To have a Smart Financial House that can withstand the financial storms of life, you need to eliminate your short-term debt and create a plan to not go into debt in the future. The concept that my wife and I used to get ourselves completely out of debt in less than seven years is utilizing the 70/20/10 Rule. The 70/20/10 Rule is very straightforward and simple to understand. It is the implementation that takes some faith and discipline.