What have you learnt?

FireWyrm

freeisgood wrote: »

Dad always told me "never spend what you haven't got".

Corollary :

Even if you have got it, write down the desired item on a piece of paper and put it in a box for 30 days. If at the end of 30 days you determine that you both want and need the item, then buy it from next month's budget.

edit : use those 30 days to ferret out the very best price for the item.

hohum

always deal with debts in writing (and from my own experience, debt collectors read from a script and it's really not personal)

it's all sortable - this particularly from reading people's diaries. Amazing stories.

Things that I have learnt about how I work which have helped me with having a better handle on money:

Clear targets. Whether it's paying off debt or saving, I need to know how much I need and when by. If it's broken down into regular payments AND I can see that balance going down (or up if it's savings).

There's no point paying off debt aggressively if it leaves you short, as you'll just re-enter the cycle of borrowing to cover the shortfall. Which also leads to..

Absolutely always set aside money from every pay cheque for known and unknown regular expenses. Because you can almost count on having a bad luck expense, or a known expense that you forgot. My life has been so much easier with having money set aside for annual/ quarterly bills. This has really made the biggest difference, particularly because we have irregular income.

Mooglet71

The worst and longest nights are spent worrying about money.

The best night's sleep comes after you gain control.

Debtfree2018_2

Thank you more useful advice! Fantastic!

discodiva123

I've learnt to enjoy searching for a bargain

Just because i want something doesn't mean I should have it, I used to always go I want it, I'm buying it now i think about things, Can i get it cheaper, Do i really need it 9 times out of ten I don't.

Its OK to say no or adapt plans so you can afford them, Friends would always invite me to nights out, meals etc, for years I'd go because i wanted to and never thought you should miss out. Now i say no to things and it feels good, I cant afford a meal out but how about we go for a coffee or I cant afford a night out but could do a few happy hour drinks and a last train home. I try to find cheaper ways or free ways of doing thing.

Trying NSD and being proud of yourself for achieving them.

If I have a pound in my pocket I want to spend it so trying to be strong can be hard but its all a learning curve and worth it in the end.

chrisblowers

i went through a terrible time when i was younger taking out every loan under the sun.

its been a hard an emotional slog(working 2 jobs) but tackling it head on and speaking to the creditors really helped and enabled me to manage the debt. i have a couple of years before all the defaults drop off but its so satisfying not to have that worry anymore.

don't avoid the problem, tackle it and save yourself a fortune in interest at the same time. a little is better than nothing

Dizzy_Ditzy

That doing things for myself gives me so much more satisfaction than getting someone else to do it for me, whether that be buying things that I want by saving up for it instead of getting it on credit, or growing my own veg instead of buying it from the supermarket

Debtfree2018_2

Thanks so much for the uplifting advice, tough day and that has given me strength