Why I Finally Started Taking Credit Card Rewards Seriously

After reading I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi, I realized I wasn't taking advantage of rewards cards. I was already spending the money, why not get a kick back?

I had used the Amazon 2% cash back card years ago but because our income wasn't very high, we weren't paying the bills off each month so I cut the cards up and we quit using them.

Fast forward to today, our income is higher and we've managed to pay off credit cards in full each month for a few years now so I decided it was time to take advantage.

I started using the Chase card for Amazon again only now it has increased to 5%.
We do the majority of our shopping at Walmart. A lot of people frown upon Walmart but it keeps our expenses low for a family of our size. They have a OnePay card that offers 5% back on groceries and gas.
I also signed up for the Fidelity Signature Rewards card. It offers 2% back on all purchases. You can even auto redeem rewards to go straight into an investment account.

After using the cards for almost a month, we've already saved up over $225 which equals just under $3k in 12 months and that amount gets me closer to time and financial freedom.