I Regret Making Credit Card Mistakes As a Teen — What I Wish I Knew Then

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• When I was 17, I had my first credit card. I was so concerned about my debt that I avoided using it.
• I realized the mistakes that I made as an adolescent and the ways I could have avoided them after joining the Personal Finance Insider Team.
• This is the advice that I would give my younger self if they could talk back in time.
• Insider’s guide on the best rewards credit cards.

When I was 17, I received my first credit card. I didn’t know what I was doing.

I didn’t know who to call. My high school offered a “practical math” class that I thought would solve all my problems. The content was poor and I felt even more anxious about the situation. 

My parents were supportive and financially smart enough to make up for the deficiencies in my public school system. It’s not that I was perfect at everything. For a while, I mostly avoided using the card.

I have learned so much about credit cards since joining the Personal Finance Team at Insider three years ago. I now realize how easily my anxiety can be avoided.

I regret a lot about credit card usage as a teenager. This is the advice that I would give my anxiety-ridden 17 year-old self if I had the chance to go back in time.

This article is about the benefits and perks that each card comes with. If you have to pay interest or late fees, these cards will not be worth the cost. It is important that you pay your credit card in full each month. Also, pay on time and only spend what is necessary.

Take advantage of your resources — credit cards are confusing and you’re not the only one with questions 

It’s normal to not have everything figured out at the beginning. It is normal to not immediately be proficient at something. It’s normal to not be immediately proficient at something.

Mother and Father Credit card basics will be taught to you — like how to pay your balance on time and How not to spend too much — which helps a lot in the beginning. You’ll still feel lost. 

Terms and conditions for credit cardThese are intentionally difficult for average Joes to read and chock-full with complicated legal language. You will have many questions and not know where to go. Because you are embarrassed, you avoid asking your teachers or parents. You will feel pressured into believing that you must figure it out all yourself.

This is a terrible idea.

Learn what each term means (e.g. Statement balance, credit limit APR, Credit scoreThe key to understanding the content is ( Credit card terminology is like a foreign language. You’d be wise not to learn it. Unfortunately, most people don’t know this language, but there are many online resources and guides that will help. Make use of them!

It will bring you joy to share what you’ve learned with your family and friends. You’ll find that your loved ones will turn to you for assistance (since you are now the preferred credit card consultant), and it’ll be a rewarding experience to give back to those around you. 

School won’t actually teach you how to use a credit card — you’ll have to take initiative

To further learn how to use your card, you end up taking a “practical math” class in high school. It doesn’t work. Although you fill out lots of false tax forms and can solve hypothetical monthly budgets using a calculator, you don’t learn much about credit. 

Your math teacher might play a YouTube clip of a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation showing what debt looks and how you can overuse a credit line. You’ll feel worried and it won’t be very helpful. But don’t let this get you down.

There are many reliable resources available! There are reliable resources out there, but you haven’t yet found them.

You might also consider speaking with your teacher directly about your concerns. You are the only one who knows what you say. Your math teacher will not know that you need help understanding credit card transactions unless you tell her. 

Get a student credit card

You won’t be able to find out about it. Students can get credit cardsYou can’t finish college until you are halfway through. These cards would have saved you so much pain if you knew about them from the beginning.

The actual first credit card you getIt is your mom and you, on the exact same day that you open your bank account. While it isn’t a bad card in any way, you feel like it is an overwhelming piece of plastic with unclear terms and conditions. It’s easy to just slip it into your pocket and forget all about it. This card will be yours forever It will not stop being hacked.During the COVID-19 Shutdown

Do not delay! It takes a long time to apply for another credit card. There is no reason to. 

A college friend will eventually encourage you to go on your own. Credit card for the unexpectedIt’s the first time that you’ve heard of it. Cash-back Rewards. You are half convinced that it is a fraud.

Do not be so suspicious, apply for a new card.  

It is possible to get the Discover it® Student Cash BackDownload the app. The process is simple and rewarding, and it feels much less daunting than other cards you have received from your bank. It’s the first credit card you get that feels like it’s designed for people like you — people who want to learn how to be financially responsible and don’t need all the complicated bells and whistles. 

It’s because of the Discover it® Student Cash Back that you’re able to confidently make purchases, all the while Credit score improvement. All purchases qualify for cash back take-out Delivery you get during finals. Imagine how much you could have made if you had this card sooner. 

Mistakes will happen — don’t worry, you’ll learn from them

Children grow up hearing haunting stories of credit card misuse and debt. Because you are raised to believe that having debt is a sign of failure, you eventually learn more about the risks and benefits of using a credit card than what to do. Should. All of that is to say, you won’t exactly start your credit card journey with confidence.  

Making mistakes is the best way to learn, and I’m sure you will make many. You realize when you turn 22 that just paying the minimum monthly balance does not prevent you from accruing interest. The only way to avoid this is to pay your entire balance each month. This is a simple fact that you will learn soon after your 22nd birthday. 0% introductory APR offer on your Discover it® Student Cash Back ends. 

For so many years you hyper-fixated on making sure you paid your balance on time every month and avoiding interest at all, yet here were your worst fears (in terms of credit cards) right before your eyes — and truthfully, it wasn’t all that bad.

The damage to your credit was minimal. Your credit score didn’t suffer any major harm, and you can pay your balance off in full the next month almost as if it never happened. Sometimes, it’s easier to bounce back from a mistake than you think. 

Credit cards aren’t as intimidating as you think they are — educate yourself!

There will be many lectures by teachers and parents about credit card misuse. You’ll be scared and will never use your credit card again. You’re already so anxious about the future (college is quickly approaching and you’re finally going to get the freedom you’ve always wanted — and the responsibility you’ve always feared), and managing money feels like the straw breaking your camel’s back.

It is important to be calm!Take a deep, slow breath, light some incense and learn. How to responsibly use your credit cardInstead of spiraling down the theoretical rabbit hole that leads nowhere,

Most people feel the exact same way as you, and it’s true! There is no one who is born an expert on credit cards. You have to start learning if your goal is to become one.

Yes, credit can be scary. collecting debt on your cardIt can feel overwhelming but you are the one in charge. It’s worth doing some research. You already enjoy research so it’s a win/win situation. This knowledge will be invaluable when you get older.