The first thing you need to do is figure out just where you stand financially. This means knowing how much you owe (and how much you're paying for it) as well as how much you've saved. In other words, you need to know both your net worth and your cash flow. Ultimately, you're going to have to come up with the ever-dreaded budget, so you can know just how much you have to spend and how much you can use to pay down your debt each month.

Many consumers have the option of swapping their credit-card debt for some other lower-interest debt, either through a home-equity loan or by borrowing from their 401(k). If the reason you've run into debt problems in the first place is a unique circumstance — a job layoff, for example — then a home-equity loan might be a smart thing to do. (Generally you shouldn't tap your 401(k) except as a last resort.) But if you're a chronic charger, you're better off avoiding these approaches. After all, you'll be substantially worse off if you simply rack up that credit-card debt once again, while also putting your home or your retirement at risk.

Assuming you're going to stick with your credit-card debt, then the first thing to do is to call up your lenders and demand a lower rate. This can be remarkably effective: With one five-minute phone conversation, 56% of consumers who called their credit-card company were able to lower their annual percentage rates. Those who were successful were able to reduce their rate by as much as one-third, from an average of 16% to 10.47%. The success rate was affected by how long the customer had held a particular card, the amount of debt they were carrying in relation to their credit limit and whether or not they had a history of late payments.

Experts recommend that you focus on the card that has the highest interest rate first. That said, if you're the type who seeks immediate gratification, then you might want to start by tackling the card with the smallest balance for the satisfaction of seeing one of your debts paid off.

Rolling your debt over to a lower-rate card can also save you some money, although make sure that you use the extra savings to pay down your debt more rapidly. And don't think you can roll over your balances indefinitely — once the credit-card companies know your game, you'll find that the offers for balance transfers have dried up.

To avoid temptation, you should also probably remove your credit cards from your wallet. (Some credit counselors even go so far as to recommend that you freeze them in a block of ice in your icebox. That should slow down the impulse buying.) Instead, carry a debit card or a charge card like a standard American Express, which forces you to pay off the balance in full each month.