8 year plan to retirement

Ninno820

Okay - so christmas has come and gone - and I am now home and ready to focus. Payday is the 23rd of January and I have £47.12 in my purse to see me through until then. My freezer and store cupboards are well stocked so the plan is to use the cash to buy just fruit and veg.

Each week I also want to set myself some goals - money related but also focussing on getting my life back in control.

So - week 1 :-
1. [STRIKE]Wash windows at front of house (some darlings have thrown a couple of eggs at them in my absence!).[/STRIKE]2. Make four 50th birthday cards - I need two in January and will keep two for my etsy store which I hope to stock by the end of January.
3. [STRIKE]Check holiday post and pay any outstanding bills.[/STRIKE]4. [STRIKE]Put all holiday baggage - clothes / presents etc away.[/STRIKE]5. [STRIKE]Tidy away all decorations.[/STRIKE]6. [STRIKE]Apply for online access to groceries bank account[/STRIKE]

Ninno820

Okay - so its the end of week one and I am feeling more on top of things than before. I have nearly completed all the atsks set aside for this week and, thanks to the January Financial Freeze thread, I ahve have 4 NSD on the trot and have only put the minimum amount of petrol in the car for this month.

Meanwhile I am focussing on sorting the house out, collating nectar points for future use and selling via ebay. Well, to be truthful I only have one 99p bid but I am ever hopeful - several items have watchers and the first finishes on monday so fingers crossed.

My aims for the forthcoming week are:-
1. Buy a window wiper to clean the windows properly
2. Have NSD's until next friday - the tickets for Les Miserables are already purchased!
3. Finish tidying the office.
4. Collate 250 nectar points via ad points.

Ninno820

So - its the end of month one and how have I done?

I have:-

• Set up an all singing, all dancing spreadsheet to track my spending,
• Spent just over £50 on groceries in January but made £145 by selling on ebay - all thanks to NSK on the January's Financial Freeze challenge,
• Opened a food & fuel current account that has no overdraft so there's no safety net,
• submitted a ppi claim and a claim against union fees to reclaim the tax, and
• Seen my total debt go down by around £700 in total.

This last one, in particular is a real boost. I realise that I have been living on the contents of the freezer and the store cupboard so the savings will not be as dramatic but its a fantastic start and I am determined that my first debt - the overdraft, will be gone by the end of the year.

I am really delighted by the start but there's a long way to go.

HeadAboveWater

Wow! Fantastic news. Really positive, esp your grocery/ebay ££ and the total debt!

Keep up the very good work!!

NewLeaf_2

Wow celebrate on the 700 and the weight loss well done you!

Ninno820

Its now time to check with February's progress. This month I have:-

• recieved a cheque for £414 from the tax man to cover my union fees
• Established a snowball debt free date of March 2017 which I am determined to shorten to 2016
• Reduced my total debt payment by another £656.91
• Maintained my groceries and fuel budget at £110 by still using supplies from the storecupboard / freezer - I reckon that there's another month of food left!
• Shortened the overdraft payment to October 2013

Mentally i feel much more on top of things. Ebay is still going - albeit a bit more slowly - and I have now achieved £20 in Amazon voucers through survey sites which will allow me the luxury of my much needed shampoo. I am also conscious of making more long term decisions - ie not shortchanging myself to the point where life becomes unbearable. My personal journey is going to be a long one and if I am going to stay on track then life has to be lived whilst doing it.