One of the most important bits of advice given to addicts attending 12-step programs is that the first step to resolving the problem is in recognizing you have one. Without that initial self-reflection, anything that follows is useless because the person won’t change.

And it’s not just drugs or drinking. A person can be addicted to eating wrong, spending too much money, watching too much TV, or wasting too much time that it causes a problem to your health or financial well-being.

It is why financial guru Dave Ramsey recently told a viewer “when you recognize you have a problem, 90% of the problem is solved.” While it might not be quite that much as the change necessary to turn the situation around still needs to happen, and it won’t be overnight, but the first major turning point just occurred.

24/7 Wall St. Insights:

• Every person in recovery understands that the first step they made was the biggest and possibly the hardest: recognizing they had a problem.
• Financial guru Dave Ramsey says by making that one decision, you have virtually accomplished the task at hand, even if what comes next is harsh, which it will likely be.
• Understanding you have a problem and committing to make the changes necessary will allow you to succeed, even if your addiction is to spending too much money for the income you have.
• Also: Are You Saving Enough For College? Take This Quiz and Find Out (Sponsored) 

Learning discipline is the easy part

In a segment titled, “My Money Vanishes When I Get Paid,” an anonymous viewer of Dave Ramsey’s The Ramsey Show detailed how he is behind the eight ball.

As a person who works overnight shifts at Walmart (NYSE:WMT) for $20 an hour, the viewer spends a large percentage of his money eating out and he finds his “bank account always is a race to zero.” He finds he needs to use cash advance apps like Dave (NASDAQ:DAVE) (not affiliated with Dave Ramsey) that charge him $5 to get access to his next paycheck. As a result, he has a $3,000 credit card hole he can’t find a way out of while owing the IRS an additional $4,000. 

What he wants to know is, how can he learn discipline to break this cycle? At 27 years old, he knows he needs to get his act together.

Which is when Ramsey recites the advice his father gave him when he told hime about recognizing there is a problem. Ramsey says because the viewer is acknowledging there is something wrong, he’s already got himself together, now comes the next step of doing something about it.

Breaking the cycle

In this particular situation, it may just be something as simple as buying food at the grocery store and making his meals ahead of time to take with him. When his friends want to go out to drink, he has to say no, I can’t afford to go. He should also stop using payday lending services like the Dave app.

While the cash advance services seem to address the short-term cash flow problems far too many Americans find themselves in today, they only serve to dig the hole you’re in deeper. Sure, you’re getting access to money that you don’t have yet, but are doing so for a steep fee. 

The $5 the Dave Ramsey viewer pays for getting money from his next paycheck may not seem much, but the effective annual percentage rate charged is steep. And when that next paycheck does arrive, he is not getting all the money he made. As the saying goes, the first rule of holes is stop digging.

Commit to change

Your situation is going to be different, but taking that first step will be the same. Look at your own situation and think about what the major pain points are. 

If you have a cash flow problem yourself where you run out of checkbook before you run out of month, then you need to increase your income. Does that mean taking on a second job? Maybe. It also means budgeting your spending and spending less, too. You don’t want to live just at your ability to pay, you need to live below your means. 

The solution isn’t easy, and most likely isn’t going to be enjoyable. As Ramsey also pointed out, “no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but it yields a harvest of righteousness.”

So, yes, recognizing there is a problem is the first step. Whether it resolves 90% of the problem or some lesser percentage is meaningless. So long as you commit to making the change needed, you can turn your situation around.

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