How will writing down a cappuccino help with debt?

It seems so insignificant for such a huge problem, but it works. Start by writing everything down that you spend, the more detailed the better.

Then we can start to get a physical and mental idea of what we are doing. Cruising down the high street with a credit card and getting the bill a month later does not work. Keeping note of what we spend creates muscle memory that eventually moves up to the brain.

It can be difficult, especially when you have big bills. Take the supermarket for example. You might be buying food for you, your child, your pet and even clothes and personal care items. So I'd recommend creating sub categories, like food for the kids, food for entertaining, and then food for a special diet. This makes your priorities clear: is a chocolate cake really as important as a bathroom cleaning product?

Each category will start to build a picture of who you really are. Don't judge yourself based on this, just focus on the simple figures of what you really spend. This will feel extremely odd and uncomfortable until it becomes a habit.

Break the total down to as many categories as possible. There should be around 35-70 categories. If there's less, maybe you are not breaking them down enough. Make sure to include things like rent, electricity, insurance and local taxes. Write down gifts for friends and when you pick up the tab at a restaurant. Can you keep separate categories for family and business?

Write it down as soon as you can after spending it. Obviously if your child is throwing a tantrum, the dog has jumped out of the car and someone is screaming at you for your parking space, you might need to wait a bit but the sooner you can write it down the better.

Being conscious of what you spend is vital to getting out of debt. Most of us avoid that knowledge like it's a criminal offence to spend money. It's not, but it can be if we don’t know what we are doing.

If I find myself writing down my 20th coffee of the day, I might decide something is wrong. I might be buying coffee as a form of procrastination. Or, I might decide that it's worth it for my lifestyle: I work in cafes, don't pay office rent and meet clients over coffee. But I won't know if I don’t know. I need to write it down.

This applies to everything. How many pairs of shoes do I actually need? I am a size 6 ½ and yet I have been known to buy a pretty pair of shoes in size 5 because they are being sold off in a sale. How about stationary? I have friends who buy notebooks even though they have a huge stash at home that have never been used. These are low cost items, so what does it matter? It all adds up.

This is not necessarily about curbing our spending. Obviously we don’t want to incur any further debt, but we won't know what that means unless we know what we are spending. This takes discipline and you'll forget things sometimes, but don’t worry. Write it all down when you remember.

As time goes on, you'll build a picture of your spending and lifestyle habits. Start by writing down the cappuccino you bought today and anything else you remember spending. Only then can you start to clear the fog of your debt.

The Debtologist's tips:

• Write down every little thing you spend

• Make note as soon after the purchase as possible

• Pay by cash, cheque or use a debit card that takes the money straight out of your account

• Write it down to the penny rather than just rounding up or down

• Be persistent, it will get easier