The following is a guest post. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are that of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect my own.
How do you use your credit cards? Are you an impulse buyer? Do you see the strategically placed items at the store, know you don’t have the money in your bank account to purchase them, but thanks to the easy access of credit cards, buy them anyway? Do you rack up credit card debt, pay it off or at least pay off some of it and look at that line of credit as cash in hand that you can spend – and find something to spend it on? Do you feel sick to your stomach when your credit card statement arrives each month because your balance is high and you really have nothing of value to show for it?
Would you like to choose something different? Would you like to be able to have credit cards, use them in a way that is beneficial to you without the stress and strain they can bring?
Here are my top 3 tips for taking control of your credit card habits:
What do you love about having debt?
I know, this sounds like a stupid question. There’s a good chance that when you read it you want to say, “What do you mean, ‘What do I love about having debt?’ I hate it!” And yet, if something keeps showing up, there is something we love about it.
Take me for example. I was $187,000 in debt with nothing to show for it. Within two years of applying the tools I am sharing with you, I was out of debt. You might expect me to say that it felt wonderful to be free of debt, but that wasn’t so for me. I felt strange not having debt. I was more comfortable being in debt than out of debt. For one thing, debt felt more familiar. It also made me more like my friends.
If you wish to get out of debt and to change your credit card habits, start by taking a look at your perspective on debt. What do you believe about debt? Does it seem normal, inevitable or unavoidable to you? Have you been taught to believe that debt is bad, wrong, or a necessary evil? Do you avoid looking at your debt? Do you keep yourself ignorant about debt, and hope that it will take care of itself?
As you take an honest look at what you believe about debt, start to say ‘Interesting point of view. I have that point of view” about every opinion you have regarding debt and money. What you believe about debt and money creates your experience with debt and money. By using the tool of “interesting point of view” you are challenging your current paradigms, which allows you to let them go.
Educate yourself about money.
Many of us were not taught about money when we were growing up. In fact, in many families, talking about money wasn’t even allowed and often we carry this over into adulthood. Not talking about money, not being educated about money can contribute to the lack of having money.
You can start to change this today. The best way to start is just to start. Ask questions and educate yourself about money. Who are the faces and symbols on your cash currency? Do you know what the largest dollar value bill is in your country, or other countries? What color is each note, not just in your currency but other currencies as well? Become familiar with money, do not avoid it, admire it, play with it, and acknowledge it.
Not being willing to educate yourself about money creates debt. Educating yourself about money creates more money.
Educating yourself about money can be as simple as doing a Google search such as “What is wealth?” Or, “How do wealthy people get wealthy?” Or, “What are the assets that create revenue?” If you are willing to educate yourself on anything, you will know more than 99.99% of the people out there. People aren’t often interested in increasing their knowledge and if you are, you will know a little more about something and will be able to see the value that others are not.
Be willing to have money
We have been taught that the value of having money is spending it, or saving it to spend later. But we rarely talk about having money, and what difference that can make in our financial worlds.
Having money is about being willing to allow money to be in your life in such a way that you always have it, and it contributes to the expansion of your life.
A great example of this is I used to wear bright costume jewelry. It looked great, I had some fun pieces, but they were worth less than 50% of what I paid for them the minute I walked out the door. One day, I bought a necklace that was made of Mabe pearls. These pearls are now extremely rare, as the ocean does not produce them anymore. The necklace, because of the intrinsic value and its rarity in the world, keeps increasing in value. Having that necklace in my life not only has a monetary value that is more than what I paid for it, it is also an amazing and beautiful piece of jewelry to have in my life. It is aesthetically beautiful, and I feel amazing when I wear it. That is the energy that having money in your life creates.
If you would like to be willing to HAVE money, a great place to start is setting up a 10% account. A 10% account is where you take 10% of every dollar that comes in and never spend it – NEVER. Setting aside 10% is gifting to you. It’s about you being grateful for yourself. And, it’s a way of saying to the universe, ‘I am willing to have money.’ When you are willing to have money, more can show up.
Regardless of where you are right now, how much debt you have or the credit card habits you haven’t been able to change, something else is possible. You will often hear me say, ‘No one should have a money problem – especially not you.’ No one need have a credit card problem either. YOU are the source for changing all of it.
Have an honest look at your perspective of debt and be willing to change it. Educate yourself about money and about ways of increasing your wealth. Be willing to HAVE money and starting a 10% account is a great place to start. It may not change overnight. But, if you are willing to commit to changing it, if you are willing to take action, it will change.
Simone Milasas is the Founder and Creator of Joy of Business as well as the Worldwide Coordinator of Access Consciousness® which operates in over 170 countries. Simone is the author of the internationally acclaimed book Joy of Business (currently available in 11 languages) and her brand new book, Getting Out of Debt – Joyfully. You can find out more about Simone by visiting her website at gettingoutofdebtjoyfully.com.
carole harris says
interesting, and I will need to take your advice for sure. I did pin your blog to one of my boards on pinterest. Thank you for sharing.