So as I look back, I see numerous errors I have made with my credit card, here are just a few:
- Purchase my Spring Break Cancun on my C.C.(this doesn't mean Country Club)
- Do balance transfers with the hope to pay off the bill before interest rate goes up, while still buying stuff on my C.C.
- Living off my C.C
- Not keeping track of what I actually spend
Trust me the list could go on, but this hits some pretty major violations on what credit card companies want you to do. I have since paid off my credit cards, with the help of my wife and have begin using my credit card as a tool. There are
many things I don't like about using a credit card, but I have decided to stick by these
3 major rules:
- Keep track of what I am spending
- Make sure I have enough money in my checking/savings to pay the bill by the due date
- Be very careful, remember how much I dislike Citibank I do not want to give them any money ever
So just recently I went through and put together a spreadsheet on what I spent(We are using the card for Housing expenses only with one exception of our most recent Hawaii Trip). I noticed that per our savings we are able to cover the entire balance. So I followed Rule 1 and 2 with paying extra attention to Rule 3. Now we do need to be very careful because the card was intended to be used for house purchases only, so
if there was a Rule #4 I would have violated it. I did however follow all the rules and know that the balance can be covered.
The lesson I take out of this is
I want to not use my Credit Card ever again and it may be possible in the near future, but as of right now
I am treating it like both a Tool and Evil, if I do use a credit card in the future it must be this way!
