So have you ever taken the time to slow down long enough to look at your obsessions? What is it that takes up your time in your mind and consequently part of your physical time on this earth? For some, it is their family, their hobby or even their work.
However, for some of us, it is our credit score.
Being obsessed with your credit score has nothing to do with whether it is excellent credit score, average score, or even a poor credit score.
It has more to do with a person protecting it from erosion, making sure that it is accurate and doing what is necessary to improve. However, since we live in an economic system that is based in large part on credit, and less on cash, we are driven to think that our credit score defines us.
To some of us a good credit score is a mark of good or bad money management, good or bad financial decisions and in many cases, it is reflected in things that were outside our control.
These could include inaccurate reporting by one of the credit bureaus, or even medical bills that were outside our control. So the first sign you are obsessed is that you allow your credit score to define you as a person.
In the history of the world and more exact, the history of the United States credit scoring is less than 50 years old with the FICO score being in place since 1989. So how can something that was invented by man, in some cases after you were born, and becomes your defining obsession? It should not!
Here are the 4 signs that you are being too obsessed with your credit score:
You are mainly looking at the credit score and not the entire credit report.
This is important because it is the details of what is on your report that need to be looked at and reviewed for accuracy. Looking at the actual report for all the entries for errors and what is it that lenders are looking at are what drives the score.
Constantly looking at your credit report daily or weekly.
Also, you insist on knowing what all three credit reporting agencies are saying. The result is that you are stressed over small changes in the score, or frustrated that it is not improving quickly enough.
If your score is too low, this will continually leave you with a sense of failure. Of course, this is a sign that it defines you. This could result in perpetuating more bad financial habits.
It may create a “what’s the use” attitude. So much so that you become numb to the fact that you need to pay your debts. Conversely, a good credit score may cause you to keep more credit cards open than you actually need, opening yourself up to identity theft more easily.
Comparing your credit scores with others.
Another sign that you are obsessed with your credit score, and believe that it defines you is that you compare yourself with others. You sometimes bring it up on social media or in the presence of your friends and family.
You have heard or read the statistics about what percentage of different scores Americans have. You decide to bring it close to home to see if you are higher or lower than your friends or family. This is the classic keeping up with your neighbor syndrome.
You refuse to ever look at it at all.
It seems counterintuitive to say this, however, think about it. It is a fear defense mechanism. You have obsessed to the degree that it controls your deepest fears, but you refuse to do anything about it.
So maybe a good approach is this. Get your Credit report once a quarter. Check for accuracy. Correct what needs to be corrected by debt repayment or request a “validate or deny” to the three credit agencies and the vendor. They have 30 days to do this or it has to be removed.
This is plenty of time for the process to resolve itself until the next quarterly look. Remember, you are you, not a score.
