Feeling a little rubbish!

oopsadaisydoddle

I have another thread about how I'm aiming to get my credit card debt way before the 0% ends and am going to reduce my entertainment budget in order to do so which means it should be clear by feb '13.

I'm getting a little nervous though because I'm so used to having tha extra to spend...i really want to do it but scared of slip ups! how do people motivate themselves?!

I've found that taking the cash out and having it in my purse, it's making me more conscious of what I'm spending and am also doing a diary. I really do worry about feeling 'restrained' though - it's not something I'm used to and scared I will rebel so to speak by just thinking what the heck, let's spend!!

Just need a kick up the butt I think!!x

cwal

Hi,
Just wanted to say stick with it - Feb 13 isn't far away!!
Something I've been doing recently is selling stuff on ebay (taking advantage of the free listings weekends) it's a great way of earning a bit of extra money - is this something you could do and then use this money for your entertainment budget? That way you wouldn't need to feel guilty about the occasional treat!

Good luck!

mildredalien

Yep, sticking to a budget takes some getting used to! It's important to remind yourself of all the reasons you want and need to stick to it though.

Something that worked for me was making a list of all the negative/bad/unhelpful things I would try and use as excuses not to stick to my budget, and then thinking of counter arguments for all of them. Or just note down all the reasons and stick it somewhere obvious

There are also loads of things you can do for free or for cheap, if you look for them! Maybe spend some time getting creative and hunting for bargains, finding a great deal can be a massive boost when you are trying to save money (just make sure it's still within budget, spending £200 on something you can't afford just cos it's half price is probably not a good idea :P)

Aryndeneth

Don't think of it as being restrained. Think of it as taking control of your finances and being a bit stricter than usual for a few months in order to get rid of the debts that are taking up your spare money. Once those debts are gone, the money you've been using to pay them off will be yours again to put towards the things you want without building up more debts again. I know those "few" months seems like a long time now but, one way or another, Feb 2012 is going to come around. Just think how much better you'll feel thinking "I'm so glad I sorted my debts" rather than "If only I'd done it, I'd be free by now"

I say this as someone whose debt has taken a good few years to sort out and now, just two months from being debt free, I promise it's a better feeling than anything you can buy. Sorry if that sounds a bit cliche but it's really true :-) Good luck and keep going!!

oopsadaisydoddle

Thanks ever so much for replying.

Your posts have definitely lifted me. I'm going to explain to my eldest DS that things are going to be 'controlled' for a few months!

I do like a challenge so will embrace it and hopefully it will become 'second nature' and then maybe I could carry on after the necessary months and have even more pennies!!