Are you the type of person who falls behind on their bills and other regular monthly payments? Do you apply for credit and then spend all the way up to the credit limit because you think it's a type of "free money"? Do you have problems balancing your checkbook or stretching your money from payday to payday? While many of us struggle to stay above water financially, there are many solutions to our money problems that can be dealt with using common sense.

First of all, if at all possible, follow a zero-balance policy for your credit cards, if you're going to use them at all. Since you are probably paying way too much in interest, try to only buy items on your credit card that you know you can pay off before the next statement. A zero-balance strategy will allow you to use credit cards conveniently, and gain points from reward systems without being penalized by high interest charges. And if possible, eliminate the use of store credit cards entirely, as they tend to have much higher interest rates than traditional VISA and Mastercard credit cards.