I recently was trying to get stuff organized and in sorting through everything found the following items, all of which were expired:
- Several high value coupons, including a few free item coupons
- A $15 facebook ads credit
- A coupon for a $20 Target gift card for completing a baby registry (which I did)
- A $25 cash card from Huggies Enjoy the Ride (Oh the pain! The shame!)
It made me literally sick to my stomach to essentially throw away over $45 just because of my procrastination and lack of organization. In truth I knew I had the cash card, but didn't realize it had an expiration date on it and was saving it. Why was I saving something that could essentially be used as cash for any of my everyday purchases? Partly because it's a pain to use, but really mostly because it was something I had won, and so I wanted to use it for something special for me. So I waited just long enough to not be able to use it on anything.
There is surely a lesson to be learned from this. Keep track of what you have by going through things regularly instead of twice a year. Check gift cards and coupons for expiration dates immediately and make little reminders for yourself if those dates are short. But mostly... stop waiting. There will never be a perfect moment to use something, so take the plunge and just use it while it's still good. You'll get your value and save yourself this sick feeling.
