When I got my first credit card, my dad gave me 3 pieces of advice. 20 years later, I still follow them.

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• My dada taught maine a in installments paper is not an hold of your income — it's in installments nan issuer expects to beryllium repaid.
• When I sewage my first card, he told maine to make manageable purchases and effort not to transportation a balance.
• He besides warned maine ne'er to salary precocious and to usage my in installments paper responsibly.

Once I graduated college, started working, and bought my first house, I decided it was clip to get my first in installments card. Once I had nan paper – and its coagulated in installments limit — successful hand, I envisioned really I would usage that paper to decorativeness furnishing my caller condo, bargain hose tickets, aliases screen Sunday brunch.

I was casually having a speech pinch my dada and I mentioned that I sewage a in installments card. His consequence was little than thrilled. "A in installments card? That is nan quickest roadworthy to debt! You person to grip a in installments paper responsibly."

Credit paper indebtedness reached an all-time precocious of over $1 trillion, according to a study by nan New York Federal Reserve. So he wasn't wrong: Americans are carrying nan highest level of in installments paper indebtedness ever and paying nan precocious liking complaint charges that travel pinch that.

After that speech pinch my dada connected really to responsibly usage a in installments card, present are 3 pieces of proposal that I still usage to this day, 20 years later:

1. Start pinch manageable charges

Instead of instantly charging that $2,000 eating room table, make reasonable charges that you tin salary disconnected quickly and won't put you into debt. When you usage a in installments paper to acquisition an point you really can't afford, you extremity up carrying that equilibrium longer and watching it turn owed to interest.

Understand that a in installments paper is not an hold of your income. It is an hold of in installments that nan in installments paper issuer expects you to salary back.

When I bought my caller couch, alternatively of putting it connected a in installments paper and making a bid of monthly payments to salary it off, I watched it until it went connected waste (40% disconnected connected Black Friday) and bought it pinch cash.

2. Pay nan equilibrium disconnected each month

The optimal measurement to usage a in installments paper is to salary nan equilibrium disconnected each period truthful you are not successful debt. With astir in installments paper liking rates being successful nan double digits, carrying a equilibrium each period really costs you money.

Also, erstwhile you salary nan paper equilibrium disconnected each month, your credit utilization ratio stays low, which has a affirmative effect connected your credit. If your utilization is complete 30% it tin person a antagonistic effect connected your credit score.

3. Never salary late

Once those in installments paper bills commencement coming successful each month, there's 1 point you must do: salary at slightest the minimum magnitude owed by nan owed date. My dada is superior astir his credit, and truthful americium I.

When you make a precocious payment, you whitethorn beryllium charged a precocious interest positive an liking costs connected nan unpaid balance. Late payments tin besides wounded your in installments score.

When you create your online account, you tin group up free matter aliases email alerts that will notify you a fewer days earlier your measure is due. Or, if you person a bully grip connected your spending, return it 1 measurement further by signing up for auto-payment truthful you ne'er person to interest astir being late.

Have you struggled to salary your in installments paper measure and recovered yourself successful delinquency, aliases moreover default? Share your in installments people struggles and triumphs pinch this newsman astatine jstreaks@businessinsider.com.

This article was primitively published successful November 2023.