This concept is actually one you probably already know. Make one-time payments whenever you can toward your debt.
A snowflake is small, but when you get many of them together they can build up in strength. So, if you have $20 to put toward your debt it will eventually add up over time. That $20 from not going to lunch today could be another $20 tomorrow or even once a week. Whatever it is, just keep saving and putting it toward debt.
As you continue building and build you’ll find that you’ve got an extra $100 at the end of the month. Then you don’t have to feel overwhelmed next month, because you don’t have to have that $100, you just save what you can and keep moving. Just $100 a month, if you can find it, can make a huge impact on the amount of time it takes to pay down your debt.
This method works with either of the other two. Pay down the smallest debt first or the highest interest first, either way, you use your ‘snowflakes’ to do it. All you’re using this for is a way to find the money that you’re using.
Now, when you use the snowflake process you’re not getting rid of the snowball. Instead, you can use the two together. When you use the debt snowball you are actually taking a set amount of money out of your monthly budget to put toward your debt. On the other hand, the snowflake method is a single payment.
With an avalanche you’re starting out with your highest interest debt. That means you pay less in total interest. In the short term you’re going to have more efficiency but less of the immediate impact. Both of these will use budgeted money to pay off the debt.
The first thing to do here is make sure you pay any extra money that you get directly toward your debt. You’ll make each payment immediately, as soon as the money is available. So, if you do a side job for someone and get $20 you’ll put it toward the debt. If you sell something you put that money toward the debt, and so on.
You can use excess money that you get from budget items too. If you didn’t spend all of your grocery allowance put that money toward your debt. If you came in under budget on the back to school shopping put that toward the debt.
Have you ever kept a spending log? If you haven’t then you absolutely need to check it out. If you track everything you spend you’re going to find out a lot about what you’re spending, and that’s extremely important. You can do this manually or you can use a debit card and check the statement for all your spending. Then, take a look at where your money went over the month.
Only by knowing where the money goes can you actually stop spending it poorly.
We all have things that we tend to spend more money on than we should. These could include your cell phone data, eating out, buying items you don’t need, impulse buying and more. Each of these things make it difficult to stick to a budget because we don’t even realize we’re spending the money.
Make sure that each bit of extra money that you have you’re keeping track of. That’s the money you want to use at the end of the month for your debt.
Now, look for any way that you can to figure out money savings. These are just a few ways you can go.
This method of paying your debts has some great benefits. It helps you psychologically and it helps financially. You’ll always keep watching your budget for ways that you can save and add more to your debt. You’ll also be more likely to do what you can to cut back. You’re also going to find a good use for money that otherwise would just be spent on unnecessary things.
The only real downside is it can be a little too flexible.
Here are the main advantages of using the debt snowflake concept:
There are always two sides to the coin. Here are the main disadvantages of using the debt snowflake concept:
Bottom Line
Overall, for those who want a way to make an impact without feeling like they’re missing out, this is a great way to do it. You can even keep track of all of your little snowflakes to see how they’re going toward your debt and just what kind of results you’re going to see.
The post “What Is Debt Snowflake Method And Should You Consider It?” was originally published on The Smart Investor, is a free online academy having guides and tools to help you make consumer spending decisions.
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