Answer: C. Paying your phone bill late and maxing out several credit cards. Both of these options hurt your credit. When you pay your bills late, it shows you do not have enough funds to pay for the items you have, so you are constantly in debt to what you actually should be able to afford monthly. When companies look at your credit score they take into account all bills you have and income you bring it. If you are paying bills late is shows you overspend your income. When you max out credit cards, you are using borrowed money for items you should be able to otherwise afford on your own, when this happens it also drops your credit score to show you owe more than what you bring home.