Sh*t creek - is now in my rear view mirror...!

MovingForwards

Sorry I didn't see this pop up earlier!
The meter readers should attend every 2 years I think. It's not just to check they are working / take the reading, but also to make sure it's not been tampered with to get free electric.

They are not provided with company vehicles and do use whatever they happen to own.

Now, take a deep breath and if needs be, write a note and tape it to the inside of your door, reminding yourself to ask for ID if every you are unsure.

You're still adjusting to your new dose / meds, stop being so hard on yourself 😉

Irenadler

Forget to say that I did drag myself to the shop.
Planned to go to Mr T's as there are 2 ATM's outside it to draw down £100 for the month.
Negative: both were out of service!
Positive: although used card only spent £23.14! First. Time. Ever. Stayed in budget and used list....

Last week stocked up on kitchen rolls (8 pack), very handy for 'dog accidents' from either end (TMI).
This week stocked up on UHT plant milk - a mix of soya and oat x 6. 
Next week I am going to get some 75p oats, slowly, slowly building up some cupboard stores for peace of mind. I still have a fair few tinned toms and tinned coconut milk too. And did get toilet rolls in case of panic buyers, which, seems to be happening in some places again...

Despite my daft tizzy and lack of sleep, I am pleased that I actually got my head round the shopping budget this week. I looked in the cupboards, fridge and freezer properly. Worked out rough meals for week, and ONLY bought what I needed. Do you know, it works lol!  Yes, you lot already knew that didn't you, and have been trying to get it into my scatty brain....

Whilst I was shopping, I did realise how much my internal dialogue was running off list, like ooh that's on offer, wonder if I should get that too? Ooh, 2 for 1, should I? And now I know why I have broken the budget previously. It really felt like the battle between want and need, with need winning this week. I did allow for small treats, vegan crisps and cheapest digestive biscuits (31p), so I didn't feel deprived, but this finally made me realise that difference want vs need. I could've spent less and been ok... 

I have seen the (MSE) light!

Took blimmin' long enough....

Irenadler

Another day, another review.
I looked back through the first pages of my diary. A mixture of panic and terror, followed by slowly dawning relief of taking back control of the finances, getting monthly direct debits sorted so I was in a much better position, with the odd panic thrown in... Seems a long time ago now. And a lot of you on here have really helped me to push on that process, thanks again all of you! 

I came on this thread knowing that if I had savings, I would have been cushioned from the stress & emotional fallout of what happened, but I accept that mentally I wasn't in the right place and could not cope with this at the time. Trying to move from that into realistic goals now. Savings are my motivation, not just saving my butt from financial disaster...

What a difference a night's sleep makes to your thinking processes. Early night, followed by only getting up at 4.45am - that's an actual lie-in by my standards.

So, now the EF is being set up with £50 per month savings, what sort of goal should I follow?

SHORT TERM: i.e. what spanner could be thrown in the works that isn't budgeted for? And in my circumstances = overdraft/spiralling costs/financial SHTF disaster..... 

I thought about worse-case events for me: white goods needing replacing, 'minor repair' e.g. burst pipe havoc, vet fees (operation?) & needing to help out older relatives (i.e. shopping, etc), UC sanctions/no income. After poking about on the web (that was scary, looking up prices) I came up with an estimate of a minimum emergency goal of £500, which should cover the most basic of those. That's about 1 month's income/expenses. Rising to £1,500 maximum & average vet costs for an operation (3 month's expenses). 3years at current rate of saving!!!

MID-TERM: Once the hurdle of £1,500 reached, what then?

This led to me thinking about stuff I don't want to face, like, if MH does go down the pan, and there is a 'waiting gap' in income, having to go through the ordeal of applying for more help. OR, other health issues affecting ability to work, e.g. genetic disease in family. No job/work. I settled on the mid-way goal of £3,000 (6 months expenses).

LONG-TERM: If I get to £3,000!

This is for stuff like, way, way in the future a nest-egg for retirement. Settled on £6,000 = 12 month's expenses. It would give me leeway if I have to live on that for 12 months - although I am not sure how that would occur. I would hope that I would be earning (pipe-dream?) so I wouldn't need to. It is also, by coincidence, the cap that you are allowed to have before UC starts to reduce monthly entitlement. That would take me 6 years at current saving rate, as long as I didn't dip into it. Can't see me lasting that long without some expenses like white goods, or vet treatments.

So, riding the wave of success from sticking to the shopping budget, I realise that I have to be more aggressive to save that first goal. And I feel that it really is an emergency. Such a small amount to most people, but, such a big hit to my finances at the moment because my savings pot is teeny and I feel more vulnerable now I have looked into prices of stuff/possible events....

Onwards and (savings) upwards!

Skint_yet_Again

Hey Ren we all started small.☺️ I had no emergency fund and was in debt a few years ago. Once you get started it will soon add up. It’s good to start with a target of £500 to have something achievable to aim for and go from there. 

Well done on sticking to the shopping list / budget 🤗

Irenadler

Skint_yet_Again said:

Hey Ren we all started small.☺️ I had no emergency fund and was in debt a few years ago. Once you get started it will soon add up. It’s good to start with a target of £500 to have something achievable to aim for and go from there. 

Well done on sticking to the shopping list / budget 🤗

Aw, thanks Skinty...
I have to start somewhere, and tried to think it through logically, as this kind of thinking has been sorely lacking.

Shopping list & budget - a real win for me... I used to think along the lines of shopping = retail therapy. Whoever thought of that one should be taken out and thoroughly spanked...   For me shopping = distraction from horrible/negative thoughts. Not therapy. Just a way of digging a deeper hole in my finances....

MovingForwards

I do think a read through of our diaries should be done at least twice a year, until things are settling into place and stabilised.

My thoughts about your goals:

Short-Term - remember being on UC will grant you access to the PDSA for everything, they allow one 'pet' per year. Aside from that, I think you're spot on (sorry!) with everything else.

Mid- Term - You will get directed to your GP by us if we see any concerns, that will mean quicker stability for you. Don't forget PIP is claimable and that boosts your overall income. You are managing on UC, the two together would make a difference. The goal is achievable.

Long-Term - £3k is good, so is £6k. I would expect the allowable benefits cap to have increased a little by then. However, reaching pension age gives a bigger cap before affecting pension top ups.

What you have planned is not small. Do you know many people struggle to even have an EF and live reactively to situations rather than plan. 

Two tips I will give you: 
--Goals within goals. 
Here you plan your £500 but set milestones reaching £50 first the £100, £200 etc. It helps not to think of the end goal, but each achievement on the way to it.
I would have got, and still would get, disheartened saving if I only focused on the end figure.

-- Interest.
This helps you reach your goal and should be embraced each month, quarter or whenever it's paid. 
Getting paid interest on top of interest (compounding) does make a difference to savings and is also an incentive to keep adding money each month to see it go up 😉

You really are a totally different woman now Ren.

Irenadler

MovingForwards said:

I do think a read through of our diaries should be done at least twice a year, until things are settling into place and stabilised.

My thoughts about your goals:

Short-Term - remember being on UC will grant you access to the PDSA for everything, they allow one 'pet' per year. Aside from that, I think you're spot on (sorry!) with everything else.
Gah! I had forgotten.... love the joke....  
Mid- Term - You will get directed to your GP by us if we see any concerns, that will mean quicker stability for you. Don't forget PIP is claimable and that boosts your overall income. You are managing on UC, the two together would make a difference. The goal is achievable.
Thank you, still resisting any more help though, it's like accepting I need PIP is accepting I won't get better/may get worse and I am not there yet... I am hoping against hope here possibly....
Long-Term - £3k is good, so is £6k. I would expect the allowable benefits cap to have increased a little by then. However, reaching pension age gives a bigger cap before affecting pension top ups.
I think I am pipe-dreaming on both those amounts, still, doesn't hurt to hope!
What you have planned is not small. Do you know many people struggle to even have an EF and live reactively to situations rather than plan. 
I didn't think of it that way, just, how do I stop myself living month to month and getting in a mess....
Two tips I will give you: 
--Goals within goals. 
Here you plan your £500 but set milestones reaching £50 first the £100, £200 etc. It helps not to think of the end goal, but each achievement on the way to it.
I would have got, and still would get, disheartened saving if I only focused on the end figure.
Agree with this, looking at what I have got, this was mostly from rebates/refunds and not active saving of any kind....
-- Interest.
This helps you reach your goal and should be embraced each month, quarter or whenever it's paid. 
Getting paid interest on top of interest (compounding) does make a difference to savings and is also an incentive to keep adding money each month to see it go up 😉
Ha! To have any interest on savings - now that's encouraging...   
You really are a totally different woman now Ren.

I really hope so (keeping everything crossed).... Thank you so much for this Babs, I will save, even if it only gets to be a low amount, it's better than blundering into overdraft/panic territory...

MovingForwards

PIP is claimable by anyone, it doesn't mean you can't work. Both of us are not claiming it for the same reasons, holding onto the rope where better health is at the end of it.

Aim for smaller goals to work towards your £500. Perhaps reaching £1, £5, £10, £20, £30, £50 of your own stashed away money would boost your confidence with saving, slowly step towards it so you know you won't leave yourself short while you get the hang of it.

I don't think you are dreaming about your second and third goal, it's not an overnight thing, but hope makes a huge difference to your outlook.

savingwannabe

Ren it's the weekend and i thought i would catch up. Fab work, your savings goal sounds brilliant. You have made so much progress logging on to those surveys too. I keep meaning to but dont get v far you have more discipline than me. We are all in a similar boat squirreling a bit away here and there and it does add up. It gives us something to look forward to as well. 

Irenadler

MovingForwards said:

PIP is claimable by anyone, it doesn't mean you can't work. Both of us are not claiming it for the same reasons, holding onto the rope where better health is at the end of it.
I think I will force myself to look into it, but, battling my brain over this.....
Aim for smaller goals to work towards your £500. Perhaps reaching £1, £5, £10, £20, £30, £50 of your own stashed away money would boost your confidence with saving, slowly step towards it so you know you won't leave yourself short while you get the hang of it.
I have sort of started that with the (variable) stash cash jar.... 
I don't think you are dreaming about your second and third goal, it's not an overnight thing, but hope makes a huge difference to your outlook.

This is so true - when I came on here, I didn't have much hope I would be able to balance the low income and outgoings, and look how that worked out! From 90% odd direct debits, down to maybe 24% d/d's compared to income... From £9 per week for food & everything, to the potential £300 odd... Huge difference, huge wake-up call to myself that things weren't as bad as I thought, so my daring to dream of saving on a low income is happening...