Breaking The Habit- How To Stop Using Your Credit Card
You know your debt is rising, but still cannot stop
using your credit card for purchasing items. Several
people get easily dependent on credit cards for
everyday expenses and impulsive buys. The fact that
you are borrowing money from the creditor for your
purchase might be tempting, but the truth is: you must
be able to pay it off on time. Neglecting those bills
can cause headaches in the future. You might get
malicious letters from your creditors, or even receive
threatening telephone calls.
Close, Shred and Leave
If you really want to avoid those from happening all
together or if you are starting to drown in your debt,
you have to stop credit card usage. Fortunately, there
are several ways on how to.
Firstly, many people would agree that closing your
credit card account is the best way possible. One and
simple call to your cardholder is sufficient enough to
inactivate your credit card. Doing so might even quiet
down that nagging feeling and desire to purchase items
using a credit card. Just think that there might be
one situation wherein the clerk says your credit card
has been denied; the embarrassment from that situation
is reason enough for you to inactivate your credit
card.
Shredding is also an excellent way to break the habit
completely. You can use an office shredder since it
works great on plastic as it does on paper. Since your
credit card is shredded into pieces, there is no way
that you can swipe it. However, if you do not have a
shredder, scissors are great too. Just cut the card
into small pieces and make sure that the credit card
number cannot be identified by potential thieves.
Another excellent way to stop using the credit card,
especially when you go out of the house, is to leave
them. If closing or shredding is not your style, try
taking your credit card out of your wallet when you
are about to go shopping. In this way, if you have the
urge to buy something you really do not need, you have
to think twice before buying it since you are about to
use your own money.
The Shock and What Your Can Do About It
You have been using your credit card for your expenses
but have you ever thought about the total amount of
cash you spend in interest alone each year? More so,
the duration of time it will take you to just pay off
your credit cards might shock you. It is all about the
numbers and these will put you into shock and can make
you think twice before using that credit card again.
For instance, if you have a balance of $1,000 and an
interest rate of 14%, it will take you about four and
a half years before you can pay it off; that is, if
you are making $25 in payments every month. By the
time you pay off the balance, you will have paid a
total of $347.55 in interest.
Since you know what credit cards can do, you might
want to stop using it once and for all. Learn how to
say no since this kind of discipline can help you
stop impulsive buys, thus stopping the use of credit
cards. Always think twice about swiping that credit
card for your purchases and you would not have to
think about repairing your credit in the future.