You don’t have to be afraid of credit cards! Just learn to use them wisely.
I’ve experienced credit card debt and it was awful. Now I could’ve just said I’d never use a credit card again and avoid them entirely, but instead, I learned how to use credit cards responsibly and now I love them.
Credit cards can be a great tool in your financial journey. I love credit cards that offer rewards. Some of them offer cash back, points for flights, or discounts at various stores. So the more you use them, the more benefits you get! But don’t let that influence you to spend more than you should. If you’re stuck in debt, all those benefits are useless.
The trick is to never use more on your credit card than you can pay off each month, no matter how much your credit limit is. So if you have $100,000 in your bank account to spend each month, only use $100,000 on your credit card. I like to say it’s using your credit card like your debit card. You’re not using more than you have and you can pay your balance in full every month.
Of course, credit cards can also provide a safety net in case of extreme emergencies when you just don’t have the money to foot the bill, but be honest about what an emergency is. That DIor purse is not an emergency okay?
Learn more about managing credit cards and debt here!