I had an opportunity to practice what I preach yesterday. I went to one of my favorite lunch counters near the office, and their credit card machine was broken. No Amex, no nothing-- except cash. To their credit they had a clear sign posted at the register so I was able to reconsider my decision to eat there before ordering.

I did briefly consider walking out. I wanted to pay with a credit card. I'm trying to hit a spending target for a significant bonus within the next 7 weeks. And it would've been easy to go elsewhere; there are, like, four other eateries on the same block. But I stayed and forked over $12 cash for lunch. Ultimately I decided a) I really wanted that food for lunch-- I'd picked that restaurant over its neighbors for a reason-- and b) paying $12 cash, instead of charging it, once wouldn't kill my effort to earn the bonus.