I'm not going to tell you to pay it down, pay it off, or even pay it forward. When it comes to debt—scary as it can be—there's a mantra even more important than all those snazzy tag lines. Repeat after me: PAY ATTENTION!

C'mon, you say, what could be more important than throwing money at a debt to get rid of it? Well, if that money is one day—or even one hour—late, you'll be out an extra $39, not to mention the possibility of universal default. U.D.—which sounds either like an STD or an astronomical phenomena—is the practice of some lenders—specifically credit card issuers—to keep tabs not only on your accounts with them, but on all your other bills. So if you're late on one, they can say, Hey! What a risk you are. You no longer deserve that borrower-friendly introductory rate of 12%. We're going to sic you with a more fitting 21%, since you can't pay your bills on time and all.

As with many other banes of the adult world, like a tangle with the law or someone's bumper, information is your best weapon in taking control of your debt. Yes, more money is good—we like more money. But if you don't know when your due dates are, you'll just end up paying more for borrowing money, no matter how much you throw at it.

Moving along with our new money mantra (say it with me now: "Pay attention!"), here's a recipe for debtus destroyus that will clean up your credit history, and limit—if not totally ban—late fees, winning you some sweet interest rates. Oh yeah, and it'll pay your debt off too.

First, promise me that you won't get into more debt. Exceptions include: a sensible, manageable mortgage, student loans for another degree which you will complete on time and that is sure to jack up your income, a sensible car to take you to your sensible job without which you'd be back in your parents' basement, and other emergencies.

Second, be able to answer the following questions with a stop watch set at 60 seconds: How much debt do you have in total? How many lenders do you owe and who are they? How much do you owe each? What are your interest rates? Are they fixed rates or not? What are your due dates?

Step three: Order, people. Order! Rank your debts in order of highest interest rate to lowest interest rate. Not biggest bill to lowest bill—I don't care if you owe $2,459.56 at 9.9% and $245.95 at 21%—the highest interest rate debt's gotta go first. Why? Because interest rate = what it's costing you to borrow. Therefore, the bigger the interest rate, the more expensive the debt. Sock it to the pricey ones first. Set up a system (automated, online banking is a gift from the heavens) to make sure all your minimums are paid on time. Then, manually shoot as much money as possible at your debt with the highest interest rate. Continue until said debt is gone. Then tackle the next on the list. Keep those minimum payments going and throw as much dinero as possible at your next priciest debt until it too goes the way of COBOL. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Last step: The day after your debt-demolishing system is set up, call each of your lenders and ask to have your interest rates lowered. A Consumer Reports study this year found that about 50% of borrowers who asked for a lower rate got one. And should you have been the victim (sniff) of a late fee or two within the past thirty days, ask to be forgiven. The same study found that 79% of tardy borrowers had fees waived when requested. Should you bat zero on getting your rates down, maintain step three for six months and then call again. Repeat every six months until you get a nice, shiny market rate that reflects the well-informed, well-prepared consumer you are.

I've got two more magic debt tricks up my sleeve. Get rid of pre-approved offers stuffing your mailbox—choose to opt out, save trees, and thwart identity thieves at OptOutPreScreen.com. Then, should you want or need more plastic (say, to transfer a balance to a lower rate card), shop around at either Bankrate.com or Interest.com. And please, please, whatever you do, read the fine print. Your mailbox will be much less frightening.