Instant Alert: 10 lies I used to tell myself when I was $37,000 in debt

MANAGE SUBSCRIPTIONS   |   UNSUBSCRIBE   |   VIEW ONLINE   10 lies I used to tell myself when I was $37,000 in debt by Tracie Fobes on Apr 26, 2016, 4:15 PM Advertisement We hear it over and over: “Debt is bad! Don’t get into debt!” But while we know this, many of us don’t listen. I don’t know why. Even I knew better and lead myself down a path of financial ruin. (Thankfully, I’ve recovered and won’t allow it to happen again) The thing is, I fell for the lies and actually believed the hype. I just did what I thought was right based upon what I was reading and had been told by others in my situation. The sad truth is that I was just lying to myself. There is no way to sugarcoat it—debt is bad. So why then, do we all continue to believe the myths and tell ourselves lies? Perhaps it’s because we just don’t even know they are lies. Here are some of the fibs I told myself back when I was in debt — and hopefully I can help you realize them too. SEE ALSO: 10 apps to download if you want to get rich 1. I need debt to have a good credit score You may think you can’t get a mortgage or vehicle loan without a great credit score, but that is not true. Many lenders will approve you, especially if you have little or no credit card debt. (You can see how your debts are impacting your credit scores for free on Credit.com.) It’s been years since we’ve been out of debt. We cut up our credit cards and since then had a mortgage and one auto loan (which we paid off in just four months). And you know what? My credit is better than before! I’m in the 800 club now, and proud of it. But I didn’t need a credit card to get there — or the credit card debt to build that score. 2. Everyone has some debt Nope, not everyone. Many have none at all. Some don’t even have a mortgage payment. Just like I tell my kids, “If everyone was jumping off of a bridge, would you jump too?” Of course not. But that was how we saw it — having debt was normal. 3. I am not good with money Sorry, but that is just not a good excuse. The internet has hundreds of thousands of resources available to help you learn about money. If you don’t know how to set up a budget, you can research online. If you are confused about how to set up a plan to get out of debt, there are also online resources that can help. The information is quite literally at our fingertips, you just have to find it. See the rest of the story at Business Insider   Share the latest business news with your network: Email sent to:   |   Manage your email preferences   |   Unsubscribe Terms of Service   |   Privacy Policy Business Insider. 150 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011