After not using my credit card for a week, I started to become aware of how much I actually use it and how much money I actually spend. I truly went cold turkey from using a credit card. I didn’t use Venmo, I didn’t use Uber, and I didn’t online-shop for a whole week. Crazy, right? I truly felt like I was going off-the-grid. But I did feel pretty badass carrying around a wad of cash with me.
The Cons
Carrying cash while going out on a Saturday night was a great way to easily pay cover for bars, but too thick to carry in my phone or pocket. Not using Uber on a Saturday night felt strange to me. I had to rely on the kindness of friends to drive me around. Then I had to rely on my legs to make sure I could walk home wearing the most painful shoes in the name of “fashion.” I had a friend to walk home with but it really made me aware of how Uber is much safer than walking. But then again, I got to have a great chat with a friend, get some exercise and save some money. Another struggle was to resist the urge to buy some cute shirts online. It’s so easy to be logged into Amazon Prime and just click a button to buy a shirt that will arrive in two days.
The Pros
By living credit card free, I actually saved more money than I would have in an average week. I could physically see how much money I was using. This made me really pay attention to how much I was handing over to others. Only having cash stopped me from online shopping. Only having cash stopped me for buying useless things at Target because I didn’t want to be the slow person in the checkout line. The best part about having cash was putting it in other purses and forgetting about it. It is the best feeling in the world to find a twenty dollar bill at the bottom of your purse. That is what pure joy feels like.
I now appreciate credit cards and should not complain on how slow the chip takes because counting dollar bills and doing math is slower. However, there is nothing greater than looking into your wallet and seeing multiple twenties. Having cash did keep me more accountable for how much I was spending, but I’m happy to be able to use a credit card again.