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#142 Nothing In Life is Free...Except These Rewards

#142 Nothing In Life is Free...Except These Rewards

Plus: How to Build Workplace Culture

Welcoming you back with October’s Money Edition. Our founder of this newsletter, Dan Healy, is still on his honeymoon, so this is yet another Prof Mike edition.

As a teacher of writing, my workdays are non-stop words. Teaching, advising, reading, writing…it never ends.

I don’t want this intro to feel like that, so let’s quit while we’re ahead. Plus, time is money, right?

With that in mind, let’s not waste any more.

These Highlights Are SURE to Earn Interest…

Making Cents of AMEX Blue Cash Preferred💰️🚀
Expert Advice on Credit Cards💰️
Hustle Hub: Talking to Bosses, Building Culture, and an 8-Figure Side Hustle 💰️📈🚀

MAKING CENTS💰️

If You Don’t Have This Credit Card, Go Get It

I’ve never put much thought into my credit cards. My ignorant assumption was that they’re all the same. Sure, some had special perks that others didn’t - a Prime card for 5% back on Amazon, significant travel rewards for frequent flyers, etc. - but for someone like me, it didn’t really matter.

It wasn’t until I read a Substack article on “churning” that I realized I was passing up savings opportunities. (If you don’t know what churning is, click here.) The post didn’t change my overall approach - no way I’m opening up a new CC every few months just to snag welcome bonuses - but it did get me to think about my credit card rotation and how to maximize potential benefits.

So I began looking into new CCs, ones that gave me new categories of rewards or gave me better rewards for the usual, and one stood out above the rest: Blue Cash Preferred from American Express.

Now, note: I am a professor of writing. I have no horse in this race; neither I nor OTF receives money from American Express; this is not a paid ad. I’m sharing this because this card is like finding hundreds of dollars between your couch cushions. No matter how much money you have, who’s saying no to free hundreds?

Let’s move to bullet points to speed this up:

PROS:

6% back on groceries (on your first $6K spent, then 1% after that)
6% back on streaming services
3% back on gas and transit expenses (like public transportation, parking, etc.)
First year no annual fee
$250 welcome bonus (if you spend 3k in the first 6 months)

CONS:

$95 annual fee

The full details are of course more complex - there are actually more pros than I listed - but let’s not overthink this:

6% back on $6000 worth of groceries = $360.

Done. The card just paid for itself, with a couple hundred left over. Factor in the same high reward rate for all your streaming services, plus 3% back on all transportation costs, plus a $250 welcome bonus…all for spending you have to do anyway.

In the big scheme of things, is an extra $500 a year changing your life? Only if you use it to invest in the next Nvidia.

But either way, it costs you nothing. No time. No effort. No going out of your way.

People throw the word literally around too much and too incorrectly, but in this case, it’s the right word: it’s LITERALLY free money.

Two Takeaways:

Get this card - no card I researched has this level of cash back for such essential categories. In fact, most don’t even come close.
Put more consideration into your CCs - Don’t make the same mistake I did for most of my adult life. Instead of treating your CCs with indifference, put consideration into what cards you’re carrying and how they complement each other. Here’s a link to Motley Fool’s “Best Credit Cards 2025” to get you started.

EXPERT ADVICE 💭

Before You Go!

Thanks again for joining us!

Next week, we’ll be back with our final October Edition. I’m sure Dan has something big in store, after a week of relaxation and rejuvenation. Can’t wait to see what he has planned!

See you next Tuesday.

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