Everybody likes to have a little kickback benefit from spending their money.. and some take it to the extreme.
Natalie Keener: Hungry much?
Ryan Bingham: Our business expense allots forty dollars each for dinner. I plan on grabbing as many miles as I can.
Natalie Keener: Okay, you got to fill me in on the miles thing. What is that about? You're talking about, like, frequent flyer miles?
Ryan Bingham: You really want to know?
Natalie Keener: I'm dying to know.
Ryan Bingham: I don't spend a nickel, if I can help it, unless it somehow profits my mileage account.
Natalie Keener: So, what are you saving up for? Hawaii? South of France?
Ryan Bingham: It's not like that. The miles are the goal.
Natalie Keener: That's it? You're saving just to save?
Ryan Bingham: Let's just say that I have a number in mind and I haven't hit it yet.
Natalie Keener: That's a little abstract. What's the target?
Ryan Bingham: I'd rather not...
Natalie Keener: Is it a secret target?
Ryan Bingham: It's ten million miles.
Natalie Keener: Okay. Isn't ten million just a number?
Ryan Bingham: Pi's just a number.
Natalie Keener: Well, we all need a hobby. No, I- I- I don't mean to belittle your collection. I get it. It sounds cool.
Ryan Bingham: I'd be the seventh person to do it. More people have walked on the moon.
Natalie Keener: Do they throw you a parade?
Ryan Bingham: You get lifetime executive status. You get to meet the chief pilot, Maynard Finch.
Natalie Keener: Wow.
Ryan Bingham: And they put your name on the side of a plane.
Natalie Keener: Men get such hardons from putting their names on things. You guys don't grow up. It's like you need to pee on everything.
From one of the most useful & easy ways of spending money (ie. credit cards) comes a little travel benefit in the form of air miles for Frequent-flyer programs (FFPs).
In fact, you can even go so far as to get rolodex full of credit cards to maximize air miles conversion from credit card dollars/points from various activities. But I just find it tedious to do so. Before the inflation of air miles conversion into actual air tickets (IAMC), once upon a time, it was worthwhile a person's while to collect these air miles because:
- Kickback benefit from Non-Discretionary Spending
- Non expiry of points
- Alignment with interest in travel
- Travel with Family
- Feel a Significant benefit.
To minimize discretionary spending, it is easier to have just ONE card of the following features:
- Visa/Mastercard card
- Immortal Lifespan of Air Miles/points
- Conversion into multiple FFPs.
For this purpose, my choice is Citibank PremierMiles card. However, with IAMC kicking into gear, unless you spend a fair bit, the points benefit per dollar may point you towards cashback cards.
