Confessions of a Credit Card Whore
You know, I used to fear the mail.
Bill anxiety. A familiar ailment of many in the western world.
I’d just moved out of home and had my first big job in the city (Sydney, Australia to be exact). Like most young career women, I had an image in mind of the woman I wanted to be.
Mostly it was just that… an image.
Upkeeping that image amongst the social set of Double Bay (otherwise known as Double Pay) was expensive and my credit card bore the brunt of this. In classic fashion (no pun intended), I borrowed from the future to live large in the present.
Needless to say, I avoided opening my bills. Which led to late fees being applied to my next, even bigger bills. Which only added to my bill anxiety, making my fear of bills a self-fulfilling prophecy.
—> Not a good fear to have when you’re a fledgling accountant and financial advisor.
I wish I knew then, what I know now:
It’s only paper with numbers on it. i.e. IT CAN’T HURT YOU.
Bill avoidance is expensive. It unnecessarily adds to your debt with fines, penalties, and a lower credit score.
Not taking control of your finances guarantees you will NEVER meet your financial goals.
Bill avoidance only hurts yourself (the banks actually LOVE it because they get to charge you more).
—> If you have credit card debt, do yourself a favour and sort it out before it sorts YOU out.
Did you know?
The average household credit card debt is around $5,000. If you paid this off by making only the minimum repayments at 18% interest, it would take you over 33 years and cost you $17,181 in repayments.
i.e. Those purchases you made for $5,000 (the holiday, the designer shoes, drinks with friends), actually cost you more than 3 times as much as you thought.
Was it worth it?
—> Probably not.
How to pay your credit card off in a smart and stress-free way.
There's a smart, painless way to pay your $5,000 credit card off sooner and get that debt off your back within 15 months. That's a lot better than 33 years. My way will save you $11,781 in interest and only costs you an extra $7 per day!
—> Crazy, but true!
Here's how:
Cut up your credit cards and revert to cash or debit card for ALL transactions. DO NOT DEBT, you're smarter now and you're done with debt.😇
Find a way to make $1,000 quick! Break it down to 10 lots of $100. Have an online garage sale, do some overtime, fill out surveys for cash, Uber driver, air b'n'b your home, ask for a pay rise, get creative! Put this $1,000 on your credit card debt immediately. 🏆
Let's assume you're already paying $100 a month as your minimum repayment (2%). Keep doing this.
Can you cut back your spending by $7 a day for the next 15 months? That's 1.5 lattes a day, taking your lunch to work a few days a week, doing your own weekly manicure OR catching the bus instead of a taxi every now and then. Yes? Then redirect this to your credit card repayments.
Congratulations! In just over one year you've eliminated $5,000 in credit card debt, saved $11,781 in interest AND lifted a whole lot of stress for only $7 a day in compromises!
—> See, it's easier than you think to sort out your money and it's never too late!
Love,
Julia
Want to work with me?
Find out more about My Signature Money Course HERE.
Book a Money Workshop with Friends HERE.
Book a personal Money Session for life or business HERE
Not sure which one is for you? Book a free call HERE.
