“Let it go”, move on and start enjoying life

looking-up_2

Hi short bird, nice of you to pop by.

RE: books. I sell on Green Met. and Ebay but haven’t tried Am*zon. Unfortunately, books don’t fetch very much now-a-days and postage is quite high. I did join readitswapit which is great. It’s a swap website where you swap books you’ve read for ones you haven’t. The only downside is instead of having piles of books you’ve read…you then have piles of books you haven’t read. That is, the numbers don’t reduce. I’ve come a long way in the last few years though. Previously, even if I’d read a book, I couldn’t part with it. I’m much better now…mainly due to lack of space. Currently, I’m batching books into Authors and selling as little joblots.

I do the odd bootsale but only when the weather is certain to be sunny. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get out once the sun returns on a more consistent level.

I used to buy/sell collectables as a business but the market died a few years back and hence why I bought the other business. I have a fair bit of stock left but probably not enough to fill a specific vintage stand. I’m listing a little bit at a time on Ebay but it’s very slow selling. In the current economic climate, people don’t seem to have any excess money to spend on collecting type hobbies.

Clothes seem to be selling well…so I’m concentrating on that at the moment.

Re: Credit card. I think my main problem is that I don’t have a regular income so am worried that if I use any excess funds to pay off my credit card…I may not then have enough to pay my essential bills the following month. The plan is as soon as I have enough for a month ahead, then I will pay the rest in the CC but I never seem to get to that point. I’m looking for a permanent part-time job. Once I find one and then have a predictable income, I’d feel more comfortable in Pading.

One thing I need to address is my credit card spending. I’ve been doing pretty well controlling my cash spending but have a bit of a blind spot when it comes the old cc.

I mainly only put postage and supermarket/petrol spends on it. Postage –can’t do anything about and is paid by my buyers so ok. Petrol – I buy when I’m in town where it’s cheaper – so ok. However, I need to reduce the number of supermarket visits and what I buy.

I think the problem is the need to buy fruit and veg every few days and once I’m in there…I see other stuff that ends up in my basket. We have a weekly market where the fruit/veg is much cheaper but tends to be very ripe and therefore only lasts a day or so before it goes off. Anybody got any ideas?

looking-up_2

It’s been fairly stagnant on the money making front here. I’ve earned a little bit but also spent a little bit. Hence figures haven’t really changed which is frustrating. Money spends were mostly on stock so it will return to me, hopefully with a bit extra on top. I do confess to buying £4 worth of plants but they were at a charity plant sale so for a good cause, I got 2 trays at a fraction of the normal price and they brightened my mood when I look at them so well worth it. Must remember to keep watering them.

Oh yes, and I did buy a couple of balls of wool and 2 crochet hooks. I did have a bit of a wool habit, buying huge joblots of assorted oddments on ebay…but these 2 balls are the only ones purchased in the last 2 months (for grand total of 1.75), so not too bad.

I’m feeling a bit de-motivated today. Not sure why. I think I need a few things to look forward to. Plus I’ve got to that point in the month where I see a big minus figure on the 19th June and daily sales seem to be just nibbling at it. It’s a long way off and I’m sure I’ll be able to raise the money by then, but it just feels more satisfying to be crossing off days with smaller totals.

With that, I’m off to pack a few parcels and then relax for an hour in the sun whilst brewing a master plan to eat that elephant in slightly bigger chunks.

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd (Min payment again this month)
Money earned so far this month (May) £1240
Predicted balance at end of May £+300 (+350 if allow extra £50 spending money) Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th JUNE.

looking-up_2

Good news – I lost another pound and a half this week and am now within my target range – so no more weekly Sw fees. This will save me £20-25 cash a month.

All I need to do now is to stay there which to be honest, I find harder than losing the weight to start with. In the past, I have relaxed when got to target which I think is where I went wrong (twice). So I’m going to carry on eating to green/original plan and see how I do. Should be easy in the warmer weather, as long as I stay away from the ice-cream.

Its pay day tomorrow but I’ve already got my payslip so couldn’t wait to update my spreadsheet/figures.

I’ve also decided to buy myself a small MSE present tomorrow as a reward for hitting my SW target. I’m going to join the National Trust. I found a good offer with cashback, taking the annual fee down to £26.54. This will enable us to park for free when we go dog-walking in our favourite spot (saving £2 a visit). Also, this will encourage me to get out and see the stately homes nearby that I’ve been meaning to go to. Also in line with my goal of getting out more and enjoying the summer.

I’ve been reading other MSE diaries and stumbled across the Frog approach to lists. Thought I’d have a go..so today’s frog task is to make a couple of phone calls I’ve been putting off making. Here goes…

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd (Min payment again this month)
Money earned so far this month (May) £1500
Predicted balance at end of May £+359.20 (+309.20 if allow extra £50 spending money) Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th JUNE. Predicted end of June figure (-£775 doesn't include cash pocket money)

looking-up_2

1 call made - took less than 5 minutes. Why was I putting this off?
Ended up with 3 days work and offer of a free coffee.

1 to go (the more tricky one)..trying to persuade a dealer to buy my car.

here I go...

looking-up_2

Other phone call done yesterday. He made a rough (bit too low) offer but I asked for another £500. I’ve given it a spruce up – so will just cross fingers my persuasive skills do the trick, when he comes to view it. There’s still a fair bit of profit for them, so should be able to do it. I would sell privately but it has a complicated finance deal on it (lesson learnt there) which means it would fail a HPI check. Dealers understand how to clear it so not a problem for them.

I’ve checked my bank account, updated my spreadsheet and paid by cc early (min payment). I forgotten my anti-virus software purchase but estimates weren’t too far out.

My first attempt at the frog strategy seemed to work well, so I’m going to keep going. I normally have daily lists but tend to attack the easy items first, just to cross off as many as possible. There is normally a frog task in there but it rarely gets done…and then the negative thought of it builds in my mind. So instead of it hanging over me and ruining the day/week…I’m going to attack it first and get it out of the way.

Today’s frog task: List on Ebay a rather large item hogging the floor space in the conservatory. It’s been sitting in there for months but I need to find a way to ship it. Yesterday, making my calls gave me a boost of confidence and I identified a few couriers that wouldn’t been too expensive. I even took photos…but ran out of time before work. So today…get the listing finished and up there.

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd (Min payment again this month)
Money earned so far this month (May) £1500
Predicted balance at end of May £+313.03 (+363.03 if allow extra £50 spending money) Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th JUNE. Predicted end of June figure (-£801.44 doesn't include cash pocket money)

looking-up_2

Frog task done - just a matter of waiting to see if anybody is interested.

Dealer has increased his offer by £250 and I've decided to take it. So an injection of cash will be gratefully received in about a week or so. First action will be to pay off my credit card and anything left into an Isa. The latter will mean I will think twice about spending it and keep my mind focused on earning enough in the month to cover outgoings, rather than keep dipping into savings.

Anyway, the sofa calls.

looking-up_2

Thought I’d post today as a way of pausing and recording May’s achievements. I was tempted to cross things off and move on to June, but feel I should take some time to digest what I’ve achieved this month.

I’ve only spent £110.68 more than I earned this month. You may think this isn’t something worth celebrating but this is the closest I’ve come to balancing the monthly books in the last 5 years. Obviously, the aim is to swing the scales the other way and start to rebuild my savings, but it’s a start. Also, £50 of that is cash spending money that I withdrew this morning which should see me though the 1st week in June. Tuesday is my highest spend day of the week and £44 is still in my purse.

I’ve opened a new ISA in preparation….to focus my mind.

I’ve sold my car which should pay off my credit card bill and start off my Isa savings. Strict rule though – if it goes in the ISA, it doesn’t come out for at least a year. I can’t have any more hard earned savings disappear on routine bills.

Slimming world – I’m now at my target weight (another 2.5 pound lost this week), so can go along to class for free.

I’ve joined National trust so loads of historical adventures for free. Must stay away from cream teas to protect purse and waistline.

Anyway, I’m going to have a relaxing evening before producing a new set of goals for June.

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd – will clear in June.
Money earned so far for June credit £166.84.
Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th JUNE. Predicted end of June figure (-£701.63 doesn't include cash pocket money £150-£200)

looking-up_2

New month, new challenges.

- Aim is to earn £1500 this month. I find switching things around every so often keeps things interesting, so worked out this equates to £50 a day. I’ve set up a couple of extra columns in my spreadsheet (running daily earning total and target – where I should be each day). A dear friend of mine is always saying I over-analyse but if it keeps me motivated, then I can’t see the harm.

- Pay off credit card with car sale proceeds.

- Sell my endowment and spread money between Isa and the best interest paying instant access account I can find. It’s only got a few years to run but, like most, is forecasting a very poor return. I’ve checked its predicted end value and believe I can achieve the same with a 3% interest account, plus I get access to the funds. I am going to be very strict with myself about these funds though and can’t allow any dipping. I may setup an emergency fund which I’m allowed to use but perhaps put this somewhere separate.

- Send back PC that needs repairing and I have been paying an extended warranty on for several years. It’s out of date technology now but I either need to get it repaired or stop paying the warranty. It’s not much a month but unless I sort myself out, it’s going down the drain. Severe case of needing to ‘let go’, write it off and cancel the insurance. I’ve bought 2 PCs since, so why am I hanging onto this one? Madness.

- Finally, fun. Go and see family for a week. Book a few open air theatre trips for the summer so I have something to look forward to.

Anyway, I’ve got a busy day today of finishing paperwork, a long work day and squeezing post office and banking, so best get to it.

looking-up_2

My earn-£50-a-day challenge seems to be keeping me motivated. I’ve earned £350 so far which will hit my account on the 7th, which works out perfectly. Of course the paid part time job really helps but today is my last day, so the 2nd half of the month isn’t going to be as smooth.

Anyway, a morning of ebay listing, hand washing (whilst sun is out) and a few phone calls, then my last afternoon of paid work, hopefully still in the sunshine.

Frog task – phone endowment company.

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd – will clear in June.
Money earned so far in June credit £350 (7th)
Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th June (need £75.67 to get through).
Predicted end of June figure (-£275.15 doesn't include cash pocket money £150-£200)

looking-up_2

Absolutely gorgeous day here. Yesterday, I did all my hand-washing and its drying nicely. I love ethnic cotton skirts and dresses but they tend not to be colour-fast and have to be hand-washed. Therefore, they end up living most of their lives at the bottom of the washing basket. Note to self – stop buying ethnic clothes and possibly look at re-selling the ones I have.

Short-bird – You’d be glad to hear that I’ve just sold my first book on Am*zon. I had your suggestion to have a go at selling there, ticking over at the back of my mind. Then, a few days later, I met a new friend who started telling me about their online bookshop on the river and how easier than Ebay it was. So, I thought – well, I’ve been told twice about this – I must properly investigate the idea. After a bit of fiddling to get an account up and running – I listed half a dozen new books and 1st one sold today.

It’s a hard back and although thin, quite large so I won’t make much (after postage) but it was virtually a freebie and it is no longer taking up room on my bookshelf…so a good result. There are loads of these books on ebay and they tend to go unsold, so the switch has paid off.
Part time job finished yesterday with no extension likely. I need to ramp up my sales if I’m going to stay afloat, until the next employment opportunity comes along.

I’ve re-checked my spreadsheet as my figures seemed to drastically jump downwards yesterday for no reason. Unfortunately, found a corrupt formula and they have returned to a more accurate forecast. A couple of sales today but I’ve got a return to process so am leaving funds in pp until that comes back. My Isa has appeared in my online banking list and I’ve transfer a fiver in to start it off. I won’t transfer any more until I’ve paid off the cc.

Anyway, best get back to listing but I will alternate with half an hour slots on the sun lounger whilst we have this gorgeous weather.

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Current Debts : £1150 credit cd – will clear in June.
Money earned so far in June credit £350 (7th)
Currently due to go overdrawn on 19th June
Predicted end of June figure (-£509.34 doesn't include cash pocket money £150-£200)