Hurdler's Race to be Mortgage-Free

Hurdler

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS wrote: »

Your PM box is full .

Fixed now.

Hurdler

Firstly - I know it's been a while... between failing shorthand, having my work docked a bit, and just thinking screw it all and spending loads on the Olympics, it's been a bit of a time.

Thanks to everyone for their comments.
Unfortunately I have to pick up my portfolio on Monday and face the class b**** who will no doubt laugh loads at the thought of my not having qualified and I will have to try and resist the urge to scream back at them that I am STILL a paid writer (even if it a lot less for the moment).

Thanks especially to Tilly who gave up an hour to chat - and I am doing what you suggested re Satan's scriptures and working through unheard obscure passages at 70wpm 2min stretches to get that stamina up.

Also to Sepa who was a great sounding board - even if she DID make me supremely jealous about a certain Royal Box!!!

I am going to start my diary anew - I have overpaid about £2500 since leaving my old company and that's been applied to my mortgage and it's coming down to about £412 from £430. Not much but every little helps.

I am also (can you believe for the first time in my career!) getting a whopping tax rebate... which will help the coffers for next month after which hopefully the tool review stuff I am doing at work will take off and I will be back to earning enough to cover outgoings.

I still have a chunk of voluntary redundancy money, but Sepa and I were chatting and I think I will keep it to one side while I try and make this freelance writing gig work.

In the mean time, Tilly's advice to look at other means might also be paying off as I interviewed someone and pitched my writing a blog exclusively for them while partaking of their £800 training for the next level of skill, which also keeps my technical skills constant so that good old-fashioned 9-5 contracting is still an option.

I am still finding it very up and down at the moment - writing for a living means words continually going round in my head, and it's a different kind of exhaustion to the stress and grind I used to have.

BUT inspired by the Olympics (had a great piece in the Huff Post about it not just being the younger generation inspired) I have been using MyFitnessPal and a FitBit Pedometer and calorie counter to be much more mindful about what I am eating, what I am burning off now that I am making myself do more exercise, and that in itself is making me a lot less wasteful and helping keep tabs on the money.

So come September, I will start my diary again... and hopefully will qualify as a journo shortly thereafter. And if I don't, well y'all know I am that bloody-minded that I will keep on until I damn well get the thing.

Mortgage_Reduction_Novice

In one post you went from down to perky and positive. It's exactly that kind of attitude that will see you though... just a case of being patient.

Also it struck me from reading your thread that you have lots of support - it gave me a warm feeling that MSE can create such a supportive community.

Best wishes.

misscousinitt

Best of British and I look forward to picking your diary up once again in September.

MCI

Lois_E

So glad to hear you're not letting it defeat you. Well done and hang in there!

gallygirl

Cooeee, just in case you haven't seen it.....

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/site/job-vacancies-and-interns#intern

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

Good find GG

Tilly x

Hurdler

Hi there - I think even allowing for a reduction in income at the moment for articles, at least I am being paid and I would be doing three months unpaid and alas as my certificate showed, I am not NCTJ qualified :-(

I'll apply and include the pieces I wrote for the Huffington Post and see what they say but right now things are busy with stuff I owed my client and of course I have damned shorthand to concentrate on for the next month.

It's lovely that you found it for me ... But I think I need to just qualify and get it done rather than spreading myself too thin, which is what I did before and it has literally cost me half my income.

gallygirl

It is paid - or at least one of them def said NMW. Go for it

Hurdler

gallygirl wrote: »

It is paid - or at least one of them def said NMW. Go for it

Gawd I'm so dim I couldn't figure out what NMW meant.
Ok will send a CV in and see how flexible they can be xx