Congratulations! If you’ve made it this far, it means you’ve successfully applied for a credit card. Well, almost. If you’re reading this with an express interest to put the knowledge imparted within the hallowed walls of your browser screen to use, it means you probably attempted to apply for a credit card, but were not, per se, immediately successful.

Never fear! Just about every bank has a reconsideration line that you absolutely must, under any circumstance, call at least multiple times before giving up on your credit card application.

I have been initially rejected from numerous credit cards, but I have never, ever been ultimately denied a credit card.* (except this one time when I applied for a Chase Freedom card, forgetting I was already a joint account holder on my Mom’s Chase Freedom. Silly me.)

*This probably means I could be applying to way more credit cards than I already am (if you’re not failing at all, chances are you’re not pushing your limits enough), but I have way more points than I know what to do with already, so what the hell, it’s alright.

The secret is this: when a bank issues you a letter saying they weren’t able to immediately approve your application, what they really mean is they would just like you to call and say some nice words to them before they approve your application.

Important note: You generally must call within 30 days of your application, or they will permanently close your application and you’ll have to apply all over again to get the card opened, which means another hard inquiry on your credit report.

Okay, so what do you do when you receive that initial rejection letter?

These are the steps you take:

1. Congratulations! You’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report since you were initially rejected for the card. (See #5 from this post here.) Go read your rejection notice carefully and follow the instructions within to get that free copy of your report.

2. Find the correct reconsideration line number to call.

3. Know why you were denied if applicable.

Then do all the strategies, like credit line transfer, closing an old account, etc.