Discover the Joys of Being Credit Card Free
A Credit Article Contributed by Mark Mcclelland
Discover Credit Card Freedom
Wouldn't you just love to be able to open your mailbox one day and discover that the credit card bills have just stopped coming. Sure you would, come on admit it.... even though it's seems as though there's no way we would ever be able to get away without using a credit for something or another, it would be sweet wouldn't it?
Well, you know what? There are alternatives to credit cards that you might just be unaware of.
Discover the Path to a Credit Card Free Future
If you've already got a mountain of debt, understand that it'll be sinfully hard to find that path, let alone walk it. But where there's a will there's bound to be a way. So where might you start looking? How about starting with your own spending habits.
Do you only buy those things you actually need, or do you do a lot of impulse buying. Do you go on spending sprees when you get depressed or bored? Do you put off until tomorrow thinking about those difficult questions you should dealing with today? You can see where this is heading, can't you? The first and best place to start looking for a way out of the morass you're in is to discover what it is that drives you to reckless buying and eliminate those aspect that have contributed to your current predicament.
Let's say you do have a decent grip on your spending habits, but past circumstances beyond your control really put you in a ditch. What do you do now? Well, are you still carrying around that pile of cards? You already know what you should do with most of them, so do it...stack then up in order of interest rate, highest rate on the bottom, lowest on the top, and go get a pair of scissors. It may be painful, but no pain, no gain.
Cut up at least half the cards in your stack starting with those on the bottom; then call the affected card companies and close those accounts. There - you no longer have half of your cards imploring you to spend, spend, spend when they have the teensiest amount of available credit. You'll have to pay off their balances, of course, but you won't be able to use them anymore.
Discover New Ways to Reduce Your Dependence on Credit Cards
There's only one sure way the reduce your dependence on credit cards and the way doesn't require an expedition into the wild to discover what it is: simply quit using them.... put them away in a sock in your drawer, cut them up, burn them, do whatever you want but stop using them.
But short of that, how might one go about GRADUALLY reducing their dependence on credit cards? Well, if you're asking that question, you obviously have yet to discover the wonderful world of debit cards. In case you're unfamiliar with them, debit cards provide many of the positive benefits of traditional credit cards, while avoiding many of their detractions.
Debit cards are offered by most of the large card issuers, but, instead of using unsecured credit like your more traditional cards do when you make a purchase, these cards draw funds directly from your bank account(s) to pay for those purchases immediately. Debit cards behave in much the same manner as do checks you write at the grocery store. No monies available in account, no purchase.
It's a pretty simple way to ensure that you live within your means, yet enjoy the portability aspects of a traditional credit card. The downside is that since you're not using any credit, you newfound ability to live within your means won't have any affect on an already damaged credit history.... but that'll take care of itself in time.
