Master Your Card

Sometimes debt can get a little larger than we would like. After all, many people turn to credit cards to cover unexpected expenses like car repairs and medical bills, but if you do I right then you’ll get those balances paid off and everything will be back to normal.

For some people, though, debt is perpetual. It’s as if these folks just expect to have a credit card balance, and they don’t really make any sort of plan to get the debt paid off at all. The debt just becomes an annoying member of the family.

How do you pinpoint whether or not you’re one of the people who will forever be in debt if you don’t change your ways? Here are 15 traits of the people who allow debt to become a permanent facet of their lives:

1. Sense of entitlement. These people get the impression that – for one reason or another – they should be entitled to anything their hearts desire. People who live paycheck to paycheck probably shouldn’t be driving brand new cars and carrying designer handbags.

2. Disregard for personal well-being. People who throw their arms up and decide to just let the chips fall where they may probably aren’t paying much attention to their credit card statements. If you don’t take control of your finances, who will?

3. Bad record keeping. Some people just don’t realize how much money they actually owe because they don’t pay attention to their statements. They may assume that the money they send each month goes toward the balance and it’s only a matter of time before everything is paid off, but with interest that’s just not true.

4. Plenty of credit cards. If you have an impressive collection of credit cards in your wallet that rivals anyone you know, there is a good chance that you use them. The more credit cards you have, the more opportunity you have to dig yourself into deeper debt.

5. Not well acquainted with using cash. For some people, carrying cash around seems like a truly foreign concept. Cash seems weird. If every little purchase goes on a credit card, you’re setting yourself up for potential financial problems down the road.

6. Lots of emergencies. Some people just seem to be cursed with one emergency after another. The car breaks down. The cat gets sick. The water heater explodes. When you don’t have an emergency fund in place the only other place to turn is to credit cards, and after a few emergencies your balance can get huge.

7. Series of big life changes. Sometimes a chain of events can put someone in debt and leave them there if they don’t take control of the situation. Getting married, getting divorced, having a baby, and buying a house are all the types of things that can really get someone in deep debt.

8. Keeping up with the Joneses. Your neighbor takes an exotic vacation, so you do too. Your friend buys a glittery necklace, so head to the jewelry store. Stop caring so much about what other people have and instead concentrate on what you can actually afford.

9. Growing up with debt. We learn by example, so if you grow up watching your parents whip out their credit cards every time they go to the store, it’s likely that you’ll do the same thing when you get your hands on your own credit card.

10. Big plans and empty promises. Sometimes you get fed up with your debt and you make big plans to get it paid off, but then you don’t follow through. A big glaring sign that you will stay in debt for some time is when you never follow through on your plans to get it paid off.

11. Juggling credit cards. If you have an extravagant system that you follow where you shuffle your credit card debt from one card to another in order to take advantage of introductory rates and avoid paying interest rates, you’re probably in too deep. Stop looking for a way to beat the system and start paying your debt down.

12. Rewards rule. Some credit card users get to a point where they are more concerned about the rewards points they accumulate for purchases and don’t really look at the bigger picture. Rewards are great, but they shouldn’t be the main reason you splurge when you go to the mall.

13. Misunderstanding of debt management. Maybe you just don’t quite grasp the concept of how to manage your money. If you don’t know the basics about paying credit card bills and maintaining a checking account then you’re not going to have much luck with getting your bills in order.

14. Lack of motivation. If you just don’t care, and if you don’t really have the intention of ever paying off the bills anyhow, then there is a really good chance that you will always be in debt. You may not care, but the debt won’t leave unless you actually pay it off or take legal steps to discharge it.

15. Disorganization. You forgot to pay the Visa bill last month, you went over the limit on your American Express, and where in the world did you leave your MasterCard? Doing things like not making payments on time and exceeding your credit limit will jack up your interest rates and rack up fees, and this is not conducive to ever getting out of debt.

You don’t have to be in perpetual debt. With some knowledge, perseverance, and a little change in attitude, you can get your debt paid off. It’s not easy, but it’s attainable.