NSK; The April Power Shower.

short_bird

OK, have sorted out my challenges. Health and wealth:rotfl:

• 15 NSD's not including food - joint budget
• 15 exercise sessions (DD went out today)
• £50 toward stock for the vintage/retro business.
• 6 social days for less than £60 as 2 birthdays at the end of the month including mine
• 1 hour per week on finances and "life" paperwork.
• Zero spends on books (real and Kindle) lottery and magazines.

lotti379

NinjaSavingKat wrote: »

Lotti and LuckyStarr - you both said you were spending to either have a lifestyles you couldn't afford or to keep up with the Jones'... do you think this was technically "in your head" so to speak that you had to be seen a certain way or was someone putting pressure on you to look a certain way or buy the most expensive things or to keep buying...?

All in my head really... I hate perceiving I'm disappointing people, and I feel I should always pay my way and contribute fairly.... which quite often means I end up paying other people's way too! I don't know, I like to be generous and treat people, especially with social activities. Best I get my head sorted out with this before I have any kids or I'll be in real trouble!

But seriously, my perception of what people think of me can be a bit off, I had some therapy after diagnosis of moderate depression which basically concluded I put silly amounts of pressure on myself to make everything "right" for everyone else, before I can relax at all. Or, my interpretation of what is right for everyone else, rather than what other people necessarily expect of me!

chickadee

Can you include me as well please. I'll pop back later with my targets. Thanks.

lotti379

I have come to a decision!

I have decided to give myself a "Human Capital Investment" budget (can you tell I've been reading Mrs Moneypenny?!). This is for learning materials for extra study to help propel me into a better (and more lucrative) career. This month, as there isn't much to pinch from the other budgets, it is £10. Still, it gives me something to use for books, go towards petrol to get to institution events or save for courses/next year's membership fee.

Having said that, I'm using my lunchtime to check the library website for the titles I'm after... :money:

lindsaygalaxy

Please count me in!

I need to get back into this and start some serious saving if we are ever to buy a house, prices are rocketing in this area. With the school holidays coming up and 2 birthdays this month going to have to be very careful

My challenges this month -

1. 0/15 SFD
2. £0/£300 food budget
3. £0/£160 petrol allowance
4. £0/£50 school holidays spends
5. 0/1 takeaway
6. £3/£3 local food bank
7. 0/15 items to sell
8. 0/10 areas - spring clean the house
9. 0/8 exercise
10. Sort and update paperwork

strandedinaber

Thank you for the encouraging words everyone! Right, now time to set the rules. Budgets are very tight this month now I've paid off the card (and purchased various wedding presents), so here's the test:

1. NO takeaways
2. NO alcohol
3. Use up makeup before purchasing more
4. Lunch to work every day
5. Grocery budget: £100
6. Petrol budget: £30
7. SFD goal: 20

This is pretty much cutting out all my favourite things, but needs must. And I always regret money spent on alcohol and takeaway as soon as I purchase it, so taking it off the table is a far better approach for me. Petrol budget should be fine as there is absolutely no reason why I can't walk to work at the moment, and I am hoping to still get the weekly veg delivered (just need to be a bit smarter about what I order rather than just clicking on the 'boxes' automatically and wasting food).

Today wasn't a spend day - bought my mother some belated Mother's Day flowers and paid the deposit for a hen night in July. Tomorrow should be, though.

Mountaingirl

Everyone's challenges and stories are so interesting.

I've had a good start by selling a suitcase for 50€! It was good qualits nad in good condition but I hadn't used if for years and it is now way too big for use to use ever. So, it has been decluttered and my purse is a little heavier!

karmachilovething

OK I'm back to declare my targets:

1. 20 SFDs
2. 10 items listed on eB4y
3. 10 exercise sessions
4. 10 meat free days
5. £20 food bits budget
6. £30 Beauty budget (high but there are several things I will need this month)
7. £100 petrol for the month - higher than normal but I'm driving to Edinburgh and back for a wedding this weekend

I got here through profligacy really. It started in University where debt was a normal thing to have. Thinking my nice lifestyle as a teenager (funded by DPs and entirely disposable income from Saturday job) could continue as a student/young worker. The CC has fluctuated up and down for years. I've lived in my OD for most of the last decade. It's getting better though and I am pulling myself out of this for the last time.

This weeknd is likely to be expensive, but I will keep a handle on it. Eating in not out, taking snacks with me and generally being prepared. Just got the 600 miles to drive now :rotfl:

Kat what are your targets for this month??!

clippy_girl

afternoon all

My debt was caused mainly by having holidays whilst paying off my career development loan early. But I'm debt free now! :j Now onto saving

Goals-

SFD's- 15
Food- £100 (inc £3 food bank)
Personal spends- £160 for everything
Weight- loose 5lbs
Exercise- At least 5 classes/swims per week

shyspender

I love the first of the month!

I look forward to being able to reset my signature and start working on the new goals.

It's been great reading everyone's stories of how they got here. My own story basically boils down to being too generous. Ok, so, maybe not basically. The generous bit comes at the end. My dad is very money savvy so when I went off to uni we took advantage of the student overdraft and I spent that over the first few months. Then he gave me an allowance each month (didn't qualify for any grants) which kept me in the overdraft but didn't take me over it. What about a student loan I hear you all cry? Yep, I got a student loan. It went into a high interest account and wasn't touched until I had a permanent job when it was paid off.
The small probelm being that my first permanent job was in London. Moving from the middle of nowhere in Yorkshire to London I didn't really adjust to the change in cost of living. The overdraft stayed a constant companion, it was now a graduate one so still interest free and each month I spent my wages and sometimes a little bit more.
When I moved into my own rental after two years I kept on with my overdraft until I decided I wanted a laptop. I got a graduate loan. Cleared the overdraft, bought the laptop and kept on spending. My finances were never drastic but they could have been a lot better. I also had given in and got a credit card, two in fact, along the way. Nothing major, but they weren't paid off in full each spend. Eventually I balance transferred one and began paying the other one off.
I didn't really start paying attention to not really having the money I was spending until I moved in with my ex and her family. My 'rent' became a token amount and I saved the difference. My bank account started becoming healthy, and it stayed that way. I was saving loads, that's how I got the deposit together for my current abode. The credit card had a zero balance. Things were ok.
Here comes the generous bit. I bought the ex a new desktop because she wanted one and didn't have any money. So I lent her the money and she was going to pay me back. That never happened. Eventuallly the relationship ended, I moved and had to be a big girl because I was responsible for everything. No problem, I was doing ok, even saving some.
That credit card that I just paid off? Here's the rest of the generous bit. My best friend rang me in tears, bailiffs had been round about an old debt so I volunteered my credit card. Didn't even hesitate. This was before I had found this site and spent years reading posts and findiing out information. Anyways, again the deal was that it would be paid back. It wasn't. So I balance transferred to Tesco CC a while back with the intention of paying it off and then using it to get clubcard points and to pay it off each month. That slid after a few months. So I stopped using it and just paid the minimum until finding Kat's challenges and paying more than the minimum, a lot more. That's me. No more lending to friends in shy's future, no way no how!

Goals

SFD's 20
Food Budget £120 - this is up on last month but a lot of my stores are gone so need building up, plus got a visit to Devon and the OH coming up at Easter so need some real food.
LTW 20 - This one is fairly easy for me but one that I like to keep counting.
Food Bank £3 - Keeping this one in, thinking I will go for toiletries or something other than food again this month
Flat Sorting - A move is imminent, date as yet not confirmed. A lot of decluttering happened when the Folks came to help decorate but there is a lot of paperwork that needs sorting and odds and ends tucked all over that I need to be ruthless with.
The rest of my budgets are in the signature. Gifts is high because best friend is having a do and we need to stay in a hotel. It's already booked but the money is coming out of the gift fund. Also need to get some Easter Eggs and some goodies (I will be baking) for the shindig. Fuel is high also because I have a trip to Devon and possible a trip to Yorkshire this month.
Today was a SD. Went to More Reasons to get my favourite meatfree hotdogs. In fact, not favourite, only ones I will eat and the only ones that don't taste and look like rolled up cardboard!