Erase the Signs of Holiday Spending ASAP

Went a little overboard during the holidays? Then there's no time to waste lamenting those overindulgences.

Debt triage requires a crash course in cash control. Here's the "Quick Start" guide to paying off those credit cards ASAP:

Assess the damage. Use online calculators to see exactly what it'll take to pay off the cards.

Devise an aggressive payoff plan. It's worth repeating that paying your debt off requires that you mail in a sizeable chunk more than the minimum payment. Come up with your per-month debt payoff schedule and start digging under the couch cushions for extra coins.

Cut back on your biggest expenses first. You'll see the biggest payoff for your efforts if you're able to shave your spending in the meals, entertainment, transportation, and apparel/personal care categories.

Institute strict spending limits. For this point, I like to employ the "envelope method" of budgeting, where you carry only the amount of cash you have to devote to those expenditures each week. Leave the cards at home.

Sell stuff. eBay, Craigslist, and Amazon.com's Marketplace all have platforms to help sellers clear out their closets.

Cut back on other savings goals. The vacation, new water heater, full head of highlights, and maybe even a bigger cash cushion will have to wait. Paying down your debt gives you an immediate and guaranteed return on your investment, at whatever interest rate your lender is charging you to keep your tab in play.

Don't borrow from your future. Perhaps you still have access to a home equity line of credit. Maybe you're thinking about borrowing money from your retirement account. Don't. This is a bad habit to start, plus the fees, taxes, and lost growth potential make these options a very unattractive trade-off. If you do need to cut back on your retirement savings, do so only to the point to which your employer no longer matches your contributions. Once you're done paying off the debt, return to your previous levels of participation.

Get the whole family in on it and offer rewards (cheap ones!) for those who spend the least each week and another for everyone when Holiday '08 is finally paid for in full.

Start saving to avoid this same song-and-dance next January. Once your "What I Owe" column is back to $0, start socking away money each month in a separate, hands-off savings account. (Even though interest rates aren't that impressive, it's still worth checking out some of the high-yield money market savings accounts out there.)

In moments of retail weakness, revisit the how-to guide everyone needs to read right now: "Stop Buying Stuff You Don't Need."

Thanks to pacing and moderation, Fool.com columnist Dayana Yochim did not suffer from a holiday hangover this year.