Organizations: Me, My Partner, & I

Collaborators: My Partner and My Credit Card Companies

Dates: Spring 2015-Spring 2017

Foci: Personal Finance, Relationships

The Question

How do you see a long-distance girlfriend every 2 weeks, while also paying off your student loans?

The Context

Working at Capital One as an analyst, I picked up various skills - SQL, Python, how to operate in a corporate environment. But one skill I most enjoy having picked up was how the credit card industry works (and therefore, how to take advantage of rewards).

My then-girlfriend and I were long distance (I was in Chicago, then DC, and she was in Boston), and in order to visit each other frequently while also paying off my student loans, I needed more income. I had already optimized my personal finance system by automating all bill payments and having a clear, premeditated, also-automated flow-chart for my cash (I love making systems that allow me to think less). This allowed me to stop wasting time wondering “should I spend money on this?”, which freed up plenty of time and mind-space to think about how to see Manizha as often as possible.

Enter credit card churning.

The Strategy

Over the course of 2 years, I earned an extra $5000 in rewards, which funded the majority of biweekly visits to see each other. She would fly to me, then I would fly to her, allowing us to only travel once a month, but see each other twice a month.

I took advantage of every trick there was - starting with credit card issuers that only checked with one bureau, calculating the potential dollar value of a point, submitting multiple applications at once to reduce the long-term impact on my credit score.

The system was a game, and I loved to play it.

The Outcome

For 2 years, until we moved in together in Chicago, credit card churning was a huge hobby of mine. I still enjoy reading the terms and conditions for new credit card offers. But, since then, actually churning credit cards has taken a back seat to spending time with my partner.

Spending time with Manizha is more fun than gaming the credit card system. Usually.