THE WALLET
CHALLENGES
Being disciplined is really difficult. It takes consistency and personal will to ensure you are always on task especially when you are trying to meet a personal goal.
When I think about my financial independence, it is hard for me to just “save” for “financial independence.” I wouldn’t say that I am a natural spender, but I enjoy spending money. This is why I’ll never be financially free in 5 or 10-years, but I’ll get there slowly.
To combat my laziness when it comes to money, wealth, and financial independence, I’ve created challenges for myself so that I can “try” to stick with my goals and move to the next level.
Below are some of my personal challenges and updates I provide on a monthly basis on my progress with each challenge. I hope these challenges spur your desire to take small steps and maybe create your own personal challenges.
Investing Challenges
Credit Card Rewards Challenge
Purpose: Future Travel Bucket
I love travel hacking. I mean, I used to LOVE travel hacking. I used to sign up for credit cards that gave me a ton of points so that I could travel for free, but as my career became more time-consuming and as the cost of travel went up, I couldn’t substantiate the cost of travel (even if the flights and hotels were free).
In 2018, I opened up the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card and had this bright idea. What if I took ALL of my credit card rewards and deposited them into my investment account instead of using the points or dollars for travel.
Personal Savings Challenges
Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card – Elan Financial
www.fidelityrewards.com
I’ve had this card since 2019 and the main reason why I’ve carried this card is the 2% cash back on every dollar spent. I used to only carry travel reward cards, but then I thought it would be nice to have a card that gave me cash back. Since then, this card has been my go to card.
Chase Sapphire Preferred
www.chase.com
I use this card anytime I go out to eat because of its 3x point value abilities. I do use it for travel too, but it only gives me 2x point value and for that, I use my Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card.
I also like this card because of its Chase Offers which I have tried to maximize for additional cash back on spending that I already do.
Citi Custom Cash
www.citi.com
I use this card anytime I go to the grocery store. This card provides 5x point value abilities every time I go to the grocery store. There is a limit per billing cycle. You can only get 5x on the first $500 of your spend during that period.
This card is also unique in that it is 5x your highest category, so you can use this as a 5x on Travel, Restaurants, Home Improvement Stores, Gas Stations, Live Entertainment, Select Transit, Drugstores, Fitness Clubs, or Select Streaming Services. I have another card for Gas so I use this for grocery. This also has a $0.00 annual fee.
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card
www.bankofamerica.com
I use this card anytime I buy gas. This card gives you 3x on your choice of category. I could get 5x on gas with the Citi Custom Cash, but I spend more on grocery than on gas so I’d rather get 5x back on my grocery and then I’ll use this card for gas and get 3x.
Just like the Citi Custom Cash, you get 3x on a category that you choose. This is different in that you must select the category whereas the Citi doesn’t require a selection. Categories include gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings. You also can get 2x on grocery stores and wholesale. This also has a $0.00 annual fee.