FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE part 3, July - Dec 2010

NualaBuala

pink_numbers wrote: »

Hi, I joined this challenge at the start of the year, wanting to lower my total outgoing from 24k to 6k. I fell off the wagon royally earlier this year, but NualaBuala has encouraged me to come back here.

I've gone totally over my original goal of 6K, but I am on target for about 9K outgoing this year, which is still a lot less than I used to spend. I've tightened down on everything, and made considerable savings all around. However, a few months back on the wagon, and I'm already feeling like "what's next?" I feel like I have done almost everything I can for now, and now I count the days between paydays.

Please don't get me wrong. I LOVE my new thrifty life. I love that I am not wasting my cash, getting the most out of my money, and enjoy doing all the thrifty things from baking to knitting. I think it's the fact that I've ran out of things to 'cut' and now, I just have to live out my cuts. Does that make sense?

How does everyone cope with feeling demotivated?

Hurrah! :T You won't have to read much before you see you're not alone. It's so hard, isn't it? We just have to do the best we can in our individual circumstances and you are doing better than most with your thrifty ways from the sounds of it. I know exactly what you mean about running out of things to cut and I'll bet others do too.
Am pottering around getting ready for bed but keep reading more MSE! Will catch up tomorrow.

Nightie night all xxx

Frugaldom

Pink_numbers, my motivation comes from simply not allowing myself access to anything more than my challenge amount. My savings goal is a humungously daunting task and, at times, looks totally impossible to achieve. But I have been issuing myself the £4k challenge for several years, making no allowances for inflation. Instead, I alter my spending habits accordingly and attempt to grow a little more fruit & veg each year in the hope that it's enough. The past couple of years have been a challenge just sticking to the challenge but I can truly appreciate that it's worth every minute of it when big events come along - like DD's 21st then her engagement party and then her wedding plus DS's 21st - all major expenses that were met with savings and have, since, been recouped. I get a great deal of satisfaction out of knowing I was able to afford these things without incurring any debt. Likewise, the relief that comes from knowing all debts have been cleared, you dance to nobody;s tune but your own. In comparison to many, I may not appear to have a social life, by their understanding of the word, nor might I indulge in takeaways, gym memberships, health or beauty related luxuries, not even holidays - but life is like one long holiday when I know I have everything up to date, everything bought and paid for and working the hours that I want doing something I like doing from home. Plus, I have very good friends that I see quite often and neighbours that feel like extended family. It's all about priorities - separating genuine needs from unneccesary wants. It's getting more and more difficult as each year passes and, at some point, no doubt, I will need to lift the limit on my maximum spend amount. In the meantime, however, thinking ahead to what has still to be achieved, whilst keeping an eye on what has already been done, IS my motivation. It does flag occasionally but by ensuring I have no direct access to my savings, I am not tempted to squander them by lining the pockets of others. I pay my taxes, I pay my national insurance, I have exempted myself from claiming any benefits simply BECAUSE I live a frugal life, but that is what I prefer. If it all goes wrong, I can always blow the lot on a cruise and start again, living within my means and helping my family in whatever way they need.

Hope this helps.

Cheryl, hope all went well with your first race. Your dedication to your running & fitness programme can only be admired. If OH couldn't see that he was involved with such a focused and determined person in the first place and can't accept that fact, let him go his own way - he would never have supported your ambitions in the long run, pardon the pun. Keep on running!

pink_numbers

NualaBuala - thanks again for encouraging me to come back. I have been reading a few pages back and it is so motivating to see everyone else trying so hard. As we (OH and I) seem to be the only ones making our finance this tight in real life, it is so easy to feel alone. I had forgotten what great support we all have in this thread! So thank you for pointing me back to here

Frugaldom - thank you ever so much for taking your time to write such an extended reply. I really appreciate it. Your reply has really helped me see the point of this challenge again. You are right, all of this IS our motivation isn't it. I'm no way near as diciplined as you but I aspire to be like you one day and I've always enjoyed reading your website (particularly the chickens )
May I just ask you about something? You say you ensure that you have no direct access to your money... is that ALL of your savings? Because I would find that scary to do! I have a large emergency fund that I do not touch unless it's one of the things I have pre-listed, as well as an account for putting all my 'pound here, pound there saved' money (money I saved from my monthly budgets) that I dip into occasionally. I think I would feel very 'bare' without these accounts. I'm aware though that it's the 'pound here pound there' account I tend to dip into too much because I think 'well I have the money saved'... so the balance on that account never goes up by much! I don't blow it on stupid things, I have so far bought a hoover to replace a broken one, and a electric mincer so that we can make our own sausages (that was more of a want but it allowed us to be a little bit closer to how we wanted to live - making as much as we can ourselves)

How do you handle the 'well I have the money' reasoning when you see something you want/need?

grandma247

Frugaldom has a can called billy that that kind of money goes into.

see this post http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=8496837&postcount=3178
scroll down to get an explanation

slowlyfading

One more day to go! :j :j

The bad news, I think I might have a chest infection and it's getting more painful by the day I've got a doctors appointment but it's not until Tuesday

grandma247

Sf so sorry you are not well. Could you not get an emergency appointment?

slowlyfading

I'll just wait now I think

Savvy_sewing

pink_numbers wrote: »

Hi, I joined this challenge at the start of the year, wanting to lower my total outgoing from 24k to 6k. I fell off the wagon royally earlier this year, but NualaBuala has encouraged me to come back here.

I've gone totally over my original goal of 6K, but I am on target for about 9K outgoing this year, which is still a lot less than I used to spend. I've tightened down on everything, and made considerable savings all around. However, a few months back on the wagon, and I'm already feeling like "what's next?" I feel like I have done almost everything I can for now, and now I count the days between paydays.

Please don't get me wrong. I LOVE my new thrifty life. I love that I am not wasting my cash, getting the most out of my money, and enjoy doing all the thrifty things from baking to knitting. I think it's the fact that I've ran out of things to 'cut' and now, I just have to live out my cuts. Does that make sense?

How does everyone cope with feeling demotivated?

Think about it this way, You have reduced your spendings by £15,000 thats a STAGGERING amount.!! You deserve a pat on the back.

If you cannot reduce anyfurther, then you have arrived in your own little world of Frugaldom.
If you can afford to live on the £9K then thats fine.
If you have debts that are keeping you awake at night, then you need to find a way of Increasing your income, just while you deal with those debts, but that is of course easier to say then actually do.

I fell off the wagon when my son came back home, my care of my granddaughter became permanant. But my misdemeanors may not have to be wrapped knuckles.
I have managed to save £750 this year! dispite everything I havent had any savings in 23years! And the only debt I do have is a debt that was a huge utility bill, when all my family were sharing a huge house with me. It should have been all of our debts! so although I have lost my way, I still feel that I have achieved so much, and therefore I am not looking at it as a failure. Just as another learning curve.

Put your chin up. Look at all that you have achieved in 10 short months. If you can keep stable you will be entering the new year, with a comfort rather then with a dread.!:D

ChinaTea

Not been around much the last couple of weeks. Been really stressful few weeks and health as usual suffers. Mother has been ill and she is not the most agreeable person at the best of times. That also means I’ve been travelling the 50+ miles to see here mainly for my Dad’s sake as he is not well either. Laptop had virus that took a week to sort and I’ve been lost without it. Made me realise that most of my life is on it and how much easier the internet makes life.

Breadmaker died on me after 3 years of faithful service. I haven’t bought bread for the best part of those 3 years but decided to make it by hand using the mixer to do the kneading. Why didn’t I do this before??? I’ve always just used the BM to make the dough and then baked it in the oven as I don’t like the shape oe texture in the BM but this takes an hour and half electricity plus the time spent measuring ingredients. It only takes 5 minutes to measure the ingredients, 10mins kneading and I have just covered the mixer bowl with a cloth until the dough has risen then another minute to knock it back and put it in the loaf tin, 20 minutes in the oven. This saves an hour’s worth of electric so can’t be bad and the bread is so much nicer.

Still trying to be as frugal as possible but have let filling in the spreadsheet slip but I have a full to bursting freezer and store cupboard and a small emergency fund that wouldn’t have happened without this challenge. For the first time ever I have Christmas sorted in October, I have all the pressies made mostly jams/marmalade for adults and snowman soup for children. I still have 4 Christmas puddings from last year I got a bit carried away with making them and gave 5 as presents and ate 2 with DS and DGS. Just need to make a couple of cakes but have all the ingredients bought and will do these after Nov 5th.

Had a phone call from the GPs surgery today that the blood tests I had done on Tuesday need to be repeated next week but they won’t say why over the phone. Hoping it’s nothing to be concerned about and not too worried about it.

Hope everyone is OK, I’ll go and catch up with some of the posts now.

Puddleglum

slowlyfading wrote: »

One more day to go! :j :j

The bad news, I think I might have a chest infection and it's getting more painful by the day I've got a doctors appointment but it's not until Tuesday

That's the trouble with teachers - they wait until they are on holiday to be ill!

Enjoy your holiday, the hardest half term is behind you.:beer: