***For Anyone New in January***

Oneday77

To everyone new here this month welcome.
This site is always full of advice and pointers and no-one will every jump on your situation and berate you.
If you think it is all too much to handle, it isn't. Money causes stress and hardship for millions of people but if you work on it every hole has a ladder out. The people here will support you through it and put you in the right direction of help.

I started this thread not really to give comprehensive advice but to make you aware of a couple of things. These being: -
1) The biggest help for yourself and asking for help is to fill out a SoA (Statement of Accounts/Affairs) which can be found on www.makesenseofcards.co.uk/soacalc.html . People then will understand the situation and help with the budgeting.
2) Probably the most important point is that if you post and don't appear to get much help. Please don't take it personally, everyone on here is very helpful and post in their own leisure time. At the moment with the weather and extra distractions less regulars may visit the board just now but they will not be ignoring or viewing your situation with any less importance than others.
Also as it's January many more people find it a horrible month due to early pay December with a long month and they review their cash flow so there are a lot more new people to help out.
Lurking and sharing experiences with each other helps to inspire and motivate changes to get to being a DFW
Again WELCOME and pull up a chair as the 2010 DFW Board is here :beer:

Cooky667

Pleasure to be here

bugbabe1970

lovely thread! x

Numpty_Monkey

Well said Oneday:T

savingmummy

I would like to welcome and say hello.
I have had nothing but help, advise and friendly chats - quite new myself!
The SOA has helped me no end and the snowballing site.
http://www.whatsthecost.co.uk/snowball.aspx

rictus123

Can this be made a sticky please?

savingmummy

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=107280

This the dfw form sticky which has the soa link and other info x

Cooky667

This place has been such a great help to me already to face up to the problem, already made a start on sorting out my debt by putting a budget together.....also trying to find things I'd be willing to part with on ebay.

Sending my old phone off to fonebank later

doing as much overtime as I can and will be changing my car insurance on the 20th, will also be doing this via the best cashback deal I can find:)

This forum has helped me so much already and ive only been here a few days! Awesome! Thanks everyone

Oneday77

I know with out this site my head would still be in the sand up to my ankles. I just know how bad it can feel when things pile on and there doesn't look like an end to it. I just wish I had been paying attention and found here 4-5 years ago.
Never mind it is on my check everyday list and more often than not I spend 1-2 hours lurking and sticking my nose in every so often hopefully providing help

Cialilerin

Thanks for this. I have been viewing this site for a couple of months but have finally decided to cop on to myself and sort my finances out. Started by doing my soa and have started a diary here to ensure that I do something about it.

I've already become a moneysaving bore - if any one mentions shopping on the internet, I automatically ask what cash back site they used - I aim to convert all my friends/family eventually:D

Oneday77

Cialilerin wrote: »

Thanks for this. I have been viewing this site for a couple of months but have finally decided to cop on to myself and sort my finances out. Started by doing my soa and have started a diary here to ensure that I do something about it.

I've already become a moneysaving bore - if any one mentions shopping on the internet, I automatically ask what cash back site they used - I aim to convert all my friends/family eventually:D

I think my workmates are getting very jealous. All I do is pass on advice I find on here and they think I am a dodger . I don't mind as I am doing my bit, if they don't listen then it's not my money their spending/wasting.