I want to stop wasting money.

Cakeguts

If you were to stop sending money to the lottery and stop buying shop made sandwiches you would save a lot of cash. If Aldi is your favourite supermarket buy all your food from there. Do not buy any other food from anywhere else. If you want something for lunch at work make it from something you bought at Aldi and use a flask for coffee or tea.

Then there were lots of bits on Paypal that seem to be just spending for the sake of it. There was a huge spend at sports direct which I didn't understand since you say that you don't buy things new?

getmore4less

Towser wrote: »

Yes eating out is my luxury and will try to eat at home more.

subway and Ronald luxury!

Find a Wetherspoons just as cheap and they throw in a beer

now that is luxury

DCFC79

Learn how to cook, can be cheaper than the takeout food.

Towser

Stop spending money.
Stop going in all these shops.
Stop buying stuff.
Stop it.

Find a Wetherspoons just as cheap and they throw in a beer

now that is luxury

All very good advice. I will have to. To be MFW sooner.

Brambleberry

Can you edit your statement post to summarise what you bought / why?
Essentially this is what you need to do so that others here can give you further advice, but also so that in future you can have those "conversations" with yourself and reduce your ineffective spending.

getmore4less

^^^^^
use this format
http://www.stoozing.com/calculator/soa.php

start a proper spending diary.

then do a budget

I assume this is only a partial set of income/spends as there is council tax but no bills rent or mortgage and the pension at 220 suggest higher income.

PasturesNew

DCFC79 wrote: »

Learn how to cook, can be cheaper than the takeout food.

People don't even need to "learn to cook" as there are ways round that. e.g. a frozen fish/chips dinner in the oven, from Aldi would be cheaper than a chippy .... and a slow cooker + bit of meat + jar of sauce and pouches of ready cooked rice is cheaper than a takeaway.

There are a gazillion ways to eat/save money without learning to cook, for those who fear the phrase.

It's in part "choice", you can spend as much/almost as much in supermarkets by "buying the one with the nicest packet and best sounding name". I could buy a Dominos small pizza (£10?) ... or in Aldi get one from there (£3-6? in a nice box) ... but if you shuffle down to the freezer and check out the price tags... I bought a pizza for 89p just this week .. and, with a few oven chips, it's two meals!

sleepygirl126

Morning Towser...
It's a daily battle for me not to spend money and I literally got to 40 before I sorted myself out! I still have the odd blip though!! I feel your pain...
Try taking a small amount of cash to work for the week and packing a nice lunch daily...if you haven't got your card, you can't spend!!
Home lunches can be really nice if you have a microwave...i make all my own soups, baked potatoes, pasta salads, really nice crusty rolls and your favourite fillings? They don't have to be soggy sandwiches!!
This is my recipe for curried carrot soup...it's 17p a portion
1.2lb carrots, one onion, one potato, 2 cloves garlic, 800 ml of veg stock, tablespoon of medium curry powder, butter
Chop the onion, garlic, carrots and potato up and simmer in the butter for a few minutes, add the curry powder and give a good stir..put the stock in, bring to the boil, reduce the heat back down to the lowest possible and cover..simmer for 25 mins....then whizz it in the blender or handblend it with a stick blender...serve with a crusty roll...it's lovely, filling, you can freeze it or keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days

getmore4less

looking at the list you seem to be out and about a lot these places can't all be that close to each other.

are you drivng walking bus.....


Could you get a job to use up the time, harder to spend when working.

Also a lot seem to be snack food places, places like M&S are expensive but knock 90% off near closing so you often get Pizza, sandwiches and other things like ready meals/meat in sauces really cheap.


Are you alone or are there others in the family?

Towser

It is amazing what you can learn from a statement. Thank-you.

I assume this is only a partial set of income/spends

Yes hubby spends other.

There are a gazillion ways to eat/save money without learning to cook, for those who fear the phrase.

I need to learn to cook, hubby says just get a recipe book. Are there courses for lazy housewives?

It's a daily battle for me not to spend money and I literally got to 40 before I sorted myself out! I still have the odd blip though!! I feel your pain...

I am late 40's though.

looking at the list you seem to be out and about a lot these places can't all be that close to each other.

are you drivng

Yes I am in a family with an Autistic boy who cannot abide homemade food. Hence the eating out. Only people with Autistic folk may get this.

But note to self no more shopping and eating out! I hope next months statement goes better - no school holidays.