New Years Goals and Career Changes - A diary for a better me.

beanielou

Baby steps are the way.
Keep going!

myteeduck

Hi all.

Payday today - Finally after so long! I am going to be sooo careful with this months money. I have done tomorrows shopping list so as long as I stick with it - it wont be too bad.

I have money in my tin at home now for SW this month and the money in my bank will go off my CC. Just need to work out exactly how much will come off the card, but should be doable to get over £250 off the card this month. Which will be fab.

My exams are getting pushed back even further as there is no way I am ready for them yet - but should be OK - probably better finance wise anyway to push them even further.

xx

myteeduck

Hi All.

Well I made a payment to my CC the other day bringing it down to £881.61. I have £30 budgetted to pay off once the statement comes it. I managed to get my refund of £3.99 for the busted tights from the Blackpool trip and my brand new food processor which I bought on it doesn't work so thats going back so another £14 to go back on! Yippee - Im finally starting to see the card go down!

I am also studying as hard as I can and doing extra at work so the next time I have a meeting with my boss I can justify why I need a payrise!

Things are heading the correct way, albeit very very slowly.

xx

myteeduck

Hey all.

Had a bit of a wobble lately but we are working through it slowly.
I have been paying my gas and electricity by variable direct debit each month, so what ever the bill was that month, I paid it in full. Well as we all know its been getting cold lately and my gas has been on a lot more, like other peoples. The bill last month was approx. £47 and I coped as it was only £7 more than I budget for, but I absorbed it and dealt with it.

Well the other morning, I got the email telling me my bill has ready and I almost fainted! It was £57! I budget £40, so I was £17 short. I had also had a little spree only a few days earlier in a supermarket to the tune of £12, not budgeted as well. I panicked and turned all my radiators down and turned my heating off! I caused a small leak in my hall as I turned the valve loose in my panic. Luckily I spotted it and my dad is a gas fitter by trade so he was able to swiftly fix it, causing no damage!

Well the result is, my overpayments to the credit card this month have ceased. I will make the direct debit that they take anyway - my minimum payment and I am broke at the moment! I had had no choice but to admit my plight to my parents and ask for help. I feel so stupid. My mum asked straight away why I wasn't paying it fixed direct debit so I over pay in the summer, to cover the winter and I told her I liked the extra money in the summer and was intending to use it to cover the card.

She told me to change it, ran out and bought me some emergency food and took me shopping today. She knows she may have to help further in the month until payday, but is happy to do it as long as I cover the bills. I feel like a child having to ask for help, but at least i know that there is someone who can help in such a predicament.

I have just worked out my finances as I was also panicking that Homer was due his MOT in March as I thought he was registered when the number plates changed - he had to be a 2012 plate as he is a limited London olympic edition car. I have looked it up and he is actually due in June (end off) so I have changed my budget to reflect the increase in my cable services going up, my gas and electric new amount and a £10 every month to cover the MOT.

Not a good month, but we are hopefully on the up. I also did overtime this month on a Saturday which I get paid time and a half for so I am looking at a little extra in my pay packet at the end of the month. This will go on the credit card....

Anyways off to go wrap up in another blanket - I refuse to put the heating back on!

x

myteeduck

Over a month later and I'm better off! I got through the end of last month with no real trouble - my gas bill never took and neither did my payment to my credit card which was good. I am now paying a fixed £40 per month to my gas and electric and as off now i'm only under by £16. It should start to even out and overtake during summer which will be great.

I have booked in for my exam for the AAT and managed to get it quite cheap - I just need to travel to Wrexham which is ok, not great but I would prefer to drive than pay for train or extra for the exam.


I have to pay extra on my phone bill, but due to a cap that I put on it - its only £2.50! I think I can cope with that...

I am loosing weight at SW and hopefully should reach target within the next few weeks, so that will be money saved too.

I just need things to get a move on in my career as at the moment, I am surviving but not living

x

myteeduck

Hi all,

Been a while since I last wrote. Don't seem to be getting far
Money doesn't stretch very far these days and I can't whittle anything else down - costs seem to be at the lowest I can get them.
Its extra money that I need to throw at my course, so any savings I make goes towards this, but its seems to be stagnating and not going down. For example I have put £110 away now to pay towards it, but I am reluctant to pay in actually off the card as I may need it later in the month as I only have £30 left to live on. I will make this £30 last as long as I can but I feel like I am robbing myself of one thing to pay another.

My main issue is boredom. I have the online course to do at home, but rather than do it, I am either looking for food or looking at what I can buy/not afford I went a little mad last weekend and spent £60 on stuff I could have waited for that I can't return, that I didn't need and I hate myself for it.

Grrrrr... does this feeling ever pass??

myteeduck

Hi all.
No wonder I was feeling deflated about my credit card. I have looked closely at it and worked out that although I got it for my course, I knew I had put some extras on it - I just didn't realise how much!
I found out:
a) I have put a total of £1406.29 on the card since I had it.
b) I have paid £538.44 off the card
c) The course alone has cost £944.21
d) The extras came to a total of £462.08!!!

If I hadn't put the extra on the card I would have had a balance of £405.77 which would have taken 2/3 months to clear instead of the rest of the year like it will now.

Of that extra there was only 1 genuine item which was house insurance which came to a total of £50, so £350 was complete garbage!

I need to reign in my spending!!

x

myteeduck

Had my first weekend since payday. Didn't do too badly.
I went to a charity event on Saturday where I drove and didn't drink so spent £8 on all activities including the food. I sponsored my friend to do the race for life this year.
I went to Aldi/Asda on Sat and H&B and spent £40 on food.
I paid for my sisters birthday present and its ready and waiting for her birthday on Thursday.
I have deliberately left my purse at home.
I have cash for SW tonight but hopefully this will be the last time I spend on this as I am hoping to have reached target today.
I declined an invite for a meal on Saturday for a leaving do as if I were to go it would cost in excess of £40 including travel, drinks and food. I'd rather stay in and have something homemade and a cup of tea!
I have £17 to last the month but I don't think my fuel budget will be as high this month so hopefully I will gain an extra £20 from this.
I will be paying £167.85 off my credit card this month which should mean the balance will be £700. Just waiting for the statement to come in so I can pay it. Its due any date - I think it is a little delaying due to BHM.

If my plan of action works, I shouldn't need to do a full shop on Saturday, just nip for some cat food.

Fingers crossed this works.

beanielou

All sounding good

MuffinTops

Hi myteeduck,

You sound to me like you're doing ok. It's not easy stretching money around each month, but like you say, it's those impulse spends that are the drain (for us all).

Do you write out your spends anywhere other than here? Some sort of spreadsheet or app? I believe that helps a lot of people, when they have something to keep referring back to and everything is there in front of them. I personally have used spreadsheets and an app called YNAB (You Need A Budget) which has helped. I also allow myself a daily budget for things like groceries and general day to day expenses. When you break it down to a daily amount it can be a lot harder to just fritter, when you know that £60 actually amounts to x amount of no spend days to catch up.

Well done on your tenacity in sorting these debts and hopefully you'll be able to get a well earned payrise at work soon.

MTx