Massively in Debt and Sad

eyeopener2

That £34 you have over?

Put it to one side and Don' t spend it on anything. Not on gifts or booze or sales.

Use it as a test to see if you can do it.

Then if you still have it at the end of January, Use it for a debt.

Newyorkdreams

Hi Everyone - hope you all had a nice christmas and are looking forward to the New Year! I am positive about what's ahead in 2013 and I'm feeling good about what we will achieve financially. My head feels in a better place since I became a debt free wannabee and for the first time in many years, I feel in control! I've written some goals for 2013, so see below!

Challenge 1 - Pay £1335 to Mum by March 2013:beer:

Challenge 2 - Pay Nationwide (1) card off by April 2013:j

Challenge 3 - Save £600 towards emergency fund by July 2013:D

Challenge 4 - Pay Halifax (1) off by December 2013:T

Challenge 5 - Take lunch to work every day for the next 3 months (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 6 - Eat all fruit and veg, don't put any in the bin! (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 7 - reduce entertainment budget down by half in the next 12 months

Challenge 8 - before buying anything, always ask - NYD- Do you NEED it? Or do you WANT it? If I need it, I get it. If I WANT it, I put it back!

Watch this space!

Stormchaser_2

Newyorkdreams wrote: »

Hi Everyone - hope you all had a nice christmas and are looking forward to the New Year! I am positive about what's ahead in 2013 and I'm feeling good about what we will achieve financially. My head feels in a better place since I became a debt free wannabee and for the first time in many years, I feel in control! I've written some goals for 2013, so see below!

Challenge 1 - Pay £1335 to Mum by March 2013:beer:

Challenge 2 - Pay Nationwide (1) card off by April 2013:j

Challenge 3 - Save £600 towards emergency fund by July 2013:D

Challenge 4 - Pay Halifax (1) off by December 2013:T

Challenge 5 - Take lunch to work every day for the next 3 months (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 6 - Eat all fruit and veg, don't put any in the bin! (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 7 - reduce entertainment budget down by half in the next 12 months

Challenge 8 - before buying anything, always ask - NYD- Do you NEED it? Or do you WANT it? If I need it, I get it. If I WANT it, I put it back!

Watch this space!

I have been sticking with the BOLDED bit for several years now, and I feel so proud of myself for being so strong and determined.

I also make sure we eat all the stir fry stuff and fruit and veg, and that it doesn't go to waste.

Well done to you and good luck!

saffer_in_fylde

Newyorkdreams wrote: »

Hi Everyone - hope you all had a nice christmas and are looking forward to the New Year! I am positive about what's ahead in 2013 and I'm feeling good about what we will achieve financially. My head feels in a better place since I became a debt free wannabee and for the first time in many years, I feel in control! I've written some goals for 2013, so see below!

Challenge 1 - Pay £1335 to Mum by March 2013:beer:

Challenge 2 - Pay Nationwide (1) card off by April 2013:j

Challenge 3 - Save £600 towards emergency fund by July 2013:D

Challenge 4 - Pay Halifax (1) off by December 2013:T

Challenge 5 - Take lunch to work every day for the next 3 months (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 6 - Eat all fruit and veg, don't put any in the bin! (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 7 - reduce entertainment budget down by half in the next 12 months

Challenge 8 - before buying anything, always ask - NYD- Do you NEED it? Or do you WANT it? If I need it, I get it. If I WANT it, I put it back!

Watch this space!

I LOVE it! I intend to steal some of your challenges!

Nagme

Hi NYD, didn't want to read and run, just wanted to say a massive well done - you've tackled this head-on and by the sounds of your posts are feeling a lot better about it now than at the beginning of the thread.

I've yo-yo'd my debt up and down for years (too much shoe shopping), the current debt is from adjusting to a one wage from two wages, buying our house, and having to change cars too frequently - car depreciation hurts. We haven't had a holiday since we married 6 years ago, but hope to go camping this year, along with lots of day trips.

I'm looking forward to being in the black and I have got some good thoughts from this thread

Angry_Bear

Has someone already pointed you to the snowball calculator link?
Seeing how much you can save in interest is a huge motivator to overpaying debt for a lot of people.

Newyorkdreams

Newyorkdreams wrote: »

Hi Everyone - hope you all had a nice christmas and are looking forward to the New Year! I am positive about what's ahead in 2013 and I'm feeling good about what we will achieve financially. My head feels in a better place since I became a debt free wannabee and for the first time in many years, I feel in control! I've written some goals for 2013, so see below!

Challenge 1 - Pay £1335 to Mum by March 2013:beer:

Challenge 2 - Pay Nationwide (1) card off by April 2013:j

Challenge 3 - Save £500 towards emergency fund by July 2013:D

Challenge 4 - Pay Halifax (1) off by December 2013:T

Challenge 5 - Take lunch to work every day for the next 3 months (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 6 - Eat all fruit and veg, don't put any in the bin! (Jan 3rd - Mar 29):)

Challenge 7 - reduce entertainment budget down by half in the next 12 months

Challenge 8 - before buying anything, always ask - NYD- Do you NEED it? Or do you WANT it? If I need it, I get it. If I WANT it, I put it back!

Watch this space!

Ok...have had to add another one!

Challenge 9 - no more takeaways (Jan 3rd - Mar 29)!!!

FlacosFloozie

Hi NYD,
Just wanted to stop in and say hello. I read your diary and it reminded me a lot of my situation.
Mr F also had cancer and it vastly changed our priorities. However, it did contribute to the overspending. There was definately a feeling that if we didn't do things now then we might not get the chance. Thankfully, he has been in remission a long time and is, effectively, cured but it took a long time for that feeling to go. Now it feels like its worth planning for a future.
I'm also on a reasonably high salary and felt entitled to treat myself. The only thing I found work for me was calculating how much debt I was paying back each day. Everytime I buy something I ask if its worth being in debt an extra X days for. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't but it does make me think twice and stops me thinking, 'it's only a tenner...'

Newyorkdreams

FlacosFloozie wrote: »

Hi NYD,
Just wanted to stop in and say hello. I read your diary and it reminded me a lot of my situation.
Mr F also had cancer and it vastly changed our priorities. However, it did contribute to the overspending. There was definately a feeling that if we didn't do things now then we might not get the chance. Thankfully, he has been in remission a long time and is, effectively, cured but it took a long time for that feeling to go. Now it feels like its worth planning for a future.
I'm also on a reasonably high salary and felt entitled to treat myself. The only thing I found work for me was calculating how much debt I was paying back each day. Everytime I buy something I ask if its worth being in debt an extra X days for. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't but it does make me think twice and stops me thinking, 'it's only a tenner...'

Hey, thanks for dropping by FF and saying Hi. It's nice to know that you understand the whole 'hell, you only live once' approach. It's got us in a right mess but since joining the forum, I've felt much brighter about the future. And we can look forward to the future, can't we? I'm glad Mr F is ok - Mr NYD is too - infact his next x-ray and blood tests in January will be his last and he will officially be out of remission all being well! Woop woop (but I can't woop woop too soon!) Do you mind me asking what type of cancer Mr F had? No worries if you would rather not answer.

Cheers :beer:

NYD x

FlacosFloozie

No worries NYD. Mr F had Hodkins lymphoma and was treated with a lot of radiotherapy. He was ill for a long time afterwards but has now fully recovered. He's been in remission for so long he is effectively cured but still gets check once a year, just in case.

I'm glad Mr NYD is doing well. I think the worry is always there but it does get less and you reach a stage where you feel that you can allow yourselves to think about the future. I want to get our finances sorted now so we can buy a house and be comfortable in our old age. At one point I wasn't sure we'd ever have that.
The forum is great for keeping you positive and helping you to acheive things. I find the diaries great for seeing how other people tackle their debts and for realising that we're not alone.

Anyway, time to stop rambling and head for bed, night all.