£67,031.92 is a frightening number indeed....

Treadingonplaymobil

I do have an accountant (although do my own book keeping), and I've always known what % of income I should be leaving in my business account each month, but at some stage I think I was a bit short and started paying the odd bit out of my business account during the month rather than waiting for my'salary' date, and it eventually just grew into a habit from there.

I'm really looking forward to going back to drawing a 'salary' rather than being totally hand to mouth - it felt totally out of reach to be able to leave money in my business account, but being truly strict with my budget for just one month has allowed me to get back to that stage again. Long may it continue.

Treadingonplaymobil

Week 2: Day 2


Phew, made it through half term with budgets intact! The children are back to school/preschool today and I get 30 seconds to drink a cup of tea in peace.

Also looking forward to clearing my house a bit this week - I hate the clutter that accumulates when we don't have time to keep on top of it.

To do today:
1. Go through the ‘spares’ box of bathroom supplies (shampoo, shower gel etc) and make a note of what’s in there, so things can be crossed off as they are used, to stop us duplicate buying things (didn't do this yesterday).
2. Social media while working
3. Bake some nice biscuits for my client tomorrow, so I don't end up running to the shops for something.
4. Tidy the sitting room (I'll attempt to sort at least one room a day this week).
5. Have a last check through the menu plan and food shopping list before DH goes tonight and make sure it is as trim as possible.

To do this week:
1. Sit down as a family (we have a weekly family meeting on a Monday, this seems a good time) and come up with ways to reduce water usage.
2. Look for paper/online copy of washing machine manual to see which cycle uses least water/energy, as part of an ongoing mission to reduce costs of both.
3. Log into ee - our last two bills have been c.£91, which is even more ridiculous than the £85 contract fee, so we’re clearly overspending somewhere.
4. find out how much preschool bill is for this month and pay it - they seem terrible at giving out invoices and I don’t want to inadvertently get into arrears!
5. Ask at school whether there is dressing up for world book day.

I hope you all have a good week ahead

armchairexpert

I also own a small business (well, it's just me really) and what I do is that at the end of each month I:
Send out that month's invoices (terms 14 days but income trickles in over the month)
Out of the last month's income I buy anything needed for the next month
THen transfer a % of what's left into my tax account (linked savings account), then pay myself the balance into the domestic account.

Except that actually what I do now is the first two steps, then pay myself a set amount and whatever's left goes into a pot I call Reserve Earnings - that way if I have a slow month, I can dip into that money to top up the month's income so my contribution to the household monies stays the same every month.

I actually did it that way because I was taking on too much, afraid to turn down any work even low paying, and I wanted a cushion so I could take a few days off here and there to invest time and energy into building the business smarter without worrying that I would be earning less.

Don't know if that helps you but it might be useful for someone out there!

Treadingonplaymobil

armchairexpert wrote: »

I also own a small business (well, it's just me really) and what I do is that at the end of each month I:
Send out that month's invoices (terms 14 days but income trickles in over the month)
Out of the last month's income I buy anything needed for the next month
THen transfer a % of what's left into my tax account (linked savings account), then pay myself the balance into the domestic account.

Except that actually what I do now is the first two steps, then pay myself a set amount and whatever's left goes into a pot I call Reserve Earnings - that way if I have a slow month, I can dip into that money to top up the month's income so my contribution to the household monies stays the same every month.

I actually did it that way because I was taking on too much, afraid to turn down any work even low paying, and I wanted a cushion so I could take a few days off here and there to invest time and energy into building the business smarter without worrying that I would be earning less.

Don't know if that helps you but it might be useful for someone out there!

Thanks for sharing! That's pretty much the stage I'm trying to get to with my business account. I'm setting my 'salary' for March only a fraction higher than the bare minimum income that my SOA is based on, even though I have a bit more in the account, as I want to start to get a month ahead of myself and have a bit of a reserve pot for leaner periods (I am always quiet in the summer). I find it genuinely amazing that I actually have money in there at all after only a week of being sensible, as I was so in the habit of removing everything, and find it a huge weight off my mind to know that whatever happens, I already have March's bare minimum income covered, and a small part of April's already set aside. I appreciate this is all just sensible business practice, it's just new to me to be so sensible!

Drawingaline

Sounds like you are sorting things out on every level!

117pauline

Only a few days in and the change in you is remarkable. You now know what to expect monewise in the future and you have a contingency plan in place. That must make you feel more in control already.

From personal experience, once you actually know how your budget works, it makes it easier for you to work to it rather than burying your head in the sand.

Talking of your business, do you allow for working from home in your calculations? You mention making biscuits for your client tomorrow, do you allow for this in your budget? I am sure it isn't a large amount but still it is a business expense.

Have a good week
Pauline

Treadingonplaymobil

Drawingaline wrote: »

Sounds like you are sorting things out on every level!

117pauline wrote: »

Only a few days in and the change in you is remarkable. You now know what to expect monewise in the future and you have a contingency plan in place. That must make you feel more in control already.

From personal experience, once you actually know how your budget works, it makes it easier for you to work to it rather than burying your head in the sand.

Talking of your business, do you allow for working from home in your calculations? You mention making biscuits for your client tomorrow, do you allow for this in your budget? I am sure it isn't a large amount but still it is a business expense.

Have a good week
Pauline

I'm almost a proper functioning adult! Well, sort of...

Treadingonplaymobil

Whoops, forgot to round up yesterday's lists. Will do that quickly before I make today's.

Feeling nice back on top of things now the children are back at school My house resembles a house rather than rubbish tip, my ironing mountain is finished and I have drunk a cup of tea in silence. Phew.

Minor annoyance yesterday when i discovered that Child 3’s preschool fees were £20 higher than I expected for the month (my maths fail). Not a huge drama as I’ll move the money over from food/fuel excesses, but it means I’ll have a bit less extra left at the end of the month than I’d hoped. Never mind, can’t be helped, and at least it’s a reduced excess rather than increased debt.

To do (yesterday):
1. Go through the ‘spares’ box of bathroom supplies (shampoo, shower gel etc) and make a note of what’s in there, so things can be crossed off as they are used, to stop us duplicate buying things (didn't do this yesterday). Done!
2. Social media while working. Done!
3. Bake some nice biscuits for my client tomorrow, so I don't end up running to the shops for something. Done! Viennese whirls - my children are addicted to them and always scoff any leftover ones in about three minutes flat, so it’s a nice treat for them too.
4. Tidy the sitting room (I'll attempt to sort at least one room a day this week). Done!
5. Have a last check through the menu plan and food shopping list before DH goes tonight and make sure it is as trim as possible. Done!

To do this week:
1. Sit down as a family (we have a weekly family meeting on a Monday, this seems a good time) and come up with ways to reduce water usage. Done!
2. Look for paper/online copy of washing machine manual to see which cycle uses least water/energy, as part of an ongoing mission to reduce costs of both.
3. Log into ee - our last two bills have been c.£91, which is even more ridiculous than the £85 contract fee, so we’re clearly overspending somewhere. Done, and lightly horrified to see that our bills are actually £89.75, not £85. That's a crapload of money on mobile phones.
4. Find out how much preschool bill is for this month and pay it - they seem terrible at giving out invoices and I don’t want to inadvertently get into arrears! Done! Annoyingly higher than expected, but not horribly so.
5. Ask at school whether there is dressing up for world book day.Done, and nobody seems to know! Will have to tap all my inventive skills if there is a last minute demand for costumes.

I hope you all have a good week ahead

Treadingonplaymobil

Week 2: Day 3

Well yesterday's big news was DH getting all the food shopping for... drumrolll... £50.92! Almost £50 under our remaining budget for the month. It's a bit of a 'false reading' as we had tons of food in the house, but I'm optimistic we can keep it well down below our previous levels (which is good, because I have wildly slashed our food budget since we started out).

To do today:
1. Ice biscuits for my client
2. Update YNAB and move some of remaining food budget to next month's budget (will leave a little in case of a top up shop).
2. Social media while working.
3. Turn around the last minute work I got yesterday - only an hour or so's work, so only about £20 in if, but better than a slap in the face with a wet kipper .
4. Tidy the bombsite that used to be my dining room .
5. Return the online order that's been loitering for over a week.

To do this week:
1. Sit down as a family (we have a weekly family meeting on a Monday, this seems a good time) and come up with ways to reduce water usage. Done!
2. Look for paper/online copy of washing machine manual to see which cycle uses least water/energy, as part of an ongoing mission to reduce costs of both.
3. Log into ee - our last two bills have been c.£91, which is even more ridiculous than the £85 contract fee, so we’re clearly overspending somewhere. Done, and lightly horrified to see that our bills are actually £89.75, not £85. That's a crapload of money on mobile phones.
4. Find out how much preschool bill is for this month and pay it - they seem terrible at giving out invoices and I don’t want to inadvertently get into arrears! Done! Annoyingly higher than expected, but not horribly so.
5. Ask at school whether there is dressing up for world book day.Done, and nobody seems to know! Will have to tap all my inventive skills if there is a last minute demand for costumes.

JoJoC

Wow! Have you any top up shops to do? How fab would it be to have £50 left over to put towards debt/ a treat/ savings. Well done Mr TOP!

Sounds like a productive day, and you're right, an hour's work is better than no work.