One of the avid readers from our growing following of wanderlusters recently messaged us. His inquiry was something like this: “Is this legit? What’s in it for you guys? If it really works as well as you claim, why not keep it to yourselves?”
It’s a legitimate question, and one that we’re fine to address head-on. First off, we do get paid when you click on and/or apply for some of the offers we’re putting out there for you to consider. There are far more links on this blog that don’t pay us a thing – we’re putting them out there because they are great travel resources and offers that are phenomenal. This isn’t the kind of thing that is extremely lucrative, and it’s not like we are making a killing on our daily posts. If we averaged it out, we’d be making well below minimum wage.
I don’t know how many times I’ve been approached to get in on some kind of multi-level marketing deal, and it’s just not something I have any flair for. Maybe I’m unique in having a hard time telling people that they’re overweight and that they need to try a miracle drink, but I just can’t get excited about it.
I can get very excited about sharing my travel stories. I am thrilled when people take my recommendations and spread their wings to the world of international travel. For years I’ve emailed people when I find amazing travel deals, I’ve shared my pictures and stories hoping that others can share in the joy that comes from experiencing other cultures, jungle adventures, and historical reminiscence.
I’ll confess that it was my brother who opened my eyes to this idea of exploiting credit card rewards to quench (no, that’s impossible) to nourish our wanderlust. I realize that this is a tenuous line to walk. We don’t take lightly the idea of offering credit advice. I want to stress that to this date, I have never paid interest on any credit card. I pay off the balances in full every month… they are essentially debit cards. I do not charge purchases that I wouldn’t otherwise make.
I agree with Dave Ramsey on the point that it doesn’t make sense to borrow money to build credit to borrow more money. Though, I suppose I depart from him in my belief that if I’m not using my credit score to borrow money, I should use it to take advantage of the amazing offers that financial service companies are putting out there.
If you see that we’re promoting a card that requires $4000 in spending in the next six months, and you don’t have that many expenses to charge in that timeframe, please don’t apply. If you can’t manage to pay your payments on time even with the amazing help of Mint.com, please don’t get carried away.
But as long as you can be responsible in the way you manage your finances, please take advantage of these offers and Wanderlust with us.
Mint is an amazing tool to comprehensively manage all of your accounts.
Credit Sesame will help you monitor your credit score to make responsible decisions.
Thanks for being so open about what’s in it for you! I do like reading about your travels.
Most of Dave Ramsey’s advice is for applicable to people that have no financial common sense. There is an obvious difference between using a credit card for things you can’t afford to buy and taking advantage of great offers which do not require a responsible person to pay any interest at all. He just thinks he is the only person in the world smart enough to know the difference. What a Jack Ass!