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

UnionGirl

NSD for yesterday. Not today though , think will use this month to try and get more organised.

dizzy_lizzie

Shopping day yesterday.
Sat here catching up and it dawned on I've got my NSD 7. Came straight home from work aside from picking up a prescription and the library.
Wow there are lots of nsds being bagged. Wonder how much the complete spending total from us all would have been if we hadn't been doing this? Bet it's a lot!
x

tokicat

Yippee managed my 2nd NSD day. Found it harder than I thought but you guys are so inspirational.

Note to myself:
Must be more organised
Must not listen to those tempting voices in my head - need to stay strong

So that's 2/15 I am going for no 3 tomorrow!

Good luck everyone

emslovesmickey

NSD 6Had a lovely day watching some Disney films

cw18

kerri_gt wrote: »

Hey Cheryl - have you thought about excluding your exercise money from the challenge - I don't count boot camp, esp as last month I was doing PAYG. I figure for something to keep me fit I'm not going to not pay for the sake of a NSD.

Did think about it, but I'm one of the die-hards who counts everything (apart from my lottery money - for some reason that one's always escaped the spends counting!!!). It'd be easier if I could pay for several swimming lessons at a time but you don't get a discount for doing so, the reception staff already have to do a manual over-ride to get me my staff discount (if I paid for several at once I think they'd have to be entered as several transactions and each one be over-ridden), and the instructor needs a set of receipts for each week so that he can claim correct payment (so I guess reception staff would have to process each one on a different receipt anyway, and then someone would have to write on them all so he knew which week to submit each for). But one week in 5 it'll co-incide with me having to pay my personal trainer, so that'll be an expensive day for me

Shortie

Evening all, slidig in with another NSD. I almost sabotaged myself by caving in to a fry up this morning - I soooo fancied one but argued against it because of the cost, breaking a NSD and the fat in it.

Soo... 6/20 for me please!

Helsbels8080

Good evening everyone

As I already knew I have had two "spendy" days. Yesterday was my visit to the hairdressers (although I did pick a few needed bits up in town also) and today I took DD to the Harry Potter Studio Tour. She was soooo excited and watching her look around so happy really warmed my heart.

Was hoping tomorrow would be a NSD but a direct debit I was expecting to go out today hasn't been taken so I'm thinking it might go tomorrow. Feels like I have been stuck on #4 for a while but positive that there are still a lot of days left in the month.

Back to work tomorrow after the Xmas hols .... not looking forward to that as still suffering with this "flu bug" thing that is going around. Also been off for two weeks so who knows what my desk will look like!

Off now to make my packed lunch, catch up with you all tomorrow.

Ps. IF ..... thanks for the "awww" moment, I cried like a right wuss! lol

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!

butdoineedit?

OMG Freeby i am so in awe that you manage to write essays & still be on here every day. I have lost almost a week getting mine finally finished & submitted!!

Good news is that it is finally in & now there will be no more work until the new term starts in March, so i can get back to checking in every day

I was hoping to catch up, but you lot are such a chatty bunch that i have no chance!! I'll be back on it & chatting away myself from tomorrow though.... yay!!

Oh & i'd better report that i'm now up to NSD number 6, i guess at least all that essay writing kept me out of the shops!

LionessInWinter

Still stuck on 3 NSDs, was hoping today was going to be number 4 but that didn't happen. Hopefully tomorrow I can report another NSD.