According to Capital Economics, the Budget could cost the average household £3,000 of its annual £36,000 income by 2015. Different analysts have produced different figures – and this one is a particularly pessimistic one – but however you look at it, we’re in for some belt-tightening in the years ahead. Time to work on our debt management skills…

Here are three areas you’ll want to work on if you’re keen to get out of debt as quickly as possible.

Debt management skill 1: track your money

One of the best ways to improve your debt management skills is to learn to budget more effectively – to learn how to track the money that goes into and out of your household. The better we can do this, the more clearly we’ll understand our finances, so we can see where the money goes, and where we can cut back to free up money that doesn’t really need to be spent.

It’s just a matter of tracking your income (salary, benefits, grants, interest on savings, etc.) and your spending.

Once you’ve added up your ‘essential spending’ (rent or mortgage, food, bills, petrol, etc.) just take that figure away from your income and you’ll be left with your ‘disposable income’ – the money that you can spend on non-essentials and your unsecured debts (also called your non-priority debts – things like credit cards and unsecured loans).

Debt management skill 2: cut back on non-essentials

If you find that your disposable income is more than you need for your non-priority debt repayments, you should think about using the surplus to clear your non-priority debts more quickly than you’re actually obliged to. Learning to overpay your debts is a great way to improve your debt management skills – the more you can reduce your debts, the less interest you’ll be paying, and the better you’ll be prepared for whatever the future may bring.

To do that, you’ll probably need to cut back on your non-essential spending. This isn’t always easy – everyone likes their little luxuries – but it’ll be worth it if it means you can repay your debts more quickly.

Debt management skill 3: get a better deal

Saving money doesn’t always have to hurt. You might begrudge giving up your luxuries, but you’re unlikely to be too concerned about which gas / electricity / internet provider you’re paying for a service! If you’re keen on reducing your debt levels, it’s well worth taking the time to find the cheapest deal around – so you can save money in a way that doesn’t involve having to make sacrifices.