How To Overcome Your Addiction To “Plastic”

By: Dr. Boyce Watkins

 

www.BoyceWatkins.com

 

1)    Pay less interest by putting your high interest accounts on a low interest one.

2)    Give yourself a cash allowance and reduce yourself down to just one card.  When the cash is spent, then you stop spending.

3)    Only use your credit card for emergencies and large purchases.  Rule of thumb:  If you can’t look at your credit card statements and have something to show for what you spent, then it was not a good thing to spend money on.  For example:  using credit cards for a washer/dryer could be ok, but using it for food, gas and other stuff is not.

4)    Keep it simple – cut em up.  You’ll soon get used to not having them.

5)    Never use the credit card to buy anything if you’ve got the cash for it in your pocket.  Remember that buying something on a credit card and paying for it over the course of a year means you are paying as much as 15% - 25% more for that item than you think you’re paying.  So, add 25% to the price and see how quickly that good deal becomes a bad one.

 

 

For more information, go to my site:  www.FinancialLipo.com

 

 

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Finance Professor at Syracuse University and author of Financial Lovemaking 101: Merging Asset with Your Partner in Ways that Feel Good.  He does regular commentary in national media, including CNN, CBS, NBC and BET.  For more information, please visit www.BoyceWatkins.com. This information does not constitute legal advice.  For legal advice, please consult your attorney.