The average American consumer owns four credit cards. One in seven people own ten or more credit cards. The cry of the masses seems to be “Charge it!”

But after charging it over and over, what do you do with the credit card debt? Not to worry. You too can lower your credit card debt, and here are some straightforward tips to help you get started.

1. Stop using your cards. Okay, for most of us that is a bit more difficult than it sounds. People don’t carry much cash anymore. While that might be good for stopping a mugging, it’s not good for your credit account. Many people tend to use credit for everyday expenses and cash for emergencies. Turn that around! From now on, credit cards are for emergency expenses only. Everyday expenses get paid in cash.

2. Pay more than the minimum! If you’re just paying the bare minimum required each billing cycle, chances are you’re not touching more than 1 percent of the principle balance, and all that you’re paying is the interest you accrued that month.

If you don’t touch the principle balance, you’re not going to get rid of the debt. Want to get rid of that principle balance even faster? As your minimum payment goes down, don’t let the check you send decrease! Keep paying that higher amount!

3. Line ‘em up, and knock ‘em down. The average American has four credit cards, but it’s a pretty good bet that the average American can’t pay more than the minimum balance on all of them.

Line your cards up highest to lowest by interest rate or by balance carried. Pay more than the minimum balance required on the highest card, and pay just the minimum on the others. After you knock out the first card, move on to the second, and so on.

Like before, keep paying the same amount as you go along. The great thing about paying off cards like this is that it creates a snowball effect. Once you’ve paid off the first card, you can put a little extra into paying off the second card, until all those cards are at a zero balance.

4. Consider consolidating. If you have one card that has a very high interest rate, and one card that has a very low interest rate, consider moving some of the debt from the higher-rate card to the lower-rate card. This is of course, provided you haven’t reached your credit limit on the lower-rate card. You may have even received an offer in the mail to transfer your debt to a lower rate card. Beware: There can be fees and string attached to these transfers, so be sure you have all the facts or you could end up adding on to your debt.

5. File Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The problem with paying down your credit card bills is that you’ll need to regularly have enough money to make these payments. If you just don’t have the income to do this, then Chapter 7 bankruptcy may be a good option. It is designed to quickly clear your credit card debt, so you can have a fresh financial start.

Remember, these tips will work differently for every person, and there are probably more ways than just this out here. The trick is to make your debt more manageable for you, and to work towards a goal.