If the first several weeks of January are any indication, 2009 promises to be a particularly challenging year, particularly for the debt-ridden public. Having just received my January credit card statement myself, I was reminded of all the “fun” I had whipping out the plastic to fund numerous gifts for family and friends this Christmas. Now faced with payoff time, many of us are searching for ways to find some extra cash to cover the debt we racked up in honor of the holidays.  Here are some suggestions to consider for short-term “income”:

Start that elusive diet now. OK, given the extra incentive of needing to cutback on spending for a few months, you can kill two birds with one stone with this plan. Grocery bills are an excellent place to create a “temporary” savings by just plain eating less!

Temporary/Seasonal part-time job. Ideally, you may have planned ahead and found something through the holiday season, but all is not lost. It is likely “high season” for something in your locale; for instance, in Phoenix, winter is snowbird season so tourism, restaurants, golf, and even the upcoming spring training baseball season provides seasonal employment opportunities. Hey, the second job might even be “fun”!!!

Do your Spring Cleaning Early. Clear out the clutter and the closet and find some things you can sell! Use Craigslist and sell for free, or Ebay for minimal cost. It’s amazing what you can sell– even if it’s just $10, I’ve had people drive across town to pick up all sorts of goods.

Bury your Credit Cards. Well, just as a temporary measure. Use cash only for a month or two, it might not only make you more cognizant of your spending habits, but perhaps may actually result in fewer expenditures as well!

Change your Entertainment Habits. Only temporarily, of course: the goal is paying off those extra holiday bills. Can you live without premium cable for a month or two? Can you entertain at home with friends instead of going out to eat/bars? How about replacing a trip to the amusement park or arcade with an old-fashioned trip to the local park with tennis rackets and a picnic lunch?

Revised Transportation Methods. Can you join a carpool, ride the bus or your bike for a few months? Gas may be half what is was, but it’s still not cheap.

All these ideas are good ways to free up some income to apply towards an increased monthly payment towards the Christmas credit card debt. And perhaps next year, with some advance planning and armed with the successful methods that you used to resolve your 2008 holiday debt, you might not even end up in the post-holiday debt trap at all.

Does anybody else have some good ideas to add?

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