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Are you using MasterCard, or is it using you?

In part one of Stepping Up Your Financial Game, we started with staying on top of your debt. Now its time to tackle credit card use.

It is possible to master the way we think about – and use— these little pieces of plastic.

Here’s how:

Spend less than you have

Pay off the card balance at the end of the month. Our parents and grandparents did it. We can do it, too. It is likely to involve a reassessment of our wants vs. our needs – and not believing all of the media advertising attempts to get into our wallets. Ask yourself: “Is this purchase a want or a need?”

Choose debit over credit

If you can’t resist the convenience of a card, then a debit card – one that charges directly against your bank account – is a great way of weaning yourself off the credit card habit. Whether you record each debit, or bank on-line, it’s important to keep track of what you’re spending. Check your balance regularly to avoid bank fees. Don’t wait for the grocery clerk to ask you, ask yourself: “Debit or credit, ma’am?”

Keep a choice collection of cards

The fact remains that in this society we need a credit profile to be eligible to obtain credit for purchasing big ticket items, like a home. This can easily be achieved with a few credit cards, not scores of them. The major cards, such as MasterCard, Visa, American Express, are more likely to offer lower finance charges than the credit cards that retail stores offer. And remember: pay them off when the monthly statement comes in. Ask yourself before you buy: “Can I pay this off in a month?”

Educate your children (and your inner child) about money

Teach your children that the credit card did not fall off the money tree, and that you don’t have one of those in your backyard. While we want to give our children every advantage in life, it’s up to us to discern what they need to be whole people vs. what we want them to have for our own selfish or insecure reasons. Ask yourself if this purchase will truly benefit their mental, physical or spiritual development?

As the credit card industry gets more malicious and technologically advanced, we need to know how to rise to the top of this financial world, and stay there.

“A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children…” Proverbs 13:22