How do you stick with it?

Hayley33

Determined to stay in the black and on my feet in 3 years!!!

How do you do it though? I feel mean saying I'm
Not buying so much food out takeaways/meals etc I mean I'll still buy some but it was crazy amounts.

Then everyone else seems to be spending as if money is no object and do you sometimes feel a bit tight?


How do you previous spenders cut back without appearing 'tight' in situations?

DigForVictory

Start with recognising the good old bad old situations.
If you don't want to appear 'tight', go to fewer of them.

Don't drink. By all means have that tonic served in the usual G&T tumbler, but then nurse the thing - the price of soft drinks is bad, but the price of social drinking is daft.

Take up meal planning. if you've ever thought you could stand to loose a few pounds, add calories into the financial spreadsheet. Or take up war time recipes a la Marguerite Patten (with care!) When everything in the fridge & freezer has a planned use on & for, you're running Jack Munroe style planning. Her recipes are darned cheap but tasty too, & a bit more current. Eat more at home, & take your handiwork into work rather than go out.

It's less than 100 days til December 25 - if your workplace doesn't do a Secret Santa on a specific budget, suggest it. Calmly, but you may be surprised to see how many folk are prepared 'to give it a try' & of course, bonus points for the most imaginative/creative etc.

Go through the wardrobe. What have you not worn in over a year & really do not anticipate wearing again (tail suits, military uniforms, & Serious Occasional garb exempt)? As that can be sold, or swapped, depending on how much face you're minded to risk.

Wander through the house. What, again, have you not got out of its box, or cupboard or even recollected in the last year? EBay is actually somewhat hard work what with photos & descriptions & the percentages they & PayPal take off you, but at least it's relatively discreet. Getting Sothebys or the like in to estimate furniture & paintings may or may not be more appropriate but they are not cheap either.

Eyeball your car or cars. Do you really need that many? Are you under any contractual obligation to replace it in a finite time (or hand it back?) Put it through it's financial paces - exactly how much per mile is it costing you including tax, MOT, insurance, let alone fuel etc, and how much is it earning in expenses for you?

Do Martin's Money Makeover. Take the day off if you have to - it *may* be the best paid day's work you'll ever do. Little things like duplicate insurance policies, (holiday cover when your bank account already offers that is a classic), and How Much is your phone? When did you last change was & electricity suppliers? (Changing every year isn't madness, it's solid financial sense.)

If you feel your financial resolve weakening, post an SOA. (Forgive me, I haven't checked your posting history.) The very clear headed will examine that & strip it down to the bone. (The trolls may grunt, but ignore them.) Just what you cut and how far is always your call, but they'll advise with the absolute unflinching clarity that can leave you feeling publicly undressed - but ye gods they can help you stick with it!

When you've done all that, you may well find you don't actually want that New Thing. You can instead visit a New Place, or learn a New Skill - things that may or may not require money but something even more exclusive - time. At which point, you may not need to worry about seeming tight, as that sort of judgmental baggage you've moved on a bit from. You have a new currency - interesting.

Best of luck!

determined_new_ms

I think that when you are paying off debt you need to get excited about little goals - I loved payday and watching the debt decrease and after a certain point it becomes like a rolling stone!

I think you can still do things and socialise but look for more creative ways of spending your time that don't cost so much. If you and your social group like to go out for meals then can you have a dinner party? I've got to a point where I am shocked at the cost of a meal out and often feel I could make the same that tastes better for everyone for a fraction of what my share would be. Last weekend I had my son, his gf, a friend of his, my partner and myself over and we had steak, fries, mushrooms and tomatoes with a garlic butter sauce for less than it would have cost me for my meal. It was delicious and we had a great time.

I think in the end I decided to change my lifestyle to one I wanted rather than just trying to live the same lifestyle for less. I'm happier now, so I think you have to work out what you want and how you want to live and then it's not a hardship, it becomes water off a ducks back

[Deleted User]

determined_new_ms wrote: »

I loved payday and watching the debt decrease and after a certain point it becomes like a rolling stone!

Agreed.

Right at the end, for the last few months, I printed out a "countdown list", hung it on the wall, and crossed out the entries, as each payment was made.

Circling that final entry, was such a great thing to do, after all the years of skimping and struggling. :cool:

iolanthe07

As a pensioner on a fairly modest income, I think the trick is to never borrow any money (mortgage excepted) and live within your means.

sourcrates

iolanthe07 wrote: »

As a pensioner on a fairly modest income, I think the trick is to never borrow any money (mortgage excepted) and live within your means.

This is the approach I have taken since an IVA cleared my £57,000 of debt I had managed to accrue all my adult life, in 2014.


I don't use any form of credit now, everything is paid, or budgeted for, no credit cards, no loans, it can be hard, and there have been times I've overspent and run out of money a week before payday, but that was my own silly fault.


I much prefer my credit free life now, I never stressed over money, like some do, not much anyway lol.

Sharon87

I'm in the position of trying to clear my debt yet still have a social life, so I feel your pain. I also don't want to appear tight, so have spent a bit more than I should have at times. I do go out less now, but I do miss it when I don't go out in a while.

My tip is to get bargains, like right now I'm about to go cinema - for free, using the Nectar card offer - 2 cinema tickets for 1000 points (well my friends points, as I used mine for us last month). The trick is to get vouchers for the things you like doing. I used to be so good at that. eg. I used my clubcard vouchers, converted them to Avios points, found a 'reward flight' and paid £25 in a cash for a return to Ibiza for next year!

Use loyalty cards for things and vouchers for others. That's what I'm -relearning to do!

Huskyrunner

I do market research surveys they bring in extra crash.

If i buy anything online i ensure i go topcashback.co.uk

money tins are a good one all those extra pennies/2p's 5p's soon add up i took out 80 quid out my last one.

and finally if changing any insurances/utilities/providers etc etc use a cashback site

i got 40 quid for recently swapping our cash insurance and home emergency cover.