The Love is in the Air February NSD Challenge

IF

Hiya my No Spendy chums :hello:
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 we ask you to highlight your number of NSDs in a colour and in bold so that Freeby, Spoon, ModestyB and Marmite can see them easily when they whizz through the posts - red would be best but they don't really mind as long as they 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!

solventsoon

katholicos wrote: »

Spoony, thank you for your hugely welcome encouragement

...

It is all so easy/convenient to whip out the debit card to pay for things.

And that's the problem really. I want to make it harder to spend, to make every penny count. To really think about what i am buying, and wether i am getting good value for money. Not just mindlessly buy things, make impulse purchases etc.

I want my expenditures to be more streamlined and simplistic. O make sure the bills get paid, the food gets bought, and then maybe start thinking of allowing myself a budget each month, to make recreational type purchases. A the moment there is no budget and so,i just make purchases here and there, but with no budget i sometimes spend more than i should. I am not extravagant by any stretch of the imagination, but even my own relatively small spends could be further reigned in, especially the things that i don't actually need.

It's a pleasure katholicos, I hope it helps

Hmm..... your comments take me back three years, "mindlessly buying things, impulse purchases" that was me too ....... my debit card was worn out it was used so much, never mind the credit card:eek::eek: I think I'm always going to be a compulsive spender at heart but I've learnt the triggers now and try to distract myself as much as possible.. most of the time it works;)

Good luck with achieving your goals.. there's always the threat of a kick up the wotsits from Freeby to keep you on track, never mind the stinky kippers and soggy paintbrush

Motoko wrote: »

1st NSD of February on Saturday

So January didn't happen only 13, but 13 is better than none.

Solventsoon - with regards to your comment about presriptions not being included - I include everything as I am a complusive spender, therefore my logic was to include all DD's and SO's and try not to spend on other days. If that makes sense?!

Happy Monday everyone

Hi Motoko:wave:
Yes, it makes perfect sense thanks. The lovely thing about this challenge is that we all make our own rules so if that's what's best for you, keep plugging away. You may find you modify your rules as you start to make some progress but, again, that's entirely up to you. Keep reading the thread, you'll probably pick up some suggestions along the way and remember, we're all in this together:D

Well done for your first NSD this month and yay to the 13 you got during January, that's a brilliant total, well done:j:j:j:j

spoon x

ButterflyBee

Well this was a "bad" weekend and I must be honest.

Not one NSD yet :mad:and today I have to get more Petrol for my car as have already used it all up.

Gonna have to re look at my budget and get back on track quick!
Today off to get petrol and more coffee. Cant start our day without coffee!

lurvlyloz

Yesterday was NSD 1/14. its a start

jaxsmar

ok not started well considering today is the 4th but I'am claiming for 1 nsd for yesterday:eek:

HeadAboveWater

Oh! Today is a NSD too!! That's #2 in the bag

purple.sarah

Friday, yesterday and today were NSDs for me. So today is NSD 3- 2 in a row.

wildcherry

A spend day today as I went over my food budget by a tenner. :-(. I did need the extra bits but it is still rather annoying! Still all being well, the next two/three days should be NSD's so I hope I'm going to be on track for my 15 NSD's this month.

sistafromanothermista

MummyRivett wrote: »

Hope everyone had a good weekend, I was at Mum and Dad's yesterday, the phone kept buzzing with last minute bids and snippets. I mad £305 on 10 items in total. I think I will make between £245 - £250 after the commission and PayPal fees.

Looking forward to another NSD today. I've got to print off all my labels lunchtime and tomorrow lunch time it will be a trip to the post office the boss is out this week so I will be able to take a late lunch at 3pm to avoid queues

:eek::T Wow, brilliant ebaying!!!! you've given me some inspiration to see if there's anything i can sell.....

ModestyB

NSD 3 for me today.