Weren’t the holidays grand? You saw family and friends you haven’t seen in a long time, had some great holiday parties, and enjoyed seeing the smiles on people’s faces as they unwrapped their gift from yours truly.

As you were fighting the crowds to get the last Nintendo Wii and treated yourself to a nice lunch while at the mall, you may have stopped to think that you were probably spending way too much money. But, heck, it’s the holidays and ‘tis the season to give. Right?

Well, now it’s time to face the facts. Most people who did not budget for their gifts will likely be a little shocked when they receive their credit card bills. You might even think, “There must be a mistake somewhere. I couldn’t have possibly spent this much.” Unfortunately, all of those little expenses added up to one big one.

Not to worry though. Let’s figure out a plan to recover from a debt hangover.

If you are in a bit of your own credit crunch, the important thing is to not ignore the problem, or it will just get worse. We want to eliminate the credit card debt as quickly as possible; otherwise that $250 video game console will end up actually costing you $400 after months of accrued interest payments.

With that in mind, don’t just pay the minimum balance or it will take years to pay off the debt. Instead, create a plan to get the balance back to $0 in three to six months time. Here’s how:

• Crunch the Numbers: Figure out how much money it will cost you to pay off the balances in three to six months.
• Pinch Your Budget: Cut out some discretionary spending in order to apply more cash towards paying off your bill. Every cup of Starbucks counts.
• Get Extra Cash: Are there any gifts you receive that you would prefer the cash instead? Or, consider one of the ways to Make an Extra $100 a Month to increase your cash flow.
• Negotiate Better Terms: Take five minutes to call your credit card company and tell them you are thinking about transferring your balance to another credit card company for a better rate. They want to keep your business and will negotiate with you. If not, ask to speak to a supervisor.
• Transfer Your Balance: 0% APR and free balance transfer offers can be found. Got to Bankrate.com to compare credit card offers, and consider transferring your balance to one of those cards to remove the interest payment.

Once you’ve looked at the numbers and created a plan to pay off your bills from the holiday spending frenzy, take some time to plan ahead for future gift giving seasons. You may want to open a separate savings account to regularly set aside money for gifts, or it may just require better budget planning the next holiday season. Either way, it’s best to be prepared in advance in order to avoid the post-holiday spending hangover in the future.

Millionaire Money Habit: It is difficult to join the millionaire club if you find yourself constantly in debt. To avoid increasing debt, it is important to set an appropriate budget in order to avoid your expenses exceeding your income. Stay out of debt and you will increase your ability to accumulate wealth.