Suggestions on what to do with Credit Cards

[tgeorge0207]

Okay, I have set a personal goal of paying off my credit cards by March 2013 completely doable for me but my down fall is I like to spend on them to much. Where have you put your credit cards so you weren't tempted to spend and please don't just say leave them at home that does not work. I know it takes will power from me but any help would be great. Thanks

 

[MAD4EEYORE]

I had a friend that put her CC in a container filled it with water and put it in the freezer. If she wanted to buy something she had to wait for them to thaw out. It worked for her. She had time to rethink about what she wanted to buy.

Me I would put them in a safe deposit box. That way they are safe but still available when you need them.

Good luck! Hope you are able to accomplish no CC debt. It's the greatest feeling.

 

[CowboyCO]

Cut them up today. Pay them off. Never go back.

 

[bumbershoot]

First, create a budget so that the CCs aren't a temptation.

 

[hsmamato2]

call the cc company- tell them you want to freeze all your accounts for use....then cut them up,then pay them off. If you can't stop yourself from spending you don't need them.you can;t close them till they're paid off. cut them up.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

Could you give them to a trusted friend or family member so you have to explain yourself if you want to use it?

Also make sure you give yourself a reasonable spending allowance so you don't feel deprived and fall back on credit.

 

[RitaE]

I've seen that "freezing them in water" thing mentioned several times over the years and I've never understood why people do that. All you'd have to do is put it under running hot water and the card would be liberated in minutes.

Or am I just more devious than average.

I guess if you really need the will power boost I vote for giving them to your Mom if possible or locking them in a safe deposit box. Then it'd take an effort to get access again. It wouldn't do much for me since I have my card number memorized anyway from so much internet shopping.

But I'd really suggest just cutting them up if it is that much of a problem. You can still keep the accounts open and get a replacement card pretty quick if an emergency pops up.

 

[bettymae1121]

I'd cancel and cut up all but one CC (there may be a time when you truely need it for something urgent) and put the one remaining one someplace that you can't get to it right away if you are tempted, but still accessable if there is a genuine emergency. A safe deposit box is an excellent choice, a trusted friend/relative is another option.

Make sure you also delete your accounts from any shoping websites you have them stored at, otherwise you'll still be able to spend online!

Good luck! I'm paying off my CC's this month (due to an unexpected inheritance) and it's a great feeling, let me tell you!

 

[DawnM]

Wait, you want to know where to put them but you aren't willing to leave them at home? I am not following.

 

[DVC-Don]

Safe deposit box at the bank.

 

[ICF]

Is self control with them just not an option??

CC's are great ways to earn free stuff if used in a responsible manner.

Even if you just put your gas / grocery expenses on them -- and didnt use them on 'impulse' buys....the rewards would add up quickly.

 

[bettymae1121]

Is self control with them just not an option??

CC's are great ways to earn free stuff if used in a responsible manner.

Even if you just put your gas / grocery expenses on them -- and didnt use them on 'impulse' buys....the rewards would add up quickly.

I can't speak for the OP, but some people really do have problems with CC's, if they are in their wallet or otherwise easily accessable, they WILL over spend.

My BFF is just such a person. She's doing better now but that is in large part because she refuses to have a CC from now on, she just has a debit card. The hole she dug herself with CC's was She said maybe 5-10 years from now she might be able to trust herself again, but for the time being she's better off just not having the temptation.

 

[bedogged]

Is self control with them just not an option??

CC's are great ways to earn free stuff if used in a responsible manner.

Even if you just put your gas / grocery expenses on them -- and didnt use them on 'impulse' buys....the rewards would add up quickly.

I agree! I got $650 back from AMEX this year and paid nothing out. That's free money.

One thing I learned from this board is to treat charges on credit cards as a check. Just subtract your charge purchase from your checking account then at the end of the month you always have enough funds to pay off the balance in full.

 

[Zhoen]

It's hard when you have the cards right there at your fingertips, but you also don't want to be stranded in a bad situation and your card(s) is/are at home.

The cards section of my wallet is like a ladder, so I arrange it like this:
1 (in front/easiest to get to) All my discount cards, to remind me to use them when appropriate
2 Gift cards I've received that I want to use
3 My debit card
4 Whichever credit card I'm using (depends on what rewards promo is most persuasive at that time-- right now it's Discover for the cash back)
5 Any other cards I'm carrying--usually including the debit card to my husband's account and my work credit card-- these are all wedged in together up at the top, under the strap, difficult to wiggle out

None of this stops me from accessing my accounts, it just reminds me to do things in a certain order-- 1-can I get a better price? 2-do I have gcs that I could use 3-can/should I pay cash? 4-Is there a good incentive to use credit?

And all the stuff in the back is special circumstances, like I'm travelling for work (in which case I move it down) or I'm buying something with "my husband's money", usually because it's outside my discretionary budget but it's something we can agree we want, so we use a combination of our discretionary funds to make it happen... (we have his/hers/ours)

Where I always get into trouble is the temptation to charge it rather than "waste my cash" or tell DH... the order of the cards is to remind me of that...

 

[cornflake]

I've seen that "freezing them in water" thing mentioned several times over the years and I've never understood why people do that. All you'd have to do is put it under running hot water and the card would be liberated in minutes.

Or am I just more devious than average.

I guess if you really need the will power boost I vote for giving them to your Mom if possible or locking them in a safe deposit box. Then it'd take an effort to get access again. It wouldn't do much for me since I have my card number memorized anyway from so much internet shopping.

But I'd really suggest just cutting them up if it is that much of a problem. You can still keep the accounts open and get a replacement card pretty quick if an emergency pops up.

It's not that you can't get them out of the ice, it's that it's a forced delay/thinking period.

It's the same as some people who tell themselves they can buy whatever extras, as long as they wait 24 hours to do so. Some people have trouble doing something like that, they're more impulsive.

So, sticking it in a brick of ice forces the issue. Yes, you can go home and melt it in a few minutes, but you have to go home, get it out and stand there thawing it, thinking the entire time 'do I really need that whatever?' and maybe before it's thawed, you'll reconsider, or by the time you get home you won't bother. It's just making yourself delay/think, for people that have an impulse buying problem but not so bad they feel they need to cut/cancel their cards. It's a way to try to train yourself to add in the 'wait, do I really...'

 

[ceecee]

Is self control with them just not an option??

CC's are great ways to earn free stuff if used in a responsible manner.

Even if you just put your gas / grocery expenses on them -- and didnt use them on 'impulse' buys....the rewards would add up quickly.

That is my favorite way to do it....it's never to late to learn self control and a great lesson it is. If you really want to be out of debt and stick to your budget, just do it! We charge everything and pay it off each month, we get Disney points and 5% cash back.