Working to a ten year plan

Ninno820

End of week one this "pay month" and there's been substantial progress. As well as the back pay I have been able to bank £140 - ebay sales, cancelled course fee and books on zapper. Consequently I am looking at reducing the overdraft by £540 which is brilliant. I am concentrating on the od first since I want to get to the pont where I know exactly what is left over each month - easier to see when its positive!

In terms of my targets on page one for the end of the month I thought that I should post an update:
So - by May 23rd - my targets are:-

1.[STRIKE] Lose 1 stone
[/STRIKE] I have lost 9 lbs so far so am very hopeful here
2. Increase steps taken per day to 10000 on a regular basis. - struggling against the time and weather here
3. [STRIKE]Save £300 for holiday in October
[/STRIKE]4. [STRIKE]Save £300 for holiday in Summer
[/STRIKE]5. Repay 3% of debt - the additional pay mentioned above suggests that the debt repyament could be 3.13% - without any reductions on cc

So - all in all - its the end of a good week and i am feeling very positive.

Ninno820

oops - forgot to post last week! Financially things are not going too badly and I am hoping to break the 3% barrier by the 23rd May (£1929 paid off since jan 1st). If I pull this off then it would be through the back pay rather than any great ebay sales. In fact the ebay sales have not been going so well recently and I have to get back on track with those. I also have a table top sale booked for next weekend so am hoping to bring some funds in through that.

On the down side, work has been a hassle recently and the diet has gone to pot so have to get back on that train. I also have been coveting a decent sewing machine cabinet and layed out the hoilday cash on one. I shouldn't I know but at least its something that I used my savings for rather than go further into debt so thats progress I guess. I also have worked out that I have time to save up for my holiday again so its not a disaster.
On a non financial matter - I had my first celebrity tweet yesterday. I love the idea that we are all connected no matter what our job / life is.

Cheers to anyone who finds me here

Ninno820

Afternoon all - its just 4 days off payday and I am beginning to get a feel for how its going to go. According to my spreadsheet its looking like this months figure will be a whopping 3.25% reduction - this would mean that I have paid £2095.32 off since 1st Jan and a mind boggling £599.01 off this month! I am trying not to perform a triple somersault - but i am really chuffed if I get somewhere near that.

On a more saner note my pay this month should reveal how much extra I am paying in my pension contributions and how much I have gained / lost in the pay rise / pension contribution roundabout. I am hoping for a break even in the deal.

So - I am now off to caress my new sewing cupboard, glory in the fact that I have saved up for it rather than racked up a bigger credit card bill and dream of breaking that 3% barrier. I am also taking some stuff to a table top sale this weekend so will hope that there is some more cash to add to next month's efforts.

Target for end of June - pay off a total of £361 in the month to bring me to a £999 - breaking that 4 figure barrier - ambitious eh!!

Ninno820

Okay - so its the end of month five and I am really pleased with my progress.

I have paid off 3.13% of my debt (£2012.39), saved nearly £300 for my summer holiday and saved £489 for a sewing cupboard which I have bought - but haven't loaded the credit card up as I would have done this time last year.

My 1st overdraft is still negative - £1356.99 - and I am focussing on reducing this to zero. The interest rate is not high but I really need to see a positive end of month bank balance so that I can move surplus to other debts.

Income from ebay and book sales is dwindling - due to both time constraints and a reduction of items to sell. However I will continue to soldier on.

If you've stumbled across this rambling - then thankyou for reading.

Ever_Hopeful_3

Hi
I've just read your diary, you are doing so well, keep it up. £2000 plus in five months that's excellent, keep going strong and those debts stand no chance. Well done again

Ninno820

Thankyou - my lbm may have come late but at least its come. Hope that you are doing well.

Ninno820

This week has been less focussed - using the debit card to buy shopping rather than cash etc. I have even lasped terribly on the ebay front - so additional cash is hardly winging its way to me - note to self - must do better!!

Ninno820

I am trying to be upbeat! Although the spending is less restrained than normal I am on top of the house (well - ish) and have cleaned out the fridge. Its a sign of my bad habits resurfacing that i had to throw out mouldy food from the fridge. When I started this back in January I had a half empty fridge - even made a list of yoghurts with sell be dates so taht they were ate all in date!

HappyNow

Hey Ninno, you've been gone a long time. Hope you're OK and haven't fallen off the MSE wagon

Ninno820

Hi Happy now - yes I did fall off the MSe waggon for a while and did some slight damage but am now hitching my horses again and getting ready to join that mule train.

I guess that I took my eye off the ball for a while and slipped back into my old routine. Still - better late than never!