Looking forward - my diary!

marc.faulkner

Think I'm becoming a bit addicted already lol. Still, better than been addicted to spending like I was...

Just had my £60 validated in Quidco for my insurance, so my years contents cover is now only going to end up costing me £36.84

Thanks for everybodies positive feedback so far, I haevn't felt this motivated to get off by @rse and do something for a very long time!

Gemmzie

Congrats on the lightbulb moment and for getting it sorted before it gets too far

I noticed you have a car and have counted petrol but what about car tax, insurance and MOTs/repairs, this should be counted into your monthly budget so it's less of a hit when it happens

benbenandme

Aaaawwww, thankyou for the credit in your opening post I'm blushing I hope you find doing a diary helps you, for me it keeps me on track and keeps me motivated, if I'm having a down day its always good to read back through and see what you've already achieved To know it helps motivates others feels brilliant too

You're very fortunate to have such a good attitude towards your finances at such a young age, you should have a great financial future ahead of you

Keep posting and good luck on the journey :beer:

marc.faulkner

Thanks

Look what happens when you spend half of Sunday lying in bed :rolleyes: It's gone 1am and I'm still sat at the computer...Still, it's proving quite profitable.

I've just spent waaaaaay too long reading through the site, especially threads about mystery shopping, cashback and matched betting. Think I'm going to have to setup a spreadsheet to keep track of everything - as I've already registered on 2 cashback sites, and can see plenty more pies I'd like to have a finger or too in. Ah well, that'll give me something to do when I'm bored in work tomorrow - we don't have internet access expect for work related sites, so I won't be able to sit on here all day. I'm going to try and sort out a decent spreadsheet to keep tabs on my budget, spending, cashback, savings, and anything else I may choose to get involved with.

marc.faulkner

Just joined Pigsback. 100 points for joining, and 50 points for them feeding my spam filter one a week.

marc.faulkner

Really happy, so far today has been a NSD! If I make it until midnight (which I will, as I'm not going anywhere) this will be me first proper NSD for at least 18 months...

I've also started work on a proper budget. Reckon I can shave a couple of hundred quid per month off my current spend - which means a quicker DFD and more money to build my savings and increase my overall financial security.

Everyone in work reckons I've gone mad, as I spent all day pouring over figures and spreadsheets LOL.

Onwards an upwards, as they say.

marc.faulkner

Just done my piggy clicks for the day

I'm going to get on with my eBay spree now, as I didn't get around to it yesterday.

marc.faulkner

Ok, I've put together a spreadsheet to keep track of everything - Budget, balances, debts, savings, quidco, pigsback, surveys, mystery shopping, eBay, matched betting etc.

So far, my budget looks a bit like this;

Rent - £325 (previously £325)
Food/shopping - £60 (previously approx £120+)
Mobile - £10 (previously £30)
Home Ins - £7.49 (previously £15)
Bank Acc Fee - £6.50 (previously £6.50)
Life Ins - £6.49 (previously £10)
Petrol - £80 (previously £110)
Car in - £36.50 (previously £100)
Lottery - £4 (previously £12)
Pension - £20 (previously £10)
Road Tax - £5 (previously £0)



Total monthly, planned spend - £560.98 (Previously £738.50)

£347.94 Surplus PM (to cover misc spending, entertainment, paying debts and savings)

I'm also aiming to increase my monthly income by £300, through AQA (if I'm accepted), mystery shops, cashback and eBay. My aim is to save this £300 PM towards a new goal - £10k within 3 years (which I will probably use towards a house deposit).

hypno06

What a difference a day makes!!

Keep going, but don't expect every day to be as productive as today! Sometimes it feels like swimming through treacle!!

marc.faulkner

Thanks Hypno

I'm really amazed at how prodcutive the past 24 hours have been. I'm used to swimming through treacle - seem to have spent most of my life doing it. The difference is, I no longer seem to be drowning in it.