Letting Go of Temptation: No More Credit Cards

I start every post by stating the purpose of this blog, which is to keep myself accountable for paying off my student loans in 13 months and inspire others to achieve the new American dream of becoming debt free.

Temptations:

Today I want to focus on TEMPTATIONS! For anyone that's ever gone on a diet or decided to become sober, you know the first step is to get all the junk food and alcohol out of the house.  Seriously, how long do you think you can resist your favorite dessert and bottle of wine, especially after a crappy day at work?  

Leaving my shift like...

And celebrating not going back the next day...

Why even have those things in the house if you know you can't have them? Now let's apply this concept to money.  

Instead of a diet, you're putting your money on a budget. You're telling your money where you want it to go, instead of your money telling you. So what good are your 15 credit cards and amazon prime going to do you if your money is on a diet, especially around the holidays?  That just spells financial trouble. That's equivalent to keeping a chocolate cake in the fridge on day one of Whole30!  

We all know how that's going to end. 

That was definitely me and sunflower butter when I was about 2 weeks into Whole30 because it was the closest thing to sugar that I could find in the house.  My husband calls it my "sad ice cream."

Letting Go:

With this new minimalism mindset, I set a date to start removing spending temptations from my life.  As you may know, I'm on a shopping ban, which has been surprisingly easy and simple to implement in my life. The truth is I'm too busy with school to even think about shopping but then again, there's always Amazon Prime.  

One minute I'm studying and the next my brain is like, "you need this super random thing and you need it now!" 

Like this thing...

It's a bird feeder to entertain my cats. What cat lady doesn't want one of these? Well, good thing there's Amazon Prime.  It can solve all your wants, desires, and needs and Amazon can even do it by tomorrow!

The truth is I actually need very little to be happy and even though the things I purchase may provide some happiness, it's only temporary.  In fact, research shows that happiness generated from experiences, like going to Hawaii, far outlive the positive feelings you experience when you purchase something new. 

There are plenty of things I've bought that are now a source of dissatisfaction in my life, like my phone that has a crack in the screen or the Fitbit that causes me to have an allergic reaction when I wear it.  When I made these purchases I had a momentary shopping high but now I don't use them or they generate negative emotions.  I'm sure you may even have a few of those items in your closet collecting dust. 

Back when I'd buy new clothes and makeup, the new item would make me feel prettier and more confident but as the newness wore off I became disappointed with how I looked in that same shirt.  This prompted the cycle to start all over again.  The shopping ban helped break the cycle and allowed me to discover what is truly important and what I'm willing to let go of so someone else could get value from what I no longer do.  

I've also learned ways to feel happier and better about myself without having to constantly buy new stuff because let's face it, it's an infinite trap of never having enough. Think of all the energy, time, and money that goes into having the best facial products, makeup, good-looking hair, the latest fashion, and technology.  It's all wrapped up in not being good enough and trying to look good for everyone else, which by the way nobody notices all your efforts.  Want to know why?  Because everyone else is too busy being focused on trying to be good enough and looking good to notice or think about you. 

"Spending money you don't have to buy things you don't need to impress people you don't like."  

-The Minimalists

Here's an inspiring video with Rachel Cruz and The Minimalists on letting go of stuff and living with less.  

Closing Accounts:

Letting go has become a theme in my life lately, and I decided to bring this mindset to certain temptations that were still present in my life and getting in the way of what is important and what I'm committed to.  

With this new mindset, I canceled all of my credit cards, except for one, and all my store cards, including Ulta and Loft, in addition to my Amazon Prime account.  In total, I closed 9 accounts and made $300 doing it. I literally got paid to cancel my credit cards! Amazing, right?  I had a couple of cards with cash and rewards points so when I closed the accounts I requested that the cash and rewards be transferred to my bank account.  I ended up transferring that money to my "fun money" account to be used for future travel.  

So why keep any credit cards?  That's a personal decision.  For me, I decided to keep my USAA military credit card because it provides exclusive military benefits that add value to my life, especially when it comes to traveling.  Nothing is ever a guarantee in the military, including vacation time.  Such benefits are a big deal when you're in the military because you never know when your boss will be like, "yeah, that vacation you've been planning for the past six months, it's not going to happen now."  

Every day in the military is like...

My only response.

In my dreams! It's more like...

It's only been a few days but I've already noticed my spending has decreased since I closed these accounts. Going from 10 accounts to only 1 credit card has also significantly decreased my stress level.  That was 9 too many accounts to keep track of and as busy as I am, it was only a matter of time before I missed a payment on at least one.  Not to mention the added stress of having to monitor for fraudulent charges on 10 different accounts. 

It was also easy to spread out lots of little chargers over several accounts and it appear as if I wasn't spending a lot of money but I was only deluding myself because these charges added up quickly.  The spreadsheets don't lie! I was making $200 to $400 monthly payments in credit card charges alone.  Now with just one credit card, I'm more mindful of my spending and I'm much more effective at catching and cutting out those monthly subscriptions that were eating up my budget.  

So whether it's a diet, sobriety, or becoming debt free, set yourself up for success.  

Right now for me, that means not having access to certain things in my life that aren't in line with my values, beliefs, and what I'm committed to. I like what the Minimalists say regarding letting go, which is "it's not about deprivation." Instead, it's about getting rid of the things and stuff that don't matter so I can make room in my life for the things that do.  So if I decide not having Amazon Prime in my life is causing me to feel deprived then I can add it back but you don't know what you can live without until you try living without it.    

You don't know what you can live without until you try living without it.

Student Loan Update:

And the new balance is...

How I did it:

1. I lived on only 38% of my income. The rest went to my student loans. Aka I had a high savings rate. To learn how to do this I recommend Mr. Money Mustache, The Mad Fientist podcast, and BiggerPockets Money podcast. (Don't know how to listen to podcasts?  Follow these instructions.)
2. Everything in savings went to my student loans, except for the $1000 emergency fund.
3. Liquidated all investments, except for retirement savings accounts.
4. Want more on how I did it? Go to my latest post about how I'm living on $20K per year in San Diego.

Steps to Become Debt Free:

1. Create a budget. 

2. Track your spending.

3. Learn to live with less.

4. Shopping Ban.

5. Crush debt (learn about the debt snowball).

6. Go to my resource page for additional guidance and inspiration.

Watch this inspiring video on money to get started!

Me celebrating the actions I've taken today towards my soon to be debt free future...