Those who know me, know that I love the New York Yankees. I'm a huge fan and I watch as many games as I can. Well, baseball season is about to begin as the teams finish up spring training.
Spring training, which usually runs from February until the start of baseball season, includes plenty of practice and exhibition games. It's a chance for teams to warm up, to solidify strategies, and to "gel" as a team (especially as new players join a team).
Inspired by baseball's spring training, I want to write to you about spring training... for your credit.
When it comes to credit, are you in the little leagues or the major leagues? A major-league-level credit score "athlete" performs regular (even monthly monitoring!) credit checks; they know their own credit score.
You may not be in the major leagues yet, but I'm inviting you to participate in spring training! Here's how:
• Start with just one of your credit cards. Become the master of that credit card statement. (It can be daunting to try and master all of your credit that way but pick just one card to master). Know exactly what your interest rate is, how much you owe, what the statement looks like, and how to find any information on it. Go through the last 3 months' statements line by line to familiarize yourself with the habit and process of reviewing credit card statements.
• Pull your credit report. Become the expert of understanding what is reporting. Dig deep to understand what is being reported and if you do not understand something highlight it. A credit report can seem like a daunting document but it doesn't have to be...
• Dispute the items you highlighted on the credit reports. If any item did not make sense to you or you believe is incorrect you can dispute that item with the credit bureau reporting it.
If you take this spring training approach, you'll warm up to the major leagues of credit in an easy and fun way. Follow these tips, and start spring training for your credit, you'll be ready to step up to the major leagues in no time!
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