How about this:

Since we were all little, everyone told us "you can't get something for nothing!" Fact is with the BA miles, the Capital One miles, the AA miles, etc, that's exactly what I got!

I have stopped broadcasting what I do and recommend - I was excited but I'm sure some thought I was overbearing. People who know me know this is a hobby and when they are ready, they ask. Then they are amazed at what can be accomplished.

Anyone can earn hundreds or even thousands of dollars worth of points and miles with just a few hours of effort each year. Those with good credit, high spending ability, active travel patterns, and other characteristics may earn tens of thousands of dollars worth of points and miles each year. Few people who know this will fail to take advantage, but there are many people who *do not know about this and/or don't know how to go about doing it*. Yes, there is a small subset of people who know about the opportunities and still don't bother (usually those who are so well off that a few thousand dollars doesn't mean much), but in most cases, those who don't "care" actually don't know about how easy the opportunities are, how much they are worth, and how to implement them. Two years ago, I scored over a million Delta miles for me and family members via a botched promo that allowed me to turn a couple hundred thousand points into over a million. That took just a little research and a few hours of effort. Last year and this year, I've earned several dozen hotel nights for my family, friends, and employees by taking advantage of some very simple promotions (largely, but not wholly, IHG). Few people who know that they could do the same would pass up the chance.

I think it's a combination of people not knowing and not caring or the ever present "I don't fly enough for it to matter" theory.

A few years ago I went on a business trip to Tupelo. At the time, the only airline that flew there was NW (now I think it's just DL). I saw the boarding passes of my colleagues at TUP's lone gate and noticed I was the only one with a FF#. When I asked them about it, most said "oh I never fly Northwest" and one even said "Charles, you have to PAY for those" like I was the idiot. :D

No, you didn't

You had to apply (and be approved), you had to make spends, you had to prove existing balances, etc.

While not a great amount of effort in most cases, it still requires output on your part and to some people, that output simply isn't worth the return.

Wow, really? Perhaps you should make acquaintance with an actual teacher and see how much leisurely time they have. Trust me, they don't sit on the beach sipping mai-tais all summer. And NO ONE pays 40% of their income in taxes. Not in the US, anyway.

So true.

In addition to the other good explanations many folks have already noted, I think FTers and other points/miles-accumulators tend to underestimate: 1) how far we are up the learning curve; 2) how our resulting status and/or experience benefit us; and 3) how we're often more flexible than other people in adjusting our plans to grab the best deals.

Example 1: Friends were trying to set up a trip to Spain a few months in advance, preferably in J, and were having no luck using their UA miles to do so. I gave a call, got a 1K desk CSR who might well have been better than the CSRs they were dealing with, and worked through different routing options with her. We found a couple of options for my friends, who I put on the phone to nail this down. It could be that I was simply lucky, but I think getting better CSRs and being aware of routing options (as well as knowing how to work online research) often works for us when less informed folks would come up empty.

Example 2: My brother is taking his daughter to Italy and could only find standard US Y awards to do so. I checked both AwardNexus and called UA to see what *A saver J award flights might be available (although I know that does not guarantee availability using US miles). I found routing that would have had them overnight in Brussels, getting in early enough to go into town for dinner. Now, Brussels is not my favorite city, but if it were my wife and myself we would have enjoyed the beer, mussels, whatever on a stopover. But my brother who's never been there could not be bothered to consider it. He just wanted to get to Italy and back.

As an actual teacher, I can attest to this. I work a summer job because even with a Masters degree, I still only make about 43k gross. Don't get me started on how that compares to the salaries of teachers overseas, where the profession is much more highly respected and commensurately compensated. Most teachers (who don't also teach summer school) work for the school district for about 200 days of the year, which out of 260 possible weekdays, is about 76% of the work year. But since we're not paid for the time we don't work, I'm not sure I see how someone can find a problem with this. I'm not complaining about my salary, because I CHOSE this profession and continue to stay in it because I enjoy it and know what goes along with it, but suffice to say, there's certainly no extra cash lying around to go to the beach and sip mai tais all summer long. That's why I work a summer job...and read Flyertalk.

At any rate, I play the mileage game and my wife and I take a free flight or two every year thanks to the time I spend researching offers, accruals, and redemption opportunities. Would we still travel without this system? Yes, but never in J, and rarely to such great places or as often on our own dime. So thanks for being such a great community, FT. ;)

And if your anything like my spouse, Father, Mother, or Mother-in-law, you put in over 40 hours per week without any additional compensation, be it grading papers, preparing lessons, assisting students, or whatever.

Yes, many other professons do as well (including my own) but there are equally as many, if not more, where people either punch out at 40 or would never work beyond it without the promise of overtime pay.

And when you add in the average number of sick days and vacation that the rest of the professional world sees which teachers do not, the difference isn't nearly as great as some would like you to think

It's a very interesting thread. Here are my .02 cents in addition to what has been said already.

1. Not TOO many people accumulate the amount of travel needed to make FF programs work for them in any sensible way.

2. It is true, that of those who do not travel a lot, there are some who are simply not interested in travel. But it's also true that not TOO many people have a credit score/income combination (especially in current economy) that would allow them to accumulate a lot of miles via CC route.

When you tell your friends about those fantastic programs, how many will admit having bad credit? They will just invoke a "not interested" clause:D more often than not. Wouldn't you?

3. Using the miles earned might be really tircky and outright frustrating for an unseasoned traveler. Not TOO many folks are flexible enough to "work around" airlines seat inventory. I have a couzen whom I had badgered long enough to get some miles, so they did it (just to make me stop, I guess:)). He and his wife work 9-5, never travel on business, can only fly on national holidays and for their 1-week vacation, which they love to take just when everyone else does - in the summer. Another words, there are never any seats available when they want them! They currently have over 300K miles they have been unable to use so far (at least for flights).

So, what I'm trying to say is there are not only laziness or ignorance but also real socio-economic issues that keep FF programs on the fringes of the travel industry. Which--and I don't think a lot of folks here would argue with that--is a really good thing for the rest of us!^

Originally Posted by stevens397 "How about this:

Since we were all little, everyone told us "you can't get something for nothing!" Fact is with the BA miles, the Capital One miles, the AA miles, etc, that's exactly what I got!"

I think you're taking his statement a little too literal. Of course you have to actually press a couple computer keys in the proper sequence but come on. Relatively speaking, we are getting something for practically nothing with a lot of these deals. In the case of the CapOne deal, the "free lunch" isn't even relative. A few minutes of time yes, but it didn't cost a dime for the $2,400 in travel costs. Now that's what I call a lot of "free lunches."

Most people are dreamers - dream of being rich, dream of fancy travel, dream of a mansion. Few people want to attain the dream. OK, I want to be rich and could try harder at it, but life is work and I don't want to work at it that much.

I think of a consulting assignment I had a few years back, 8 months of travel every week from TPA - CLT. I did not have a company credit card, so it was on my card and reimbursed. 3 people are going to Paris on AA and staying at a Renaissance, hard not to say, but most had to do with that - hotel, air, churning a few credit cards, dining, shopping bonuses, cars, etc.

Others fly WN cause it gets them where they want to go and they are happy not having much to show.

I dreamed of moving to FL from the Northeast. I saw many coworkers try and fail. Cause they took the quickest job and did not plan out how to live. They moved to areas that were far from what they really wanted. I moved to Tampa, a decent size city where I could make it work. I did not move to farm or swamp country and be surprised the only job was a gas station clerk.

Getting miles is easy, for me. But others just dream of doing it and don't want to really know how. Let them dream.

True yet the only way to get that 'free lunch' is to first earn the miles for the match.

Tell a nonFFer that they have to come up with 100k before they can apply for the next card to get $1,100 in free travel and their eyes will glaze over.

Well, since I'm an orchestra teacher, on average 2-3 nights per week are given up for rehearsals, sectionals, and concerts. I get a $1,500 yearly stipend for this, which I calculated once, and it works out to about $4.50/hr. Awesome. On the plus side, I grade very few papers, but on the down side, my lesson plans, which have to be turned in to the administration for approval, for three different schools and 5 completely different preps are a beast.

In my district, sick/personal days come from a pool of 4- 8 per calendar year, depending on experience. That's an average of six days for the entire school year. Better not get sick! Anything more and it's pay deduction. This is why most of my travel is confined to summer months or school "breaks."

My colleagues often tell me I should write a book on all my travel techniques. To that, I always respond by asking them why I should write a book if the information is available for free on websites like FT and SD. If these folks would just use the wealth of information available to them, they could benefit from the same travel perks we all do. I can say this as a leisure traveler who only flies a few times per year, but an impressive number of these flights cost me next to nothing in dollars, although the time it takes to book a desirable reward flight itinerary can sometimes be frustrating. Use credit cards to your advantage, watch for special bonuses both for BIS miles and CC miles, and keep track of promotions. It's really not that hard, and for those of us who are not McCain's definition wealthy, it's a no-brainer.

So true. I see what you're getting at a little more clearly now. I'm definitely over-minimizing the years of disciplined credit usage and hours of research involved that allow us the ability to take advantage of these "free lunch" opportunities when they come around. Actually that makes me feel better as I don't really think the desire to "get something for nothing" is exactly noble. Maybe that's another reason some might not get too involved in this?
Anyway, nice to be reminded that I am putting in some due diligence here at least.

Maybe add this to your original calculation and see how much an hour it comes out to. ;)