Is anyone starting from scratch???

LaLa_22

Hiya everyone!

davenport thats a great idea, booking the train journeys in advance to save money - good forward thinking!!

Last week until I get paid...which means staying in this coming weekend! Was a bit naughty and bought a new pair of boots yesterday though...only 26 pounds so not too bad (and they are amaaaazing haha)

So yep, packed lunches to work and a weekend in...then I can assess how much Ive actually saved this month. Please god let it be a lot!

xxx

kingdavid2012

I've been saving money since i got my first job.I,unlike most people,don't find it difficult to practise thrifty.Born in a frugal family I'm taken into this habit.

davenport151

Hi KingDavid- -any hints for those of us that took the long way round in this journey of moneysaving?

The_Saver_2

Hi

I hope you don't mind me sneaking in! I have been saving for years and have found the key to success is identifying what works for YOU and what doesn't.

What didn't work (for me):

Mystery shopper - this will buy you a free meal (KFC/MacDonalds etc) but you only earn about £4 for your time. The assignments were never at a location or time where I could incorporate something else so I ended up making a special journey just to earn £4 and eating food that I wouldn't normally eat. I also found that the paperwork you needed to complete was very lengthy and being paid £4 was not worth the overall time I took doing this.

Websites where you get paid for following links/watching videos etc - I ended up getting heaps of junk mail from doing this. Also, I weighed up the money I earned with the amount of time I had to sit at the computer to do this and decided it wasn't worth it for a few £s.


What does work (for me):

Before I go grocery shopping or go out for lunch/dinner, I always check on here for any money off vouchers. There's also a section which tells you if there are any vouchers if newspapers/magazines.

I use Topcashback and Quidco for anything that I need to buy online and for things like car/house insurance, mobile phone contracts etc. By going via these sites, it only adds a few extra seconds to the process but it has saved me loads of money. (NB: Make sure the manufacturer's price is competitive/cheap in the first place and treat the cashback as a windfall).

I pick blackberries locally. Blackberries are incredibly expensive in the shops but doing this means I get to have a walk, I use it towards my 5 a day and I save money.

I always meal plan so that nothing gets thrown away because it's reached it's sell by date and that I can make the most of special offers.

I stretch meals by adding things like veg and/or lentils. I've managed to get 1 more meal by doing this which I then freeze and have when my OH is not home for dinner. Some people use porridge oats to do this but I find it doesn't add any flavour to the meal like veg and lentils do. Examples of meals I stretch - chilli, spaghetti bolognese, shepherd's pie, spicy pork, casseroles.

I keep on top of where my money is and move money to accounts paying better rates.

I buy presents for people when I see them eg I bought Serena Williams' autobiography in Poundland the other day for a friend who is a fan of hers. I had to keep the book about 6 months before it was her birthday but I have somewhere I keep presents like these so they don't get lost.

I submit letters to women's magazines/local newspapers etc. This takes only a couple of minutes of your time - although obviously there's no guarantee your article will be published. I earned £50 in M&S vouchers recently, simply by writing in with a question for the newspaper's finance expert. It took me 2 minutes to think of a question and to write and send the e-mail.

I hope my list may help some of you. My overriding rule is to weigh up the amount of time I spend on something with the earnings/savings it will give me/generate. If I have to spend 30 minutes doing a survey or clicking on links just to earn 10p then I won't do it as I could save 10p by spending 5 minutes thinking of a cheap meal to have for dinner.

The_Saver_2

One thing I forgot to mention:

Starting the whole saving process can be quite daunting if you've never done it before. I know some people start with an SOA (basically, your starting point - income, outgoings, loans etc).

What I would recommend is to do an SOA as best you can. Don't get daunted by it as it may put you off and stop you from saving.

If you get a bit overwhelmed by it then pick just one area of your life and focus on that first.Your aim is to identify:

a) how much you're spending on it

b) ways to reduce your spending so that you can put the money you've saved to one side.

A few examples of areas you could look at

Mobile phone
Clothes/make-up
Takeaways/meals out

TinyDancer_2

Im starting from scratch.
ive tried saving money before and i was useless at it but after coming on the forum and using the website. i feel like i can do it.
im just trying to being positive and see how far i can get with the savings.

davenport151

Thanks for those tips,The Saver.
Thats the thing finding what works for you. I do the meal planning. I take a list and stick to it (even totting up the amount as I shop sometimes!).

Brokeattheminute

Can i join please?Am putting at least £200 a month starting from this Friday 7th September with a target of around £2000 by next May or June.Will be interesting to see how i get on!

davenport151

Hi brokeattheminute
I know the feeling! Welcome along!
When I get the chance I will post up my stats as well.

Brokeattheminute

Put £250 into the credit union today to start my savings plan off so now have a total of £257.01Have car ins in November so going to start putting some money away for it so i dont have to put it on my c/c when the time comes to pay it. Hopefully will be able to put another £200 in my savings acount in a few wks time.