Dealing With Debt – Part 6
If credit cards cause so many problems, why would I ever want one?
You must remember that anything used outside of its primary purpose is what’s known as abuse. Any time there are problems, specifically regarding the topic of credit cards, it’s a product of abuse; we misuse our credit cards and that’s what brings us trouble.
Credit cards aren’t for everyone like college isn’t for everyone, at least not for everyone right now. I’ve learned to use credit cards like a contractor using a tool in his toolbox. You can use a hammer for many tasks, but a hammer may not be the best tool for the job. Just because a hammer will work doesn’t mean there’s isn’t another tool out there that can do a better job, even a more efficient job. In the same way, credit cards can be used as a tool in (what I call) the business of running your life. Let’s discuss three of the best ways a credit card can be used as a tool to improve your life, your business.
Having a Credit Card that Offers You Cash back.
Benefit #1: We have credit cards that offer cash back.
Why use a credit card that doesn’t offer you something in return? It’s time you at least earned something as well. Gone should be the day that people use a credit card that doesn’t offer them something in return. We have one credit card that gives 1.5% cash back for every purchase and we have one that provides 2% cash back for all purchases. We have 3 credit cards total that serve specific yet unique purposes, see our web-post called, “Three Ways Credit Cards Can Work For You”. There are many credit cards out there that provide a return. Look for one, if you’re going to use one, that provides a return that’s beneficial for you. We use our cashback rewards to fund our Christmas giving; it acts like a savings account that we cash out just before Christmas.
Having a Credit Card Increases You Credit Rating.
Benefit #2: Our credits cards have helped to increase our credit rating.
Pamela and I use a credit card for all our spending. We are disciplined enough to never carry a balance. We spend and at the end of the week or each payday, we settle the credit card account. This spending and payoff looks very good to the credit card companies. It’s continuous and shows that we use the card and make payments responsibly. If you’re disciplined enough, give it a try and make the credit card work in your favor. This use of the credit card has resulted in numerous credit limit increases and thusly a better credit rating.
Having a Credit Card Makes Accounting Easier.
Benefit #3: Our credit card statements provide better accounting of our spending than we could on our own.
Using a credit card makes tracking and accounting much easier and simpler. It basically does all the work for you. We can see our spending in categories. Running our life doesn’t need to be complicated by us having to get all our transactions in a spreadsheet to analyze. The credit credit websites do that for us, saving us a lot of time. Each month or as often as we desire, we can take a look at spending patterns which help us to modify our spending behaviors. What are your waiting on to add this to your toolkit?
Today Is Friday!
If you know me, you know I love Microsoft Excel. Spreadsheets are our friend and I’m very good with them. But why would I do all that work myself when someone else can do it for me? Credit cards used with a purpose, such as accounting, can provide benefits for you. In this web-post, we’ve discussed three, and I’m sure there are many more, benefits to using a credit card with a plan. This is your life, your business what tool do you have in your wallet?
Question: What can using a credit card do to improve your life?
Additional Web-Posts on Credit Cards:
- Three Ways Credit Cards Can Work for You
- Key Indicators for Using Credit Responsibly
- 3 Indicators of Encroaching Credit Trouble
- How A $350 Credit Card Made Us Financially Better
- The Discipline of Using Credit
- Avoid These Credit Card Mistakes
is available soon. Our team is working hard putting the finishing touches on our Family Plan binder that we’re making available to you. We designed it to help you and your family move the needle forward making your life your business. Find out more about the Family plan here.
