Valentine’s Day is the perfect day to evaluate your relationships with loved ones. It’s a time to decide how much they truly mean to you and then to let them know. It’s a time to build a healthy relationship with your spouse/significant other, children, parents, siblings, friends, coworkers, and … credit cards?
Yes, you may not realize it, but you do have a relationship with your credit card. Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad, but it’s a relationship, nonetheless.
“A relationship is like a credit card, if you don’t handle it responsibly, you lose its value and pay heavy in the future for the past.” – Joseph Cubby
Here are a few ways you truly are in a relationship with your credit card – for better or for worse:
1. You want/need each other
Do you like the convenience of having your credit card around? Do you like to take your credit card shopping and out to dinner – especially when it pays the bill? When you’re in a relationship with your credit card, you also enjoy having it with you all the time and you miss it when it’s gone.
Your credit card is also dependent upon you. It is worthless without you. You bring value to each other.
2. You don’t want to take it for granted
It can be easy to take something (or someone) for granted when you think they’ll always be around. But, if you take a credit card for granted, you could end up ruining your credit score and losing your credit card. Like any healthy relationship, you need to take time for your credit card at least once a month. You need to make sure your balance is healthy and in tip-top shape. Don’t take your credit card for granted or it may not be able to help you when you need it.
3. Sometimes it doesn’t work out
Maintaining a credit card requires a lot of hard work and perseverance. But, sometimes, no matter how much you want it to work out, it just doesn’t. You may not feel that you’re getting rewarded enough for your purchases. You may have found another credit card that fits your needs better. Or maybe you weren’t responsible enough and you ruined this relationship with your credit card. Sometimes it really just doesn’t work out.
4. Finding a new partner
Having a negative experience with a credit card can help you understand what you’re looking for in a card. Decide if you want a card with rewards or just a cash management card. There are so many fish in the sea when it comes to credit cards. Decide which option better suits your lifestyle and go for it.
If you want to maintain a healthy relationship with your credit card, you need to treat it well. You need to pay off the balances on time and strive to be mindful of what’s going on with your card. A relationship often takes a little time, love, and work – especially with your credit card.
