Done it again!!

bride2be2006

I am so fed up, I was doing so well and keeping track of my spending and hardly buying anything, I hadnt used my credit cards at all and thought I was doing fine and I have totally blown it all this month and fallen off the moneysaving wagon and I am almost back up to my overdraft limit of 1200 quid which means that although i have not touched the credit cards I have spent as much as usual (probably more cos of christmas pressies I have bought) I have bought some clothes too, a coat I really needed and some tops I didnt from Matalan but i am taking the tops back today £34 worth!

I am so annoyed with myself I just have no willpower, I could just cry, I started off so well and now I am back to square one!

Please can anyone give me some good advice on how to keep motivated and just wondered if anyone else has had the same problem?

rog2

Hi B2B - Why not join moozie's spending thread - set yourself a weekly budget and post your daily spending? It has worked wonders for me. :beer:

melaniec_2

as you've acknowledged you've spent too much on Christmas presents why don't you take them back and buy cheaper ones. Set yourself a budget.

bride2be2006

Hi thanks for that, I think I will do just that, really not sure how much I need though with it being xmas, I will start on the 1st Jan I think!

(Just thought - should be how much I can afford not how much I need shouldnt it - that is where I am going wrong!!!)

melaniec_2

I also meant a budget for the christmas presents

bride2be2006

melaniec wrote:

I also meant a budget for the christmas presents

I havent actually spent that much on the pressies - I normally go mad but only bought everyone things for around a fiver this time, I have already wrapped them and given most of them out now anyway so that is not an option but I am definitely going to sort myself out with a budget for everything else from now on!

SunderlandBlackCat

Is there a good reason why you haven't cut the credit cards up?

Edit - Also can you get your overdraft limit reduced as you reduce the amount you owe?

lynsayjane

b2b, i think there might be a deeper problem here than the actual spending. perhaps you need to spend a little time thinking about WHY your spending rather than how much. do you spend when you feel down? what is it thats getting you down? i find that often when i have a spending spree there is a deeped problem than will power.

bride2be2006

lynsayjane wrote:

b2b, i think there might be a deeper problem here than the actual spending. perhaps you need to spend a little time thinking about WHY your spending rather than how much. do you spend when you feel down? what is it thats getting you down? i find that often when i have a spending spree there is a deeped problem than will power.

I really dont think there is, i just have champagne tastes and beer pockets as they say! I am really happy at the moment, I got married this year and we are very happy, I am just gonna have to get a grip and stop spending!!

climbgirl

There's loads of different ways of staying motivated and keeping to budgets on this forum - you have to choose what works for you though.

To be honest, if you don't have enough willpower to stick to a budget (because at the end of the day the only person who can stop spending is you), then you need to cut off all forms of credit. Pay off the overdraft and get rid of it. every time you pay off £100, ring up and get the limit lowered so you can't respend it.

bride2be2006

climbgirl wrote:

There's loads of different ways of staying motivated and keeping to budgets on this forum - you have to choose what works for you though.

To be honest, if you don't have enough willpower to stick to a budget (because at the end of the day the only person who can stop spending is you), then you need to cut off all forms of credit. Pay off the overdraft and get rid of it. every time you pay off £100, ring up and get the limit lowered so you can't respend it.

thanks that is a great idea and I am going to do it starting this pay day!