Money blogger explains 'no-spend months' strategy that helped her become debt-free

For someone in their 20s, financial management is extremely crucial since it is during this age range that individuals accumulate the most debt. CNBC reported that, on average, consumers in their 20s and 30s have $27,251 in credit card, auto loans and student loan debt.

In order to deal with this debt, individuals need a comprehensive strategy to apply in their daily lives. Money blogger Elyse is providing people with one such strategy by sharing her "no-spend months" approach, reports Good Morning America. She backs this strategy up by sharing that it has helped her pay off her debt, which amounted to $36,500.

At 22, Elyse had a debt of $34,000 on her head. It was the result of her student loan, car purchase and credit card usage. She knew very quickly that in order to live a good life in the future, she needed to pay this debt off as soon as possible.

It pushed her to brainstorm and she came up with the concept of "no-spend months." She began to document herself as @thesavvysagittarius on Instagram, giving this method a try and fortunately, it worked out in her favor. The money blogger became debt-free in a matter of two years.

The credit for this achievement goes to her being diligent about her decisions. She chooses some months of the year to be "no-spend months." During these months, her objective is to not spend any money on things that she feels are unnecessary. Then, she makes a chart that lists free things to do, habits to plan for, exceptions and rewards. In "free things to do," she lists activities that she can partake in without spending a lot of money, like swimming at the lake and going to parks.

Habits to plan for includes tendencies in herself that she believes can cost her a lot of money, such as eating random takeout and buying home decor. The exception involves events where she allows herself to spend money, like the 4th of July and the County fair. In order to keep herself motivated, she also lists the reward that will be garnered at the end of it, which is getting under $10k in debt.

The chart also has a calendar, where each day is given a color to remind the objective Elyse needs to achieve that day. The days in green color are the days when she tries not to spend money on anything. Days colored in purple are the days when Elyse spends money on essentials like gas and groceries. She gives pink color to the days when she allows herself to spend on non-essentials, like buying takeout or stuff related to the pool.

The money blogger believes that it is not hard to adhere to the strategy. In her own words, "I think a lot of times we go through life spending because it's habit versus we actually want to buy that thing." Having such a plan in place helps in controlling the impulses that make people overspend on things. Keeping the reward in the chart is a way to help people focus on the place they want to reach in their lives, which is debt-free existence.