Debt free chart is not just a trend, it’s becoming a way of life that keeps a lot of people motivated to reach their goals — a debt-free life goal. While you can make your own chart, it’s nice knowing that there are actually a lot of printable out there to work and choose from.
Back in the days, we know a lot of people who make vision boards. It’s basically a board wherein they put their dreams and aspirations. They use prints and images to visualize their visions. I remember, I used to have my vision board, too, when I was young.
I remember cutting out a picture of my dream car, dream house, etc. and would place them in my vision board. I even cut out a picture of the university where I dream to finish college. My vision board was like my inspiration. Every day, I make sure to drop by it – just to remind myself about my life goals.
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Years after, I am happy to see that one by one, I was able to reach my once dreams, and for sure, you too can do the same.
There is a new trend now, though – that’s what they call debt free chart. It’s a creative way to keep you motivated in achieving your goals. It’s also a way for you to keep track of your progress towards your goals.
Personally, I believe that a debt free chart is not just an artistic way to keep you motivated, but it also inspires you to work hard on making sure that you hit your financial goals.
Meanwhile, before we talk further about debt free charts, just a little trivia, in an article published by CNBC says that studies have shown that more Americans are debt free now.
In the article, it says that “consumers’ evolving credit increased 13.5 percent in the third quarter compared to a year earlier, for a total outstanding of more than $992 billion, according to new data from the Federal Reserve.” Also, in the very same quarter, it was found that “credit card delinquencies rose to 2.74 percent of all accounts, according to the American Bankers Association,” which is an increase from 2.48 percent in the previous quarter, but still well below the 15-year average of 3.68 percent.
Furthermore, it is also stated in the article that nearly a quarter of Americans say they are currently debt-free, which is 14 percent higher compared to 2015. By the way, the report was published back in 2017.
It’s actually nice knowing that more and more people are becoming confident when it comes to debts. Now, with the advent of methods like debt free charts, I am positive – especially with the new generation – that we are going to be more responsible when it comes to money matters – including handling debts.
Anyway, so, the very purpose of this blog is to understand fully what debt free chart is all about, how beneficial it is, and of course, how to make one for yourself. I swear, you are going to learn a lot, and hopefully, you too, will like the whole debt free chart concept.
WHAT IS A DEBT FREE CHART?
On a website called, Debt Free Millenials, it says that debt free charts refers to printable charts that you can pin to your fridge or your vision board or life goal board to serve as a constant reminder to pay off debt. Basically, every time you make a payment towards your existing debt, you color in a new hash line tow show your progress.
Personally, I refer debt free chart to a chart wherein its main purpose is to help you manage your debt in a creative way.
Well, we all know how debts can make us all stressed. So, the more creative your approach in paying it off, the better and the lighter it feels. For me, my debt free chart is a constant reminder of my achievement in paying off my debts.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING A DEBT FREE CHART?
I do not know about you, but I believe that visuals really help a lot. The more you see your progress, the more encouraged and inspired you to get. Me, for instance, every time I look in my chart, and I see the colored parts, it makes me feel proud of myself. It encourages me to continue doing the things I do to be able to pay off my debt. It makes me feel fulfilled.
So, imagine, how much more I would feel once I am done coloring by debt free chart, right? Well, that technically means I am done paying off my debts! It would surely feel great. It would feel amazing.
Anyway, so much about me, here are some of the benefits you may get by using debt free charts:
– It signals your brain about how important it is.
If you didn’t know, your brain processes tons of data every single second. With so much to process, according to experts, the things your brain takes notice of are usually the things that you are always reminded of.
So, what does that mean? If you keep a chart with you, and you place it somewhere that you always see, your brain becomes used to it that it will get stuck in there. Having a bright colored chart will keep your brain from brushing it off.
– A chart taps into your emotions.
Just like what I shared earlier, the more you see your progress, the more you get motivated and inspired to achieve your goals. That’s how our brain works.
The more you see how much colors you’ve put in your chart, the more that you are reminded that you are almost there — you are getting near your goal, which is good!
– It keeps you motivated.
Filling out your debt free coloring chart is a form of self-praise that will help keep you working hard towards achieving your goal.
You know, one thing I’ve learned about using debt free chart is to use images, shapes, and of course, colors that are captivating. The ones that will keep you inspired and motivated.
HOW DOES A DEBT FREE CHART HELPS YOU REACH YOUR GOALS?
A lot of people make vision boards using pictures and images of the things they want to achieve, places they want to go, a house where they want to live, etc. A vision board basically serves as a tool to celebrate future achievements, which is the very same thing or concept that applies to debt free charts.
A debt free chart makes the stale process of paying off debt more engaging and more interactive. What happens is, every payment you do becomes a celebration of moving one step closer to achieving a debt free life.
HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN DEBT FREE CHARTS?
Later on, I am going to share with you where to find downloadable printable debt free charts. But first, before you even think about downloading a pre-existing debt free chart, why not consider making your own first, right?
One thing’s for sure, creating your own personalized debt freedom chart is an easy thing to do. All you got to do is following these very simple steps:
1. Know what your long-term financial goals are.
Before you even build up your personalized debt free chart or use any other finance tracker, it is important that you, first and foremost, know what you are tacking. Is it savings goals, investing goals, or in this freedom from debt? Believe me, the process is easier when you know exactly what it is that you want.
2. Define how you want to breakdown the process.
So, you already know what it is that you want to track — say it is to pay off your debts. The next thing to do is to figure out how you are going to itemize it. For instance, if you are working towards becoming debt free, it may be best to track by every amount paid off.
3. Determine how you will stay motivated.
Debt free charts come in different forms. You can either use a debt snowball chart to track your progress or you can use a coloring sheet. It really depends on your preference. Personally, I used the latter. A coloring sheet was more motivating for me. Seeing numbers will just make me feel bad, so I would rather see images and colors.
4. Start tracking your progress.
Once you have already decided what works best for you, make sure to start right away. Do not delay. The more you delay the process means the more delayed your progress will be. So, as much as possible start as soon as you can. Also, keep in mind that no matter where you are in your journey, always make time to find ways to stay motivated, and of course, do not forget to track your progress. That is the very essence of a debt free chart anyway.
Before moving on, your chart does not necessarily have to be grand, it can be as simple as like any other flow chart. To get inspiration from, you may want to check the below video by Aja Dang wherein she shares about her debt flow chart for the year 2019. Click the play button to watch the whole video:
WHERE TO FIND PRINTABLE OWN DEBT FREE CHARTS?
As mentioned, while you have the option to create your own – personalized, customized debt free chart – you also have a choice to use a printable chart. This actually is best for those who do not have time to make their own, or simply because they believe they are not creative enough to make their very own debt free chart.
Anyway, having said that, here are some of our top picks of websites wherein you can download debt free charts.
DEBT FREE CHARTS
Debt Free Charts was founded by an American couple who also went through financial difficulties like any other normal couples — consumed monthly income, used credit cards to buy and pay for things, no savings.
It is safe to say that makers of Debt Free Charts know exactly how it feels to fall, and rise from financial difficulties. Thus, it’s nice knowing that they make it their mission to help out other people who are going through the same thing that they did through their selection of debt free charts.
Debt Free Charts have a lot of charts to choose from. I think, by far, they have one of the most number of free charts that I found online. They basically have one for every money matter.
For your reference, apart from debt free chart, Debt Free Charts also offers the following charts:
- 401K Loan
- Adoption
- AmEx-American Express
- Bank Loan
- Car Loan Payoff Chart
- Credit Card
- Debt Invaders
- Dental Bills
- Family Loan
- Farm Loan
- …and so many more to choose from!
Apart from their free charts, Debt Free Charts also offer paid charts, which include the following:
- 100 Cozy Days Doodles
- 100 Love and Hearts Doodles
- Getaway
- Date Night
- I Paid Off My Personal Loan
- Mind the Gap-Income/Expenses Graph
- Savings Goal Game
- …and more!
DEBT FREE MILLENIALS
Debt Free Millennials was founded by a millennial herself, Justine Nelson. In the website, it says that her mission is to “spread the debt-free lifestyle to fellow millennials”. Meanwhile, her goal is to get her fellow young people to get their bank rollin’ so hard.
Justine provides you with “free downloadable debt free charts to help you karate chop debt payments faster”.
Personally, I find the charts’ names very interesting — very… millennial, indeed.
So, here are some of what you can get from Debt Free Millennials:
- Fare Thee Well Debt Chart
- Oh Sh!t Fund Chart
- Suck It Credit Cards Chart
- Debt Free Millennials Chart
- Making Student Loans My Bitch Chart
- Visualize The Pay Off Chart
Apart from these charts, Justine also offers called, How to Control Your Spending Workbook, which helps reduce financial stress to live a debt-free life. This one’s not free though. It costs $37. She also offers debt free course, which costs $97.
VERTEX42
The goal of the Vertex42 it to “help people manage their time, their finances, their education, and their careers, by providing simple tools in the form of high-quality spreadsheet templates, calculators, calendars, documents, and articles that are designed to educate and increase productivity”.
The company offers a wide variety of spreadsheet templates (400 one of a kind sheets to be exact), which are all designed and created in house for more than a decade. The company is a trusted source when it comes to original high-quality Excel templates. Apart from that, they have also templates available for Google Sheets, OpenOffice, and Microsoft Word.
Meanwhile, Vertex42 created various spreadsheets and editable PDFs that you can use to print a debt payoff tracker for every debt you have. Vertex42 spreadsheets are ideal for those who want to track down their progress using actual numbers instead of images.
For your reference, here are some of what Vertex42 free debt payoff tracker or spreadsheets:
- Debt Payoff Tracker (5-in-1)
- Debt Snowball Tracker
- Debt Free Journey Charts
- Debt Payoff Tracker Grid
ETSY
We all know Etsy, right? And yes, you can also find various debt free charts in there. However, expect to pay for every debt free chart you choose from a variety of options on Etsy. As you know, it’s a marketplace used by people to sell items/products and services.
I highly recommend buying a debt free chart from Etsy if you want a more personalized or customized one.
Anyway, just to give you an idea, some of the Etsy online shops that sell debt free charts include:
- Inaya Accounting Tax
- Debt Free Charts (Yes, it’s the same site we mentioned earlier.)
- Prosperous Printables
- Frugasaurus Vault
- Oli Harri Printables
- Jazzing Up Life
- Ready Saver One
- Your Frugal Friend
- …and more!
ARE THERE DIGITAL DEBT FREE CHARTS?
The answer to this question is a resounding yes. Yes! There are digital debt free charts or better known as digital debt payoff tracker available for those who more comfortable making all things digital instead of coming up with an actual vision board.
To give you an idea, some of the most commonly used digital debt payoff trackers include:
DEBT PAYOFF PLANNER
What’s nice about Debt Payoff Planner is that it allows you to review both Debt Snowball and Debt Avalanche. For each method, you will be able to take a look at how long it will take to pay off your debt as well as the interest you can save when using certain techniques.
Debt Payoff Planner is available both on iOS and Android.
DEBT PAYOFF ASSISTANT
Debt Payoff Assistant focuses on paying off debt by using the Snowball Method, which refers to paying off debts from smallest to largest regardless of how small or big the interest is.
Debt Payoff Assistant is also available both on iOS and Android.
DEBT TRACKER
Debt Tracker is available both in the free and paid version. It is a great tool to use if you want to see all your debts in just one place.
I like that the app is simple. It does not offer any extra add-ons. It basically gives you what you need.
Unlike the first two apps, Debt Tracker is only available on Android.
FINAL THOUGHTS ON DEBT FREE CHART
We all, in one way or another, have debts to pay. But, in reality, nobody really wants to live a life in debt, do you agree? While paying off debt can get a little challenging at times, as long as you have the will to pay it off, you will eventually achieve that goal.
You know, sometimes, it really just takes a single step. You just have to start somewhere to get to where you want to be, right? Needless to say, you just need to keep motivated and encouraged that no matter how challenging paying off can get, you will eventually wake up one day realizing you are debt free!
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