The biggest step I take to get out of debt is to pay attention to my bills. I analyze all bills I receive very carefully. I have caught many errors which will save me hundreds of thousands of dollars over my lifetime.
Catching Billing Errors on Cell Phone Bills Helps Me Get Out of Debt

It seems there is a mistake on every bill, especially cell phone bills.

One cell phone company had credited me $100 for a mistake of theirs, and then their accounting system was unable to add debits and credits. So, when the computers showed a bill of $177, they were unable to subtract the $100 from the new charge, and they said I owed the full $177 (when I actually owed $77).

I had to talk to three customer service people, and finally had to go to the store and talk to a manager to get the issue resolved.

I once caught premium text messaging on my phone bill, which was $19.99 a month. I have no idea what the service was, how I was signed up, or who they were. Apparently, I was not entitled to any of that information. I had no way to cancel the service, except to contact the people who were charging me without my consent.

I was able to block premium text messaging from my cell phone carrier (only after I canceled the service I was already 'subscribed' to). Now, thank goodness, I do not have to worry about these unauthorized charges any more.

Catching Billing Errors on Internet Bills Helps Me Get Out of Debt

With my internet bill, I had been charged for the wrong level of internet I ordered. Catching this mistake has saved me $30 monthly, which is a lot of money that that is going to paying off my debts.

How Much Will I Been Able to Pay Off?

These are just three examples of unauthorized charges that I was able to recover because I paid attention to my bills. If I had allowed these charges to remain, and merely paid them, in 30 years I would have $209,697.84 more in debt in 30 years!

To arrive at that calculation I assumed $20 a month in premium text messaging, $30 a month in extra internet bills, and $10 a month in extra caught charges (such as the $100 extra I found on my internet bill). This leads to $60 a month. I used a 12% interest rate, compounded monthly.

If I am ever to get out of debt, I must pay attention to all of my bills and catch errors as soon as possible. It is not fun, it is not glamorous, but it is necessary for debt free living.