Living in Atlanta, my airline choices are a little limited. I’m not a fan of connecting in other cities, so Delta is normally my default airline. I can get virtually anywhere I want to go and get there direct. Delta honestly does have the most flights out of Atlanta. Unfortunately, they also have a virtual monopoly and, from time to time, are more expensive than other flights. As a consultant, I find myself on the road typically once or twice a month and, naturally, want to be rewarded for my trips. I therefore joined Delta’s Skymiles program and started earning Skymiles. As of recently, though, I’ve gotten a little fed up and have decided to take a second look at my loyalty to Delta.

For a while there, I got caught up in it all. In addition to earning Skymiles, which get you the free flights, I was all about earning Medallion Miles and climbing my way up the status ladder. Have you ever been on a flight and wondered who all the people were in first class? Very rarely are those people there because they paid for the upgrade to first class. They are most likely there because of their status. When there are empty seats in first class, the airline will reward their most loyal members, ones they call “status members.” Most airlines have similar programs, and Delta has 4 tiers of “status”: Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond.

As a smart company, Delta won’t just give their upgrades into the treasured first class willy nilly; they make you earn it. The way they make you earn this status is via your wallet. Delta, and other airlines for that matter, is determined to squeeze every last penny out of you that they can. That is their primary objective. You can earn this status by either flying short distances frequently, or by flying long distances every once in a while. They put up various hoops for you to jump through and do their best to make your work for it.

2012 was a busy year for me. I traveled twice a month to Oklahoma for work for a couple of months. My fiancée lived 4 hours away in a different city. All my friends seemed to be getting married. It was the perfect storm for me to climb my way up the Delta loyalty ladder. Finally, on December 30^th, right before it reset for 2013, I hit the very bottom rung of the ladder: Silver. Wow, I felt like king of the skies. I was a Silver member on Delta. They sent me these cool luggage tags to identify me as a Silver member and the Delta app on my phone said “Silver Member” on it. 2013 was going to be a good year, I thought, living life in first class. I traveled a bit less in 2013 but still enough to reap the benefits. Unfortunately, I’d also just signed up for the Delta Platinum credit card. The main reason I got it was to get a free companion ticket each year. I later learned the benefits of being a Silver Medallion Skymiles member are very similar to being a Platinum card holder. Aside from the ability to get free Economy Comfort (6 extra inches of legroom), the main ‘perk’ was the eligibility of being upgraded.

All those miles I logged in 2012, all those flights I took (30), got me upgraded a total of 3 times in 2013. 3 measly times I got to fly in first class. It was during a recent trip to Denver that I realized that I’d been blinded by my loyalty. I was chatting with a co-worker who told me they were going to Denver the same weekend that I was. When asked about my flight, I responded as I always do: “It’s a Delta flight.” Shocked, my coworker said, “Wow, those were expensive flights; we’re taking Southwest.” I later learned I could have saved like $100 each ticket (#marriedlife) by flying another airline. I was so determined in my loyalty that I forfeited $200, just so I could be eligible for upgrades.

In whatever it is in life, you always need to ask yourself about your loyalty: Is it worth it? Do all the dollars you spend being loyal come back and benefit you in a meaningful way? For me, I’m thinking no. It got to the point where I didn’t even check other airlines prices on flights; I just went to Delta.com. How much money was I losing each flight just for my loyalty? What was I really getting from all my loyalty? A shot at an upgrade that I rarely got?

I’m certainly rethinking my loyalty and so should you!

Thanks so much for reading! Here’s a few more you might enjoy:

Remembering to enjoy your money

Getting more vacation out of your vacation

How I earn $900 annually in rewards with a credit card