Shiny New Year, Shiny New Start. The January NSD Challenge

wouldbeqaulitymoneysaver

NSD 3 out of proposed 12.
I only have a limited amount of money till next payday and have to get onto the DWP why my Benefits were suddenly cu from £356 per two weeks to £178 per two weeks.:mad::mad::mad::(:(:(
I have got to be a fighter and not let them treat me like this.
No spending today but contemplating way to get a regular McDonalds which opens early so an idea for my insommiac nights.

Sazzie23

:)WTBSE fab fab ---:j:j:j didn't need any advice - Sooo pleased for you..What a great start to the year.

Finding these 3 in a row are really tough, congrats to everyone who can get them.

Have got confused working nights and not sure which days were NSD and which weren't. I know today was a spendy, our local shop is good value and sells Guinea Pig Wagg so I went there and got his bargains, did spend couple of quid on sweeties & choc as I miss it, fought the urge to buy a magazine. Back to the xmas biccies tomorrow:rotfl:. Also i paid into 4 leaving collections (reduced pay = people will leave) earlier so at least may be able to get a couple more NSD this week.

Defo NSD Yesterday making 7/15 but thought I'd spent the day before. oh defuddled brain darn it

Anyway so to be certain I'm only declaring yesterday, &?!% please or no that should be 7/15 please.

zafiro1984

Declaring NSD no 12, well if it snows I wont be going out shopping so could possibly get another couple of nsd's under my belt - have to look on the positive side

positivelypurple

Morning all,

Another early start for me, already been up a few hours _pale_

Declaring NSD #8 for me for yesterday so past the half way mark. I've caught up with the thread this morning and some of you are doing amazing things with this challenge!

We're out this afternoon so I think there will be a small spend involved but we shall see. The weekend starts this afternoon for us and I do tend to give the children a treat on a Thursday afternoon.

Have a super day everyone! Stay warm :cool:

freebyfifty

Good Morning

Front page all updated again

I am up to NSD #16 so far this month :T Hoping for lots more though.

Have a great Friday Eve

IF

Morning all :hello:

IF

freebyfifty wrote: »

Hi lovely NSD gang:A
As you can see there is lots of activity on this challenge at the moment and it's difficult sometimes to see how many NSDs you're all declaring on posts.
Could I ask you to highlight your number of NSDs in a colour and in bold so that I can see them easily when I whizz through the posts - red would be best but I don't really mind as long as I can see the numbers easily.

Some helpful suggestions and ideas to follow below from our sponsor and godmother, BigMummaF :A

NO SPEND CHALLENGE.

1. Have a good, long think about what YOU want to include in your Spend & Excluded categories.
Some of us count everything from Direct Debits & school expenses, while others do not include things like essential Bills or emergency medical costs. If you plan what is or is not a Spend for you now, it will help you decide on a realistic Target.
2. It is NOT a race!
We all have very different demands on our time & bank balance, so please do not think you have to buy everything on 1st January & make it last till 31st December! A few of us have been following this Challenge for a long...long...LONG time so have developed plans & ploys to help us along the way
3. Most important of all, WE..DO..NOT..FAIL!
Sometimes we can't quite reach our Target, but that is fine Everyone knows how Life will try to trip us up, & that is when you will find us here to help you back on to your feet.

OK, an idea of how some of us do things.
1. What you will or will not include as a 'Spend'.
Some people are doing other challenges too, & don't include the money spent on those for this one.
Some will try to shop for other bits on the days their direct debits etc go out of their bank accounts; they're the real hard core of the bunch & have been l-o-n-g time Nsders so don't panic
Some won't count those annoying last minute demands from school & collections as you can't plan for them in advance, likewise emergency prescriptions or visits to the vet
Personally speaking & providing I don't buy anything else, I don't count parking for hospital appointments.(..but then I usually do my shopping because I'm already out :whistle:)
General thoughts on €bay sales is the buyer has paid P&P so no cost to you
2. It takes Time to reach mega-numbers!
The First suggestion is the first, because a bit of planning will work wonders on your road to your Target. Have a look at thefirst posts each month for a hefty list of other threads that may be of help. For example, there's a few giving ideas for packed lunches so you can avoid standing in the queue at the bakers for 45mins of your lunch hour! A good incentive to tweak your healthy eating & the pounds you save will show in your bank balance AND your waistline
It helps to have various 'money pots' for the different costs that happen like Scouts, dinner money, yoga, window cleaner etc etc. The idea is you "spend" all that money in one hit by..:think:..let's say **putting the week's bus fares into the pretty coffee jar, Jo's tumble tots SIZE=2]Weds mornings[/SIZE in the cracked teapot & Ben's £1 coin for the gym locker SIZE=2]Friday lunch[/SIZE in the pocket of the changing bag, on Tuesdays every week when you've got some change from doing the food shop, so an already spendy day. At least four 'spending days' condensed into one (**mine's jam jars for windows, milkman & a bit towards the bills!)
3. Any day the money stays in your pocket is a bonus!
If you look at it as a day you beat the system, you can't help but :j so don't fret it--ENJOY! If nothing else in here, we do manage find something to make us smile

We have virtual outings to wonderful places that never cost us a bean :rotfl:New York, Edinburgh & Brighton have been a couple & Spoon usually pilots the Tardis but you can use your own transport; my personal favourite has been a sit-on lawn mower borrowed from the cricket club The only thing to be aware of is Hubert the donkey who is partial to anything remotely edible but is not yet house-trained

And Remember;
there are no silly questions, so don't be afraid to ask us anything!

freebyfifty

Today's numbers

There are

127

taking part in the NSD challenge

and so far we have collected

753 NSDS

:T:T:T:T:T

WantToBeSE

Morning all
Thanks so muchh for everyones 'well dones' i am really pleased. It may only be 12 hours a week, but if i can get 1 or 2 other part time jobs to fit in around it, i can make it up to full time, or get the SE hours around it!

Today wont be a NSD, as we off off the the dentist, which is a 45min drive away, so i need petrol.
Have a great day everyone!

BigMummaF

Not stopping..teapot's getting cold

No 14 for yesterday; I felt incredibly weary & fear I may have fallen foul of Beanie's lurgy *sneeze* If id izz sumpfing like dat wun goink round last mumf, I hobe Mubba duzzend ged id *sneeze..aaaaaaaaTISShooooooooo








SNEEZE!* Dub..orgh..zorree..bedda go fide summor tizzyewz..*looks under bed for stash of bedsheet sized paper hankies found in an air raid shelter at the back of Chateau Nargle last Halloween*