Valerie and Gary were the typical American couple.

“We had credit cards, car loans and orthodontic loans,” Valerie said. “We made the mistake of refinancing the house and rolling our credit card debt in there. We swore we would never use those cards again. But we did. And then we took out a second mortgage.”

You’re sitting down to make your monthly budget, and there it is: that big, ugly category called debt. You know the one. It takes up an annoying amount of space in your budget. And boy, do those payments add up!

Imagine what your budget would look like if you didn’t have debt. Think about how much you could give, save and spend.

It may sound too good to be true, but tons of people are paying off their debt and taking control of their paychecks. And you could be next!

We asked some of our EveryDollar budgeters for their tips to paying off debt, and we couldn't have said it better ourselves! Here’s what they had to say:

Christmas is just around the corner!

That means it’s time to decorate the tree, brew up some hot apple cider, and turn on your favorite holiday classics. It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

But if you’re trying to get out of debt, you might be dreading the holiday season instead of looking forward to it. Can you keep making extra payments on your debt and still buy presents for everyone on your list? Even if you spend just $20 on each person, those numbers add up—and fast!

Well, guess what? You can still give gifts and keep your debt snowball rolling. All you need to do is get creative. So set your Christmas budget (no matter how big or small) and get ready to think outside the box! Here are some ideas to get you started.

It’s a common question when paying off debt—Should I pay the debt with the highest interest rate first since it costs me the most money?

Short answer: No. But we’ll explain. It’s best to start with the smallest balance. Here’s why.

During a candid Twitter confession this week, Kanye West announced that he owed $53 million in debt. He said he “wanted the world to know his struggle.”

Mission accomplished, Kanye.

While the details surrounding his debt are still a bit murky, the fact that a multi-millionaire can be in debt roughly twice his income is a little startling to most people.

Then again, it may not be that shocking to you. If you’re like 80% of Americans, you know how it feels to be in debt. That new car probably seemed like a good idea at the time. But now you’re frustrated with the never-ending payments.

So how do you get rid of them? Well, if you’re Kanye, you send another very public tweet to Facebook billionaire Mark Zuckerberg asking him to “invest 1 billion dollars into Kanye West ideas.”

We recommend a slightly different route. Here are three simple steps to creating a life without debt: