Freelance Writers: How Online Banking Can Help You Become Debt Free

Getting out of debt is more than a dream for me - it's a mission. I want to have the option of retirement at 50, be free of all debts except for my mortgage within the next 12-18 months, and pay off my mortgage -- in full -- in 10 years.

Aggressive, yes. Impossible, no. IF you take control of your finances. Online banking has been a big part of helping me to take control of my finances and achieve my financial goals - and on a freelance salary, no less. Here's how:

1. Organization: I know it sounds old and redundant, but before you can accomplish anything, you must get organized.

Paying bills online keeps me organized because I can see, at a glance, what's going out and coming in. This eliminates missed payments, guesstimates as to what's do when, and how much money is left over at the end of the month, which leads me to my next point - "free money."

2. Free Money: As in, money that's left over after all the bills are paid. I use the "bill pay" feature of my online bank account to schedule bills for payment. For example, when I receive my electric bill, I immediately log into my account and schedule it for payment.

This way, week in and week out I know exactly what's coming due; hence, what's going to be paid. As I deposit a certain amount* each week, I know exactly what's going to be left over after everything is paid.

*If you are a freelancer, your deposits may be irregular. To combat this, put yourself on a "paycheck schedule." What do I mean? Pay yourself the same amount every week/month -- no matter what your income is. This will achieve two things: i) force you to budget your money; and ii) get you in the habit of treating your freelance career as a business.

You will also be more ambitious in reaching income goals because if you know that "pay day" is coming, but you don't have enough money to pay yourself, you will start to look for ways to make more money.

"Paycheck" Tip: To find out how much you can/should pay yourself each week/month, go back over last year's income and see how much you brought in, on average, each week/month. Pay yourself a percentage of this (75%-80%). Why only a percentage?