Debt can be overwhelming, especially when we’ve taken on too much of it. It looms over our heads, overshadowing everything else at times. Getting into debt has become easier than it once was, and one of the results is more people who have trouble making ends meet.

Sometimes it doesn’t seem possible to get yourself out of debt. If you see the issue early, it can be easy to free yourself from debt. If you do have this problem, there are five easy ways you can get your money problems under control and get rid of your debt.

1. Always pay more than the required minimum payments. In an ideal world, we would pay off credit card balances each and every month, but many of us can’t, or we don’t. You have to pay more than the minimum to pay off your debt much faster. It will also save a lot of money, because the quicker it is paid, the less interest you end up paying over that time.

This is the case for any type of loan, even a mortgage or car loan. If a loan does not have a prepayment penalty, paying it off early is definitely recommended.

2. Try hard to cut back on your regular expenses, then put that extra money towards you existing debt. Take a good look at your budget, go through it and find ways in which you could save. If you have a habit of eating out for lunch, try taking your own lunch to work to save money.

3. Sell things you don’t need. Do you have an extra vehicle, or anything else of value that you don’t use or need? Even just gathering up some things and having a yard sale could help you raise money to put toward your monthly payments. Every little bit helps.

4. Find some ways to make some extra cash. Consider a second job, doing a bit of baby or pet sitting, maybe even sign up to make some extra money with a direct sales company. If you can put your extra income towards your debt, you should be able to pay it off much quicker.

5. Look into consolidating your debt. The best way to do this is to combine all your debt onto one low interest credit card. You are aiming towards lower minimums, and paying off as much as you can to pay off the debt. If you opt for a home equity loan or other secured loan to consolidate, it will put your property at risk, which is not what you want.

If you have the right mindset, getting yourself out of debt can be much easier than yom might think it can. You might just need to make a few modifications to get on the right track, especially if you aren’t deep into debt. Be sure to learn from past mistakes, and keep your debt in control.