Tales from the city

ani*fan

hiddenshadow wrote: »

That's what I do, but I get a lot of motivation from seeing the debt go down constantly (even by small amounts). With such a large amount to pay off, I think I'd lose motivation/interest if I couldn't consistently put something towards it.

I've never been one to PAD, it never quite struck me as very exciting to be paying off a quid here and 2 quid there. However, I'm starting to get it now. When you wait all month for payday, only to make one big payment and then have to wait another month til the next payday, it's kind of demoralising.

I'm going to try and spend less than my budget in every area and then pay the extra to the target credit card. I love a plan! :happyhear

Forgot to mention I sold a heater last week for £15. I've put it in my spends for this month. One less thing to store in a cupboard, more space, brilliant.

Igamogam

The power of the PAD is not to underestimated Ani Its helped me a lot and I have paid off far more than I would have done had I just made small overpayments once a month. I tend to target one CC and hammer it with PADs - makes a huge difference:)

hiddenshadow

ani*fan wrote: »

I've never been one to PAD, it never quite struck me as very exciting to be paying off a quid here and 2 quid there. However, I'm starting to get it now. When you wait all month for payday, only to make one big payment and then have to wait another month til the next payday, it's kind of demoralising.

Yeah for me it's the frequency more than the amount. I may only throw a few pounds (or even a few pence) at debt, but knowing that every day I might find some money to throw at it means I look for ways to save/find money every day. If I just stuck with my one OP at the start of the month, I bet I'd get complacent and not worry about finding ways to save/earn.

As Igamogam said, it can also make a big difference if you stick with it. You'd be surprised how quickly you can hit milestones with frequent small payments.

misstara

Agree with Igamogam and hidden shadow - the little payments add up very quickly. I find it very motivating (usually) to see my signature change even if it's only by a few pounds.

Sorry to hear you've also been feeling unmotivated recently - I also plan to try and post every day to keep the motivation going so will be looking out for your posts (in a non-stalker way )

ani*fan

I just took £8 I was due from last month our joint account. I had totally forgotten this and so it isn't featured in this month's budget. So I've paid it straight to the target CC.

Was £2442.42/Now £2434.42

hiddenshadow

Yay OP with "free" money!

chumpy45

Totally agree with you that it is frequency rather than the amount that keeps you motivated. I am impatiently awaiting for March 2016 when we can finally remortgage hopefully to a BS where I can make online payments at any time and see that balance reduce. However, am keeping any spare OP amounts in a separate account at the moment which can be added to my 'once a month' OP.

ani*fan

Thanks for all the encouragement everyone. Much appreciated.

Regular monthly payment on target CC just went through. Once the interest has been added, the balance will look like this...

Was £2442.42/Now £2406.76

It's so annoying I'm still paying interest on this one, I grudge it even more after all other debt got moved to 0%. However, it's going down and that's the right direction. Signature updated.

ani*fan

The minimum payment on CC 3 has just gone through.

I've updated my signature, another £25 debt gone forever. :j

misstara

:T to another £25 paid off.