The thought that many Americans are resolving to get out of debt this year is enough to make investment consultant Dean Brosious of LPL Financial Services chuckle.
"It's like losing weight -- it's an easy resolution to make but it's a difficult one to follow through on," Brosious said.
Why don't people succeed? Likely because they have to start pinching pennies, Brosious said.
He suggests a cold turkey approach to controlling debt.
"The easiest way to start on that process is stop using your credit cards and aggressively pay them down," Brosious said. "Never pay your minimum amount. Always pay more than that."
He explained that credit cards hold high interest rates, and if cardholders pay the minimum, it will take them longer to pay off their credit card debt than their home loans.
