struggling to get started :,(

InsertWittyName

mandymoo86 wrote: »

so in the end my child benefit money went on rubbish

I would tend to agree with that too!

I'll not comment on the individual spends as I can see from your own comments you've already judged yourself on which were needed and which weren't.

I would suggest the following:

• Create yourself an accurate SOA (Statement Of Affairs) so you can see where your money is being spent on regular bills etc.

• Keep a spending diary (a small notebook will do), carry it around with you and every time you spend anything, log it immediately in the spending diary. This is an extra step in the buying cycle that will hopefully lead to the following decision needing to be made...

• Do you NEED or WANT to make a purchase. Ask yourself this every time before you buy something. I agree with your reward for the daughter and paying your mum back (and even maybe the bacon.. everyone needs bacon ) but the rest of your purchases were WANTS and not NEEDS.

• Set yourself an achievable target. The £600 overdraft can be gone in 3 months if you pay £200 per month toward it. 4 months for £150 per month and 6 months £100 per month. Personally I would go for the £150 per month for 4 months option but I don't know your personal circumstances well enough to give accurate advice.

Do you have more debts other than the £600 overdraft?

gargrave50

For what's its worth its not easy getting started.

Saving pennies wasn't exactly addictive to begin with, but I got into making money e.g. ebaying etc and that's what got me started.

Once I started making extra cash I started getting somewhere with the smaller debts. Then as I was working so hard to make the extra cash, it became harder to part with . That's where I got into "not spending".

A spending diary is good, but you have to use it in the way its intended. Anyone can write down everything they buy, but the point of the diary is to examine your spending habits. By writing it down its supposed to mean you think about how vital that purchase is, not just buy it then think about it later! Good luck, but to be honest you have to be in the right frame of mind for your lightbulb moment.

Trust me - that advice comes from someone who had many a lightbulb moment, without the enthusiasm to follow it through. Until just a few years ago. My life is very different now .

celiacelia226

Spent within the affordable range, so it is quite good.The so-called debt-free Well

mandymoo86

i do have more debts then the overdraft about 1500 worth which i am in the process of sorting out payments plans with them all

mandymoo86

celiacelia226 wrote: »

Spent within the affordable range, so it is quite good.The so-called debt-free Well

it was spent within the range but then i had no money for my phone bill to come out the following day

confusedmamtobe

also i bank with natwest and i rang them up saying that i was attempting to pay the overdraft off and as i was the interest was just undoing the hard work sooo they gave me a chance to pay it off with stopping the interest/ charges x