Buy nothing for a month challenge

rictus123

http://uk.askmen.com/money/investing_300/342_buy-nothing-month.html

The link above really just states the obvious. Petrol, food and bills is as much as you are allowed. Going to run it starting on Monday the 1st of August. Its only 31 days folks! My expenses will be

• Digs - £100
• Phone - £45
• Fuel - £160
• Loans- £330.62
• Credit card - £50 ( will clear start of September with all money saved by this challenge)

So i will not have any money owed on credit card or overdraft for first time since i probably got my first card just after i turned 18 and im now 20!

• Total outgoings = £685.62...that will be my lowest spending month in at least 2 years!!

31 days...no money for going out,food,clothes,random stuff etc just the bare bone esstentials! Got beer in at my house and beer at gfs plus we are on a major health kick just now making most of summer going on lots of walks etc(best thing being cost = £0! ) Whos with me?!!



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MattSS

Won't be joining but wanted to wish you good luck - Here's to a CC-free September

rictus123

Thanks Matt! Hopefully if i do it Aug, il miss out September and have a bash in October!! Extreme moneysaving but will be reaping the rewards!!

theticketinspector

Hi there, I think I might just join you. Great idea and would be nice to save a whole month's wage!

rictus123

Go for it, even if one or two fall at the final hurdle and spend a little its still going to have saved alot of money i bet!! Might have been easier a week at a time but i want to go for the full month. Itl help find out the things i miss that i spend money on and the things i dont. The things i dont will be getting stopped for good.

rictus123

Just watched a programme on bbc 3 called "poor kids", all about child poverty in the UK. All the child benifits were eaten up by dmp payments and food. Barely even money for school clothes...yet most had hdtvs...hmmm. However it showed kids at 16 with nothing and did absolute nothing. At least i would have work all day and tv/dvds/internet at night! I can EASY do this! Might follow it on until December just to get my debt free date forward to then as opposed to January! Will wait and see! SO motivated to do this, cannot see how i can fail!

theticketinspector

Yeah, I'm really getting into the idea now. Wondering where I can cut back. I'm hoping to cut spending especially the money I waste while at work - sandwiches for me every day. Still got my cineworld membership so if all else fails at least I can sit in the pics every night!

Asiacat

One of the good things about taking up this challenge is that if you can manage it for one month you may never slip back into your spendthrift ways again.

Most neuro linguistic programming agree that it takes 30 days to make or break a habit.

If you want to start a new good habit (frugality, exercise, knowledge expansion) or break an existing bad habit(drinking, cigarettes, gambling etc). once you get through the first 30 days you have the behavioural change for life.

I'm not for one minute you go through the rest of your life spending on only essential items, that would be depriving yourself of many of the things the wonderful gift of life has to offer, but it may well open your eyes to many of the things you can do without, without in any way reducing your enjoyment of life.

Good luck!

Learning2Budget

Good luck with it. Sounds like a good way to clear your debts. Please keep us updated.
Very interesting about that neuroliguistic programming.
L2B.x

determined_new_ms

I did a version of this in Jan - although a less hardcore version! I only spent £27 on spending money - I did buy food though! - and we made sure we did lots of free things. Murphey's law beat me though as I our aerial broke which cost me £200 & I had to wipe my savings out on my car £1300 :eek: but it was a good experience. I'll do it again later in the yeat but want to wait unti after the summer. Good luck! :beer:

painted_lady

A lot of my months are like this with all income Going on debt. Can't join this month with school hols but maybe for your October challenge. Good luck.