{"id":23464,"date":"2011-09-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-09-30T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/?page_id=23464"},"modified":"2023-01-10T17:45:27","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T17:45:27","slug":"credit-card-help-back-on-track","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/blog\/credit-cards\/credit-card-help-back-on-track","title":{"rendered":"How to Get Back on Track If 1st Credit Card is Getting Out of Control"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n[et_pb_section fb_built=&#8221;1&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.6.5&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;||||false|false&#8221; custom_margin_last_edited=&#8221;off|desktop&#8221; top_divider_style=&#8221;curve2&#8243; top_divider_color=&#8221;#e7dff3&#8243; top_divider_flip=&#8221;horizontal|vertical&#8221; bottom_divider_style=&#8221;curve2&#8243; bottom_divider_color=&#8221;#5b25af&#8221; bottom_divider_height_tablet=&#8221;80px&#8221; bottom_divider_height_phone=&#8221;50px&#8221; bottom_divider_height_last_edited=&#8221;on|phone&#8221; da_is_popup=&#8221;off&#8221; da_exit_intent=&#8221;off&#8221; da_has_close=&#8221;on&#8221; da_alt_close=&#8221;off&#8221; da_dark_close=&#8221;off&#8221; da_not_modal=&#8221;on&#8221; da_is_singular=&#8221;off&#8221; da_with_loader=&#8221;off&#8221; da_has_shadow=&#8221;on&#8221; da_disable_devices=&#8221;off|off|off&#8221;][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.6.0&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.6.0&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.8.0&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;]<h1>Is Your First Credit Card Getting Out of Control? Here\u2019s How to Get Yourself Back on Track<\/h1>\n<p><em>Q: I\u2019m a first year university student and during campus orientation I signed up for my first credit card. I\u2019ve activated it and have been using it to pay for various things. While my card isn\u2019t maxed, I\u2019m feeling a little nervous about how I\u2019m going to pay my bill. Can you give me some advice before I become maxed out like my friends?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>A: Starting your post-secondary life is an exciting time. You will learn many lessons and hopefully one of them is how to use credit wisely. Credit cards are neither good nor bad; they are just plastic. It\u2019s how we use them that matters.<\/p>\n<p>To get a good handle on where you\u2019re at, start by putting your credit card away. You don\u2019t need to keep adding additional charges while you\u2019re trying to pay it off.<\/p>\n<p>The next thing you need to do is get a printed copy of your statement. Once you have your statement, use highlighters to categorize your charges. Books, meals, snacks, coffee, entertainment, transportation and clothing are a few of the categories you might want to start with. By <a href=\"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/financial-education\/monthly-expense-tracker\">tracking your expenses in categories<\/a>, you will be able to tell exactly what you used your credit card for.<\/p>\n<p>Once you know what you\u2019re spending your money on, make some decisions about <a href=\"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/budgeting\/build-household-budget\/separate-needs-from-wants-step-3\">wants versus needs<\/a>. Credit cards are an expensive way to finance a lifestyle, so clarify why you got a credit card in the first place. Was it for emergencies, school expenses or social spending? Did you use your new credit card for what it was intended or did you give in to temptation spending?<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s always easier to spend the money than to pay it back, but if you deal with what you owe sooner than later, it is that much easier. To repay what you borrowed, you need to create a plan that accounts for the debt payments as well as your current, ongoing expenses.<\/p>\n<p>Outline your <a href=\"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/budgeting\/budgeting-tips\">spending plan or budget<\/a> and if you have a shortfall, look for ways to increase your income, decrease expenses or do a little of both. A part-time job on campus might give you the extra cash you need, carpool with a friend to save on transportation costs or scale back on eating out by packing your lunch or snacks at least a few days each week. Look to make several small changes that add up to what you need.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlastic\u201d surgery might seem like a pretty radical step, but financial stress is the last thing you need when you are in school.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/nomoredebts.org\/blog\">&lt;&lt; Back to the Blog main page<\/a><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While my card isn\u2019t maxed, I\u2019m feeling a little nervous about how I\u2019m going to pay my bill. Can you give me some advice before I become maxed out like my friends?&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":24552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"1080","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-credit-cards"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.8 (Yoast SEO v24.8.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>First Credit Card Getting Out of Control? Know How to Get Yourself Back on Track<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"While my card isn\u2019t maxed, I\u2019m feeling a little nervous about how I\u2019m going to pay my bill. 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