Habits of successful people - How to be responsible

We all make mistakes, but a responsible person takes responsibility for what they do.  They take responsibility, and they make it right. Your life is what it is because of who you are.  Everything in your life exists because of you, because of your behavior, words, and actions. Being self-reliant helps you build trust in yourself and helps decrease the fear of acting on opportunities alone. 

    Think about a basketball coach; when his team loses, he takes responsibility for the loss even though he wasn't actually playing in the game.  He does this because he is the leader, and to be an effective leader, you have to take responsibility and set an example. Like they say in the movie Spider-Man, "With great power comes great responsibility."  You'll never have success or power if you don't take responsibility for things.     

    Consider the interpersonal relationships in your life.  These are relationships with neighbors, friends, loved ones, co-workers or anyone else with whom you share something in common.  We have breakups and a variety of disagreements with people. Even in the most obvious situations where you may not have any responsibility for something that may have gone wrong, take responsibility.  This is a character trait of world-class performers. Relationships are all 50/50, so without at least two people involved, a relationship wouldn't exist. As long as you were associated with something, then you had some influence over the situation.  Not accepting responsibility for things robs you of the opportunity to learn and grow as a person.

    If you think about an X partner and consider the reasons why you broke up, such as she was too jealous.  If you just accept it as a fact that the other person deserves 100% of the blame, then you’re always going to find fault in other people and never look at yourself.  Instead, you should self-analyze the situation and say to yourself: “OK she was jealous, but I wasn’t at home very much. On top of that, I worked with a lot of attractive women, and I had lunch with them every day.”  Maybe, if you try to go out with this person again or with your next girlfriend, you should try to see things from her point of view. Try to understand the situation better rather than just dismiss it as her fault. Dismissing everything as someone else’s fault will weaken you.

 

For more entrepreneurship tips, check out my latest Amazon book.

How to Become Rich and Successful. The Secret of Success and the Habits of Successful People.: Entrepreneurship and Developing Entrepreneur Characteristics

 

TOP 5 travel packing tips - Travel tips on how to pack light

There are two types of travelers, those that pack light and those that wish they had packed light.  Think things through pack carefully, organize, and you’ll be able to leave on a two-week vacation with a small duffle bag and a shoulder bag.  Or my favorite option, one backpack, and no check-in baggage.

 

1. Security

The less you hand over to others to handle for you, the fewer issues related to theft, damage, or misrouting you’re going to have.  The more bags you carry, the more risk of airline staff or other passengers taking items out of your pockets, bed bugs or other parasites hitching a ride home with you, or even having your belongings destroyed by weather.

    On a trip to South America, the airline lost my bags.  I called phone numbers, mailed in paperwork, and never received any compensation or acknowledgment of my items being lost.  Everyone wants to feel safe about packing away their valuables and loading them into a plane, but the reality is that human error exists, and inevitably, your bags can get lost. The experience can really ruin a pre or post-trip experience.  In most cases, you have almost no recourse.

    After that experience, I tried travel insurance and coincidentally lost more luggage.  I was asked to fill out lots of paperwork and provide itemized receipts of the items in my bags.  I did not have the original store receipts for the things I purchased, so I received no reimbursement.

    If you’d like to have the opportunity to pick through and buy items that other people have lost in their luggage, check out the “Unclaimed Baggage Center” unclaimedbaggage.com.  Located in Scottsboro, Alabama, they specialize in selling unclaimed or lost items from airports.

 

2. Save Money

    Make traveling more accessible by cutting your costs. You can avoid checked baggage fees, excess baggage weight fees, carts to haul your stuff around, and paying porters. It’ll be easier for you to take public transportation (like airport personnel does), rather than shuttles, limos, Uber, and (scam-prone) taxis.  Or you can just walk and enjoy having more contact with locals.

  I recently booked a trip through a budget airline from Los Angeles, California to Reykjavik, Iceland to Stockholm, Sweden, back to Reykjavik, and then back to Los Angeles. The flight should have cost over $2000, but I paid only $350 with taxes and fees included.  The only catch: I could not check in any bags, and if I did, I would have had to pay $50 per pack per each segment of the flight. Therefore, if I had checked in my backpack, I would have had to pay $200 extra to transport it on four parts of flights. If I were to check in two bags, I would have been paying more in bags than I did for my entire trip.

    If you are traveling somewhere where the weather is cold, then you will need to bring high-quality and lightweight clothing for cold weather. To avoid the baggage fee, I wore my clothes three layers thick. I removed the metal support bars from my backpack, so I could fold it up and fit it into the sample carry-on luggage bin.  Once on the plane, you can remove the extra clothes, put them back into your backpack, and place in the overhead.

 

3. Mobility

    Less stuff means greater mobility, faster online check-in, you don’t have to arrive early to check in your luggage, and you get to avoid waiting in line for the check-in counter.  If you miss a flight, it’s delayed, wish to be switched to an earlier flight, or a seat opens up on standby you’re going to have more options since you’re not constrained by luggage.  If you had luggage, you’re going to have fewer of these opportunities, because most of the time there is not enough time to find your bags. 

    When you arrive at your destination without a bunch of bags, you can just get off the plane, go without having to wait in baggage claim, avoid having to wait in line for customs, and be the first to leave the airport.  With one bag carrying only necessities, you will have less luggage to lug around and less chance of your luggage getting lost, damaged or stolen in transit. Occasionally the plane may be oversold and you’ll have the opportunity to sell your airplane seat by volunteering to be "bumped" on full flights, or you can travel for free as an air courier.

     Once you leave the airport, you can board trains, trams, and buses with ease.  If you don’t like the hotel you’re at, you can walk down the street and find a better one at a lower price.  Without the pressure of dragging your bags around. 

 

4. Tranquility

    Luggage is baggage, the more you pack, the more it will weigh you down physically and mentally.  Packing less will save you the energy that you don’t have to expend packing and hauling items around.  You’ll be able to relax your mind always knowing where your stuff is, not having to spend extra time packing, not having to worry about someone taking your stuff, or leaving it behind.  Because everything will be with you. Going to a new place can be challenging as you figure out an unfamiliar environment. A person who packs less will have fewer unnecessary things to worry about, and more time to focus on having fun traveling. 

    On a trip back from Peru, I was told I had too many carry-on items, so I started stuffing my check-in luggage with carry-on items to save on fees, and the airline staff commented on how beautiful my souvenirs were.  When I arrived back to Los Angeles, all of my souvenirs had been plucked from my bags despite my having TSA approved locks on them! The locks had been opened, and after my relics were stolen, they locked them up again.  This means it was an airport worker who took my stuff. I had some souvenirs that I was very excited about bringing home and losing them was very upsetting. But, the experience reminded me that the material things I bring back from trips are not essential and can be easily damaged or stolen anywhere.  You’re better off not expending the time and effort on carrying material things around. Instead, enjoy the experience, rest your mind, and bring home the memories instead.  

    Traveling light allows you to focus your mind on your spiritual development and thinking about what's essential in your life.

 

5. Environment

    One of the most enormous benefits of traveling light are the benefits to the planet.  When you're buying, consuming, and transporting around less stuff. That’s going to require less fuel, create less trash, and do less damage to the environment.  The more environmentally responsible we are, the better off the planet is going to be for everyone to enjoy now and in the future.

    While on trips in southern Mexico, Africa, South America, and Asia, you could see the rainforest being slashed and burned in front of your eyes every day.  One year, I went to Chiapas in southern Mexico and had to drive 6 hours through lush jungle to reach the pyramids. Two years later I returned, and the drive had been reduced to 3 hours.  The rest of the forest had been replaced with palm oil plantations. This was a stark reminder of how fast the world is changing because of humans.

    We all have an impact on the planet, just try to minimize it as much as you can.  The clothes I bring with me on my trips are usually from thrift stores. The money you spend in thrift stores goes to helping and rehabilitating disabled people.  The clothes themselves can be used as gifts for homeless people or for those whom I see committing random acts of kindness.

 

For more travel information and hacks, check out my latest Amazon book.

How to Travel the World and Live with No Regrets.: Learn How to Travel for Free, Find Cheap Places to Travel, and Discover Life-Changing Travel Destinations. (Cheap Flights Book 1)

 

Top 5 Excuses Not to Travel That Must Be Conquered

1. If you don’t speak the native language, you’ll end up starving, homeless, and suffering anywhere outside of your country.

    I can remember meeting a friend from Los Angeles, in Spain, who is bilingual in English and Spanish but refused to leave Spain and explore the rest of Europe because he did not speak the language.  He ended up staying behind in Spain, while I traveled to Italy and on to the rest of Europe for a few months.

    Almost every major city in the world and every major tourist destination has English speaking people working at tourist destinations.  English is the universal language, and people around the world want to cash in on opportunities to work and travel abroad. Without English, you’d be very limited, no matter where you go, whether it’s for travel or for work.  The internet and globalization have only helped to speed up this process of making English the world language. 

    Remember, there are 7.5 billion people on this planet.   Traveling is a business, and people everywhere depend on it for income.  So wherever you can think to go, there is already infrastructure in place for travelers.  I met a 14-year-old boy from Japan at a youth hostel, who was traveling alone in Mexico. I hung out with him for a few days, just to see if he was really alone and he really was.  His parents sent him traveling for the summer, so he could learn some life skills. He was brilliant and mature for a 14-year-old, something I’m sure developed from traveling alone.

2. Foreigners hate me for my race, religion, or nationality.

    A Jewish friend of mine was worried about traveling through Mexico with me because he was orthodox and thought people would not accept him.  The truth is most people have their own lives to worry about and are not going to invest their time trying to make you feel unwelcome. He ended up going on the trip and he had the journey of his life.

    During President George Bush years, several of my American friends would not travel abroad with me, because they were worried about backlash due to the unpopular Iraq war.  I even met Americans abroad that would say they were Canadian to deflect any ill will. I’ve traveled through the worst and the best of times all around the world, and I’ve never hidden who I am, and I have never had a problem. 

    Ignorance is everywhere in the world, so don’t add to it.  There is always going to be someone who is angry at their situation and wants to take it out on someone else.  This should not deter you, this is everyone’s planet, and it’s here for us to share. I am a Los Angeles Lakers basketball fan, does that mean I should not go to the Golden State Warriors game? 

    I always treat people with courtesy and respect, and they treat me the same way.  This is the same everywhere, if you find people are not being friendly to you, then maybe you need to be nicer.  In the end, remember wherever you go, you can always come back home if you’re not comfortable wherever you are.

 

3. Everything is expensive when you travel.

    You're going to have tradeoffs everywhere you travel to in the world.  If you compare two cities, such as Washington D.C. and Paris. In Washington D.C., most of the best museums like the Smithsonian museums and monuments such as the Lincoln Memorial are free.  While in Paris the Louvre is around twenty dollars and most of the top museums charge an entrance fee. If you want to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower, it’s about thirty dollars. But the wine, baguettes, and art are going to be the best in the world at the best prices.  The subway system is also much easier to use and affordable.  

    No matter where you’re going, you’re going to be spending on things you usually wouldn’t.  That’s part of the travel experience your paying to see something new. Like paying to go to the movies and see the latest Avengers movie or buying a burrito at the new Mexican restaurant down the street.

    The flight is usually your most significant expense.  But you can make it up in other ways during your trip.  You can save on accommodations, food, alcohol, and entertainment.  If you make adjustments, you can live the same anywhere you go. In the Czech Republic, the beer is some of the best in the world, and it's cheaper than water.  I ate a lot of eggs, dairy, and bread at home as they were very inexpensive there. When I traveled on to Greece, those items were expensive, but olives, cheese, and tomatoes were a good deal.  So I changed my diet and ate as the locals did.

    Try to live as much like a local as you can, this will give you a better experience and save you money.  Avoid hotels and use Craigslist to find rooms or apartments for rent at a much lower price than even Airbnb.  As you interact with the locals, ask them where the best places to eat and visit are. These places are usually less expensive and give you a more traditional experience.  Use the bus or ride the subway, instead of Uber.

    One more thing to keep in mind is that traveling is usually cheaper than staying home.  When I calculate my rent ($1500), food ($400), car ($300 gas only), and all my other expenses,  I usually end up paying around $2800 per month, and that only covers all my basic living expenses.  I have never spent more than that amount for a month worth of travel. I know that it can be done very quickly, even if you don’t make an effort to save on your trip.  But I am not trying to spend all my hard-earned cash in one place. I'm trying to make the most of it and enjoy it as much as I can. For some useful strategies to build income for traveling check out the books; How to Become Rich and Successful. The Secret of Success and the Habits of Successful People or How to Become Rich and Successful: Creative Ways to Make Money with a Side Hustle.

 

4. You’ll miss out on activities with family and friends at home.

    Sure, you’ll miss out on some activities or events at home, but you’ll be making your own experiences abroad.  When you’re back in town, you’ll have a lot more stories and experiences to share with everyone else. Plus you can always do video calls or sending videos of you singing happy birthday.  Those tend to be unforgettable.

 

5. What if I get sick or something happens to me while I’m traveling. 

    Healthcare is inexpensive everywhere in the world except in the USA.  I pay $400 a month for my health insurance coverage in the USA. When I travel, I buy travel health insurance for $56 a month with better coverage, including a medivac plane back to the USA from anywhere on the planet.  So it’s much cheaper to get insured or have medical treatment anywhere in the world outside the USA. 

    One of my friends went to Spain for the running of the bulls and broke her hip.  She ended up needing hip surgery and being hospitalized for two weeks. When she got out of the hospital, she was worried about the medical bills, and she was billed $80 for everything.

    My 84-year-old aunt and her 68-year-old boyfriend wanted to go to Argentina, so her boyfriend could visit his 94-year-old mom after not seeing her for 40 years.  Their main concern was “what if we get sick and die?’. My response was, “Even more reason to go.” Carpe Diem, getting sick and dying is more reason to travel and do what you’ve dreamed of.  You’re never too old to travel. You don’t want to go out with regrets. 

    As for crime or terrorism, worrying unnecessarily about this is what stops most people from traveling. Unfortunately, after the attacks on September 11, television ratings were through the roof as people were glued to their televisions hoping to see the information that would keep them safe.  The news channels caught on and started using fear to keep people watching their televisions, watching commercials, and generating more revenue for the networks.  

    I remember watching the news and the weather forecaster saying there was rain coming.  Those days are gone, now all we hear is “storm” coming. It’s the same thing but rebranded into something that will catch your attention much more and cause you to stay glued to the television and help boost the television station’s ratings. 

    When you turn on the news, sure you’ll see some bad news, that’s what sells.  But again there are 7.5 billion of us, and things are going to happen, and they happen everywhere, just the same.  So don’t be fooled by the overgeneralization that the world is unsafe, it’s just the opposite.

Advantages of having a credit card

Credit cards can be considered an asset for the 80+% of households that have at least one card. Although there is the possibility of overspending and getting stuck with very high-interest charges, if used responsibly, credit cards can be considered a financial tool. Some of the benefits include: earning rewards, theft protection, travel benefits, building credit, paying for emergencies or unplanned expenses, low-cost short term loans, accounting, and consumer protection.

In my experience, credit card companies are also very flexible when it comes to waiving late fees, annual fees, lowering your annual percentage rate (APR), lower charges for balance transfers, and extending grace periods when needed. There is a lot of competition for credit card customers, so credit card companies are willing to negotiate when you need them to. Some of the credit card advantages include:

1. Earning Rewards.
Credit cards offer you discounts at certain stores, travel deals, cash back, and rewards. The points or rewards programs can be used to buy gift cards, gifts, trips, or free hotels. I have a card I use for different items. I use one card for buying groceries that offers 5% back, one for
purchasing gasoline that offers 4% back, one for travel purchases that offer 10% back, one that gives me 3% back on purchases made at Costco, and another for general purchases that give 2% back on everything. I was awarded over $10,000 in free hotel credit with my Orbitz Rewards Visa over four years. I was able to stay for free everywhere I went just for using my credit card to make the purchases I was already making.

2. Theft Protection
If your credit card or credit card number is stolen online, it’s generally easy to get the money back once you report it to the credit card company. Most credit cards offer a zero liability coverage policy for theft protection. Credit cards also have controls in place to prevent fraud. If they see unusual purchases, they can block your account, send you emails, text messages, or make phone calls to help stop the theft from occurring. You can also monitor your online account for purchases you did not make. I've had my credit numbers stolen online several
times and my banks always found out before I did. The bank’s fraud protection unit handled everything and I wasn’t responsible for any of the charges. The fraud protection offered by credit cards is one advantage over a debit card. When I lost my ATM card and my bank account was cleaned out, it took longer for the bank to investigate and recover my money. Also, my autopayments started bouncing because my account was frozen resulting in late payments, and inability to make payments from my account.

3. Travel Benefits
Using credit cards while traveling can save you money over using the local currency. Credit card companies give you the best exchange rates available for purchase, and as long as you have a credit card that does not charge the 3% conversion fee, the exchange rate you get on your card is always better than the banks. You also won't have to pay conversion fees or commissions charged by currency change houses for converting your money to the local currency.
Hotels and car rental companies often charge a deposit for using their services. Most will accept a credit card number in place of leaving a sum of cash which allows you to hold onto the money in case you need to spend it. You are therefore increasing your cash on hand. Another benefit is free accident insurance, trip interruption and cancellation protection, and rental car insurance when you travel. I rented a car in South Africa which sustained over four thousand dollars in damages. My Visa credit card insurance covered the damages, and I paid a few hundred for a deductible.

3. Building Credit.
Using credit cards to build your credit history is the easiest and most effective way to do so since credit card companies report to the credit agencies every month. By using your credit cards to build up your credit score, you can make it easier for yourself to buy houses, cars, or take out loans. Use your credit cards regularly, pay them off monthly, and on time to help increase your credit score with the credit agencies. Doing so will make it much easier to borrow money at a reasonable interest rate when you need it. On the other hand, if you don't manage your credit cards properly or make late payments, then you will be denied for all of the previously mentioned loans and you’ll be paying much higher interest rates. I have multiple credit cards, and I try to spend about twenty dollars each month on each card and pay it off in full at the end of the month. This allows me to keep asking for credit line increases which can be used when needed on business deals.

4. Paying for Emergencies or Unplanned Expenses.
If something comes up unexpectedly anywhere in the world, a credit card can almost always get you out of any jam whether you're helping yourself or someone else. They are a great resource to have at your disposal if you're traveling and you don't have any local currency or can't convert the currency you do have. I've also had situations where I’ve had to help a family member or friend who was traveling abroad. Credit cards have a reach to just about anywhere on the planet as merchants will take payments online or over the phone. The credit card is also very convenient as it can cover unplanned expenses without having to search for a checkbook, run to a bank for cash, or have to pull out money from an ATM if you're in an unsafe situation.

5. Low-Cost Short Term Loans.
Credit cards allow you to increase your purchasing power by making money available to you before you have it. Let’s say you're on a two-week vacation and you have $1,000 to spend on your trip. When you check into your hotel they require a deposit of $100. When you rent
your car they want a $200 deposit. Because you had to pay $300 deposit for the car and hotel, you'll only have seven hundred dollars left to spend on your trip. If you had a credit card, the hotel and the rental car company would accept the credit card credit line as a deposit, which would leave you with all of your $1000 to spend if you needed it on your trip. If you decide you want to extend your trip for another week, but your paycheck isn't going to be available for another week. You can use your credit card to cover all of your additional expenses and you'll have at least another thirty days of an interest-free loan on your card. Credit cards increase your purchasing power by allowing you to spend money before you have earned it.

6. Accounting.
Credit cards subdivide your yearly expenses into spending categories by providing monthly and annual summaries — an excellent resource to help you analyze your spending for budgeting or when it is tax time. Many of the credit card websites even allow you to import the spending data into your tax or accounting software. I've had situations where I was robbed or had court cases where I needed to show receipts for items that were stolen or damaged. The problem was that I had bought the items years ago and I didn't have the receipts, or they were faded, and I could no longer use them. I was able to go online and go back several years onto my credit card statements and find the purchases on my accounts. The IRS and the courts will accept these statements as receipts for items.

7. Consumer Protection.
Credit card companies have sway in the marketplace because of their size, so when you get into problems with a purchase, they can help you get out of it. Credit cards will help you get your money back for defective products if you buy something and the price drops in ninety days they will refund the difference, dispute charges, and extended product warranties. I bought a bed in the reduced section at Ikea that was nonrefundable because of the markdown. I asked the sales agent if I could open the box to inspect it and he said no because the item was brand new and it was on clearance simply because it was a discontinued model. I thought I was getting a brand new bed that was marked down. When I got home and opened the brand original box to assemble the bed, I found that the bed had been used and the parts in the box where broken. I returned the box to IKEA, and they said they could not do anything for me, and I was out of luck. I spoke to the manager and received a similar answer. So I called my credit card on the spot, and they told me over the phone to leave the bed there with the manager whose name they asked for and walk away. I did, and I was credited for the full purchase price and Ikea never even disputed it. Whenever you're misled or purchased something faulty, the credit cards can help you in disputes.

If you're not disciplined, the convenience of credit cards can also be a disadvantage. It's effortless to overspend and get stuck trying to get out from under the high-interest rates that credit cards charge. So keep in mind that a credit card can be your friend if appropriately used if not they can be your worst enemy, and the damage to your credit can have lifelong consequences.

These were my top 7 credit card advantages. For more credit card information, check out my latest Amazon book.

How to Boost Your Credit Score Range and Make Money With Credit Cards.: How to Repair Your Credit With Credit Repair Strategies. (Entrepreneurship Book 3)

How to build your credit in 1 month by using your Credit Card statement

How to build your credit in 1 month

To explain this process clearly, we will use one of my credit card statements to explain what the dates mean.

My most recent credit card statement has a billing period of 2/27/19 to 3/26/19. The billing period, the time between 2/27/19 and 3/26/19, is also known as the billing cycle. All of the credit card transactions you make within those 27 days will be billed for that billing cycle/billing period. At the close of this billing cycle which is midnight on 3/26/19, finance charges will be calculated on the balance you owe and added to your account balance. Then your billing statement is prepared and the information is reported to the credit bureaus. My payment due date for this same credit card statement was 4/22/19. That means that everything I bought between 2/27/19 and 3/26/19 will be interest-free until 4/22/19. Whatever balance I don't pay by the payment due date of 4/22/19 will incur interest charges and be added to my balance for next month's statement. This means I have from 3/26/19 to 4/22/19 (27 days) to make my payment for purchases made between 2/27/19 and 3/26/19 (27 days).

Coincidentally both the billing cycle and the payment due date are 27 days with this bank, but that is not always the case. The billing cycle changes every month because the months have different numbers of days.
Your payment is not due until your statement due date which in this example is 4/22/19. If you pay your balance in full by that date, you will not have to pay interest on purchases made during the 2/27/19 - 3/26/19 billing cycle. If you don't pay it in full, you get charged interest by the credit card for borrowing their money. That continues to happen month after month until you pay off your balance.

When I look at my paper statement for this period, I see a balance of $1,000, but when I log onto my online account, I see a balance of $1500. That's because I made another $500 in purchases since my billing cycle closed and it keeps adding to my balance. At this point, only the $1000 is incurring interest, and the $500 would be interest-free for now.

These dates are all important because they affect your credit score and credit history. You would want to pay off your account balances by 3/26/19. So that nothing is reported on your credit card statement or to the credit bureau. That way you can use the credit card and carry the balance between 2/27/19 - 3/26/19, but not have it reported. This is important if you're trying to keep your balances low to improve your credit utilization ratio, improve your credit score, get approved for a loan, or get good loan terms. When you get your statement, you'll see the transactions, but the account will show a zero balance because you paid the $1000 off before it could be posted on your statement and reported to the credit bureaus.

Your credit card statement doesn't usually include the upcoming closing date. The billing cycles vary each month in length so you can get an approximation using your previous reports. In the example above, the billing cycle was 27 days and it closed on 3/26/19. The new billing cycle will start 3/27/19 and close on approximately 4/22/19. You would want to pay for all the purchases you made between 3/27/19-4/22/19 to avoid balances getting reported to the credit bureaus and affecting your credit history and score. If you're not worried about your credit history or credit score, you would have until the new payment due date of 5/22/19. The payment due date does not change and will be on the same day every month. i.e., 4/22/19, 5/22/19, 6/22/19, 7/22/19, etc.

How to improve your credit score in 24 HOURS!

How to improve your credit score in 24 HOURS!

Changes on your credit accounts sometimes take 30-60 days to be reflected on your credit report. If you discover adverse history on your credit report during a loan application, you can correct the wrong information, then provide the lender with proof that you corrected the problem. If you paid down debt you can also provide proof of payment to the lender. Some lenders can run mock-up credit scenarios with the information you provide.

Another technique is Rapid Rescoring which costs about $25 to $30 per account to correct errors in 24 to 72 hours. Once you send in all the paperwork for the correction, it is forwarded to the credit bureaus and the corrections are made in less than 3 days. If you’re in a time crunch and don’t have months to fix an error, this is the fastest way to make corrections.

Which debt should you pay that would have the most impact on your credit score? Here are some examples to consider:

1. Paying off a $500 debt which has gone to collections can drop your FICO score from 615 to 580. Although the debt is old, when you make a payment, the collection date will be updated to the date you paid. It will appear as a recent debt, which causes a drop in your credit score. Some lenders may force you to pay off bad debts in order to get a loan, unfortunately, paying off those debts will drop your credit score.

2. Paying off a $300,000 mortgage loan will increase your FICO score from 680 to 685. Paying off large installment debts will have little impact on your credit score.

3. Paying off a $3000 credit card debt will increase your FICO score from 630 to 670. Paying off revolving debt has the most impact on your credit score. Even if it’s not a very large debt the revolving debt payoff would be the best route to go if you're trying to improve your credit score fast.

Generally, it takes consistency over time to build up your credit. It takes being persistent with paying all of your bills on time, managing your credit utilization ratio, and using a mix of credit types. Having someone add you as an authorized user on their credit cards is the fastest way to improve credit, with results showing in as little as two weeks. To get results this quickly, you have to make sure you are added to their account before the statement closing date, rather than the due date. The statement closing date is when the credit card reports your information to the credit bureaus, while the due date which is usually a few weeks after is when you have to make your payment to avoid late fees.

 

For more credit card information, check out my latest Amazon book.

How to Boost Your Credit Score Range and Make Money With Credit Cards.: How to Repair Your Credit With Credit Repair Strategies. (Entrepreneurship Book 3)

How to get credit limit increase and get more credit cards

On existing credit cards ask for a credit limit increase (CLI), every six months. If you plan on applying for a loan soon, ask that they make a soft credit inquiry so they "don't pull your credit report" and it won't count against you. A hard credit inquiry pulls your credit report from the credit bureaus and lowers your credit score. The keys to achieving a good result are:

1. Demonstrate a need for a higher limit.

Make large purchases or take out balance transfer offers on your card to show that you have enough expenses to max out the limit. The bank will usually ask why you need a credit limit increase, and you should say something that demands a large amount of capital. A common reason is to say that you need to remodel your house.

2. If your credit limit is increased, demonstrate that you can afford to pay for a higher credit line.

The bank will ask you about your income. You can project your expected income including your W-2 wages, 1099 wages, your spouse/partner income (If you live together), and any other side ventures you have. I had a PNC credit card with a $11k credit limit. I told the bank that I needed the CLI to remodel a house, and that I expected to flip three houses this year, earning $30k/ea (reasonable). So I added the potential earnings plus the $90k that I planned to make this year and reported the total to PNC as income. They increased my limit to $50k. Banks like to see an income of at least 75,000 – 90,000 annually.

3. Demonstrate excitement about the card.

Tell the bank that you're currently using bank XYZ's card because it has a higher limit but that you hope to increase bank ABC's limit to make it the "only card in your wallet". The bank should then be motivated to at least match your highest card limit.

4. When the bank asks what credit limit you're requesting, ask for $50k limit or the highest that they can approve you for that day.

5. Banks also like to see stability with rental history and job employment going back at least seven years.

6. In my experience, even with a high credit score I usually get denied credit cards when I look for them and apply without being offered the card. I have over a 75% success rate applying for credit card offers that are explicitly sent to me in the mail with offer codes or as offers when I sign into my credit card accounts to make payments. Your credit card companies sell your information, so others can make soft credit inquiries about you and determine that you would be the right candidate for their products.

The credit card companies study metrics from your consumer information, also known as selection criteria, and determine who to send offers to. The selection criteria can include hundreds of variables that help credit cards get new cardholders at the lowest cost. The first metric they study is the response rate, which is the percentage of consumers who will actually respond to the credit card offers. The second is the activation rate, the percentage of consumers who will actually activate the credit card offer. Third the profit and loss, which includes the profit and loss, minus any costs the credit card can expect to make off from you.

Based on these factors the credit card may select 1,000,000 consumers to target and would expect to get maybe 5000 new cardholders out of this group. The credit card will then contact a professional mail house and have them mail you the credit card offers in the mail. So when you get these offers you've already been pre-approved for the credit card, right? Not exactly, it’s a marketing trick. You’re not already approved, but the marketing companies want you to think so. This way you’ll take the time to fill out the application. However, you do fit into some of the metrics that the bank is searching for so you do have a higher probability of being approved. You’re just not yet “pre-approved” which makes you think you’ve already been approved.

Tip, if you subscribe to high-end magazines such as Forbes, Money, or Travel and Leisure you’re more likely to get pre-approved offers from high-end credit cards.

For more credit card information, check out my latest Amazon book.

How to Boost Your Credit Score Range and Make Money With Credit Cards.: How to Repair Your Credit With Credit Repair Strategies. (Entrepreneurship Book 3)

How do credit card companies make money

The credit card business is a very lucrative business that provides many options for banks to make money from consumers. The credit card business offers the highest earnings of all other commercial bank activities. There are ten ways credit card companies make money:

1. Annual Fees.



Some banks charge a yearly fee for the opportunity to use their credit cards. This fee varies by bank, your credit score, and the credit limit on the card. My American Express charges me $89 a year. I usually don't keep cards that charge an annual fee. However, this card gives me benefits that are worth more than $89 a year, so I keep it. Weigh the benefits, and if the benefits don't outweigh the cost then I'd recommend avoiding these types of cards. To avoid annual fees, you can call the credit card issuer every year and tell them you're going to cancel your account. To keep your business, they will usually waive the annual fee if you stay on for another year. Another strategy to avoid annual fees is to ask for an upgrade to a credit card that doesn’t have an annual fee. This way you don’t have to close your account and damage your credit.

2. The sale of enhancements.

Enhancements are insurance products like disability or involuntary unemployment insurance that creditors sell you to help you cover your payments during unforeseen circumstances. I don’t recommend these enhancements as they will only cover your interest payments for a set amount of time. So if you owe $20,000 on your credit card, they would pay for the interest your account is building for up to one year. If presented with the insurance information, should you lose your job or become disabled after the set time period, the creditor may still assist you.

3. Foreign transaction fees.



Foreign transaction fees accumulate every time you use your credit card in a foreign country. Some credit cards will charge you 3% on each transaction. These charges can add up very quickly, so if your planning to go on vacation try to add at least one credit card to your wallet that does not charge foreign transaction fees.

4. Late payments.

Late payments generate revenue in the form of penalty fees up to $38 per late payment. Of course, the plan is never to be late, but sometimes a check bounces, someone doesn't pay you on time, or an unexpected expense happens. If this occurs, call your credit card company, and often, they will waive the late fee as a courtesy.

5. Sale of cardholders information.

Credit card companies make money from commissions by selling cardholder information to other companies that can sell the same cardholders more services and products. This sale of your personal information is what generates all the letters received in the mail for pre-approved credit cards, loans, and other financial products.

6. Interchange fees.



Interchange fees are the fees charged to vendors/retailers every time you purchase something with your credit card. It is the number one revenue source for credit card providers. Retailers are charged 1-4% on every transaction completed for the convenience of the credit card company lending you the money to make the purchase. So even when you pay your credit card bill off in full every month, they still make a profit. Some retailers try to limit their exposure to losing 1-4% of every sale, by charging their customers the fee or only accepting one type of credit card.

7. Interest.

Credit card companies make money from the interest they charge on the debt you have on your credit cards. Credit cards are called revolving credit lines because they allow you to pay what you owe in increments. If you choose to make a partial payment, your balance will be carried forward to the next month's bill, and the interest compounds. Forty-three percent of cardholders in the USA carry balances each month, and the average debt is $6,354, which is $1.02 trillion total revolving debt in the USA.

8. Cash advance fees.

Cash advance fees range from 3-5% for pulling cash out of your credit line. The fee is to make up for the lost interchange fees which are charged by banks when you use your card for purchases. Additionally, cash advances begin accumulating interest immediately instead of the usual 30 day grace period.

9. Over the limit fees.

These are charged when you go over your card's spending limit. The fee is charged for the temporary boost in your credit line. For example, you’ve gone out shopping and spent $900 of your $1000 credit line. Later that night an auto payment for $300 for your gas bill comes through, and now you’re $200 over your credit limit. The bank will extend you the extra credit, but will sometimes charge you for letting you borrow the extra money.

10. Marketing agreements.

Much like a billboard, credit card companies offer companies to place their logo on their cards for a fee or percentage of sales from their customers. An example would be a World Wildlife Fund Visa credit card that has the company’s panda logo on the front of the card.