The Great "Self Discipline" Hunt

ally1974

I have a 'Wish List' on my computer. If I desire something I type it onto the list with an approximate price so I know how much I have to save. The important thing is I DON'T PRINT the list. I write my wish then can forget all about it and by not printing the list means I don't see it unless I'm writing something new on! I've yet to actually buy anything on it, and it's at least twenty items long!

rchrisp

im currently doing a Personal Finance course through the OU to try and sort myself out and help me budget but im even behind on the payments for that. when will i ever learn? (to be fair, i have just discovered i should be able to get most if not all of the fees paid for me so i am waiting for them to process my application).

oen thing i can recommend that really helps me with the grocery shopping though is signing up to Menu Mailer (google it).

you get set menus for the week, with a shopping list. if you stick to it you end up saving loads. failing that, do a menu plan for the week and stick to it.

bobbie78

rchrisp wrote: »

oen thing i can recommend that really helps me with the grocery shopping though is signing up to Menu Mailer (google it).

you get set menus for the week, with a shopping list. if you stick to it you end up saving loads. failing that, do a menu plan for the week and stick to it.

That does look cool even if it is American measurements, is there a free version or am I looking at the wrong thing.

meme_3

MSE_Martin wrote: »

What's it all about?

Learning to spend within your budget is an important part of life, whether you're in debt or just trying to avoid it. Yet that doesn't make it easy or fun most of the time.

So, this week I'd like your top tips on controlling your spending. When there's something you really want, but you know you shouldn't buy, what do you do to keep the urge at bay?

PLEASE CLICK REPLY TO POST YOUR SUGGESTIONS BELOW

My starter for ten

As I often write I have two MoneySaving mantras that you should say to yourself before buying it. Which one to use depends on whether you're skint or not.

IF YOU'RE SKINT

Do I need it?
Can I afford it?
Can I find it cheaper anywhere else

IF YOU'RE NOT SKINT

Will I use it?
Is it worth it?
Can I find it cheaper anywhere else?

My tip is for people using TV shopping - specifically QVC.

They have something called QCUT which allows you to buy without speaking to anyone.

Choose the 'pay by cheque' option.
If your default is 'pay by card no xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx' keep listening you will get another option.

If you choose 'pay by cheque' you can still decide if you want it up to a week later (phone them to change payment option if you do).

If you decide it was an impulse buy, just leave it, it will go away.

This is particularly useful for TSV or 'one time only', when you're not really sure. Or for a new item that is about to sell out, and you think you need it!

Invariably, as soon as you've bought you regret it (or sometimes the next day).

If you choose 'pay by cheque' you can ignore the fact that you ordered in the first place, but if you decide that you really do need it, you have secured the lower price..........

I do this all the time, because QVC and the ease with which I could buy using QCUT was a major reason for my debt problems. Most of the stuff I bought ended up in the bin or at the charity shop.

meme_3

rachhartlepool wrote: »

I've always suffered from getting a little rush when I buy something in a shop, but I've recently discovered that returning stuff to the shop and getting a refund gives me an even bigger hit!

Sad I know, but well worth doing, especially if you're not totally sure about why you fell in love with that top once you've got it home.

I now say to myself that if I have any doubts, it goes back.

Of course, you have to make sure you only shop at shops that take returns.

Note - returning stuff to QVC, even paying for the postage can have this effect too!

Even if you haven't saved anything long term - say you ended up getting back £10 when postage cost £9 - that's still a victory, because if you've sent something back once, you probably will do again, and you realise that you're just paying postage charges.

You could have kept item for £1 - but probably would never have used it! Just ends up in the bin anyway.

This is just an example for illustration.

flowerofscotland

Lots of great ideas here - some of which I have been using since my LBM, some new which I will try.

I enjoy shopping and have found it very difficult to keep away from shops completely. And I don't just enjoy shopping for myself - I love buying presents for family and friends as well.

However a couple of things that have helped me - I buy all my necessities such as petrol and monthly food shop (all budgeted of course) as well as bigger items such as insurance, car service and MOT, with my M&S credit card. It is always paid off every month but the cashback vouchers help to feed my shopping habit - topped up with vouchers from Pigsback etc.

I also shop in places where there is an easy refund policy. I often buy more than I need and then challenge myself to return as much as possible after I have got home and properly evaluated the items. This is particularly useful in the sales as it saves me agonising over whether the item will be gone if I leave it in the shop but more often than not I take it back and love to see the refund on my statement.

I agree that joining in challenges on this site is very motivational though I haven't had a lot of time to do this recently. I regularly do the Store Cupboard challenge (got the idea from here) - get a week's meals out of what you have in the freezer/fridge/larder. Set your own rules e.g. fresh fruit and veg up to a monetary value is allowed. Involve the rest of the family and it can be quite fun.

Dr_Hook

Storm wrote: »

For me the biggest thing is only dealing in cash, and only taking a small amount out of the bank at a time, handing over a £20 note is much harder than using the debit card for the same amount!

I find that the opposite works for me. My wallet seems to be a black hole where cash is concerned, so if I use a £10 note to pay for £7 worth of goods, the remaining £3 will invariably disappear on something or other.

Using my debit card for everything also means that my bank statement becomes an automatic spending diary, and I copy transactions across to a spreadsheet which I update daily so that I can predict my balance at the end of the month and budget for future transactions.

Having no cash on me also means when it comes to office birthdays, leaving presents, weddings, etc I can't contribute whether I'd like to or not. It may sound stingy, but if you add up all the pregnant, betrothed, leaving folk in my office it comes to a small fortune!

I also agree with what Morgit says about transferring extra money at the earliest opportunity to stop it being eaten by my current account. I have a second bank account which I originally set up as a parachute account, but now use as a debt servicing/extra income account. As soon as I get any extra income I either pay it straight into this account or transfer it from my main current account. I know then that whatever is in there is purely for paying off debts and empty it each month by making an additional lump payment to whichever card I'm currently attacking.

maythorn

I subscribe to flylady.net; it gives a really useful insight into why we spend/hoard/have clutter, and suggests great ways to save, and to change spendthrift habits! A sister site is savingdinner.com, which gives the weekly menu mailer that another moneysaver was talking about. You can try these menus for free, and the flylady website is free too.

lynzpower

Another tip for those in couples where one is paying off debt.

We have sep finances. this month- Ive asked OH to pay for a few things and I said Ill pay him back. Ive checked with him how much he has in his bank acc every few days. I owe him £55. Now its only 3 days till payday, and OH has more money in his bvank account than he needs- so therefore the 55 ill return to him is in cheque format to barclaycard

If people owe you money or if you do some work for them or something, get them to write a cheque to your debt accounts instead of cash

jci_josephine

When we were paying off our Virgin One mortgage I would always check the balance of the account before taking out money from an ATM, seeing -£40,000 would always stop me taking out any more than was absolutely necessary!