If you are looking to get more rewards from your credit card and use it for things that will indeed benefit you, you should read this. Let me share with you how I have managed to receive cash as a reward for using my credit cards while building a strong credit history that has made other banks call me to offer me their benefits. And furthermore, let me advise you on how to use your credit card in worthwhile experiences that will let you make more money.
1. Earning money with credit cards instead of paying interests (in Mexico)
There is a broad variety of credit cards in the Mexican market, their rewards come in many ways as earning points to change them for a variety of products from a catalogue, discounts in several establishments or 2×1 promotions in airplane tickets. But in my experience I always want to receive more money and I also don’t like the idea of choosing between products in a catalogue because that reduces my options.
This is why I chose to have two cards from CityBanamex:
- Bsmart: it gives me 7% of points in fuel, mobile and land telephone, and GYM and 5% in all other purchases. Furthermore, all Tuesdays there could be a top of 50% of points in fuel (I keep this card to do all my fuel purchases)
- Gold: it gives me 9% of points in fuel, mobile and land telephone, and GYM and 7% in all other purchases.
So how much is a point? 10 points are $1 MXN, so lets say I spend $600 MXN in fuel on a Tuesday with my Bsmart, it means I will receive 50% in points = 300 points that will be translated into $30 MXN, which I can withdraw from the ATM in cash.
*I have both cards in “Paquete Banamex” so each month I spend at least $1,000 MXN and each quarter I’m reimbursed for the annuity I paid at the beginning.
*I always pay each month the total quantity I have spent so I never pay interests.
At the end of the year I use the credit cards for free and receive extra money.
2. Invest in yourself: use your credit card in worthwhile experiences
Thinking in credit cards or loans, and thinking in general in life if you want to make more money you have to invest in yourself; invest in education and worthwhile experiences that will let you generate more money. The problem with credit cards is that sometimes people use them to buy unnecessary products or services that will only give them a momentary satisfaction.
Think about life as an investment, the usual path everyone follows is to assist to school to receive education, why? to learn the necessary knowledge and skills to work in a company or even better start their own business, why? to have money (one of many reasons).
The more knowledge and skills we acquire that better we will do in our jobs or in our own businesses and the more money we will make. Looking at this as an investment project, it doesn’t matter if we had the opportunity to assist to a public or private school, if we spent less money and managed to learn the specific set of skills to get a good job and excel on it, the better our investment will have been, because we will have made more with less. I’m not saying public or private schools are better but in any activity we do, if we make the best of it and acquire personal development, at the end we will have made a better investment.
What you need, what will make you develop and what you want
Following these ideas, not only knowledge but enriching experiences will bring us more benefits. This is why I want to suggest you that if you are thinking to use a credit card, use it first for things you need (basics for living), then for things that will let you develop and at the end things you want. If you do this at the beginning, in the future it will be backwards, you will first buy things that you want because you already have the others.
Consequently, I suggest you to read the next posts in the order that they appear. They will be good investments and some of them will actually let you save money instead of spend it.
Great post, I liked what you wrote about invest in yourself, it’s the best way to make more money at the end!