Is being terrible with money a medical condition?! Spending pattern help.

littlegreenparrot

Others have made great suggestions for planning how you spend your money. 


I have a much more old school one that has helped me in the past. 
How much does it cost to fill the car with fuel? Withdraw that amount in cash on payday and put it in an envelope. That gets stashed somewhere, underwear drawer, tin at the back of the pantry, wherever. 

Leave it. It is only for the end of the month if you have nothing left in your account. 

Do the same next month even if you don't spend it, and repeat. You start building up a little stash of cash which can then be used for whatever.

I used to dip into it for short/medium term treats as a reward for managing better. Hairdressers, a birthday treat takeaway, but always left enough to last a couple of weeks if I really needed it. 
Somehow actual cash made it easier.

hereagain22

littlegreenparrot said:

Others have made great suggestions for planning how you spend your money. 


I have a much more old school one that has helped me in the past. 
How much does it cost to fill the car with fuel? Withdraw that amount in cash on payday and put it in an envelope. That gets stashed somewhere, underwear drawer, tin at the back of the pantry, wherever. 

Leave it. It is only for the end of the month if you have nothing left in your account. 

Do the same next month even if you don't spend it, and repeat. You start building up a little stash of cash which can then be used for whatever.

I used to dip into it for short/medium term treats as a reward for managing better. Hairdressers, a birthday treat takeaway, but always left enough to last a couple of weeks if I really needed it. 
Somehow actual cash made it easier.

Yes I like the organisation of this and I am trying to do it with online banking as we have a few internet savings accounts so planning on using those as like the spending pots that you get with Monzo etc. Will give it a go

hereagain22

Shopaholic_no_more said:

hereagain22 said:

Thank you I can relate to your name lol! 

Right - why are some people so organised with money and some not. 

Totally with you on the shops splurge I used to use credit cards that way. I have run up more credit card debt so need rid of that.
Definitely the can deal with it later feeling there. I used to really enjoy going out shopping, now it's more ordering online but I get that buzz from a parcel turning up and something new and shiny to use/wear! 

 I will check it out, thanks. I will try to post updates and you share yours too! We got this lol!! 
x

Morning @hereagain22

So I have had a very low spend weekend….when I go to Tisco’s now I only ever use the gun so I can see exactly how much I’m spending….my YNAB has told me how much I have left for a particular week (I’ve roughly budgeted £70 a week at the moment but this includes food and litter for 2 cats and I am striving to get this down) and I actually overspent by 5p so very happy with that! 
This overspend has been taken from next weeks food budget so I’m always watching the total. I do also shop at Oldi but not keen on their fruit and veg tbh. So everything else I get from there but fruit and veg from Tisco’s.

I check YNAB every…single…day as this keeps my mind focussed on exactly how much I have. 

If I need a particular thing I check my budget first….if the funds are not there I wait until they are.

 Sometimes I need to move my category amounts around but this is the beauty of it….it helps you budget for real life situations.

My plan is to build up and get a whole months worth of  extra earnings behind me so I am more prepared for any unexpected bills and only then am I tackling my credit cards.
At the moment I am just paying the minimum required while I build that backup!

I have tried in the past to keep whacking money at them but this never worked for me because not having those funds behind me inevitably led me to having to use the CC so it was a vicious circle. 

I have a wall calendar at home (old school!😆) and the day my CC payment is due I write the INTEREST payment only in big red letters on that calendar so it is a constant reminder of how much your OWN HARD EARNED MONEY is being taken from these companies due to my lack of willpower….it is working for me! 🙌

How was your weekend?

Good idea with the tesco gun thingy I have never used one. I tend to do a mix of shopping between Tesco and Aldi. I get certain things from Tesco and then the rest from Aldi.

I am prioritising an emergency savings fund of £1000 and hope to have that done by October. Same with the cards - I am just paying minimum for now while I build up that fund and then will be paying them off otherwise I just keep spending on them.

I am all good, hope you are too. Trying to stay positive and do some planning for the future to keep motivated. I have slipped a few times and made a few purchases but nowhere near as bad as it was and I am hoping for a spend low September!! 
x

hereagain22

So I have been super nerdy and planned until the end of the year with my spreadsheet, it's now a new layout, lots of colour coding etc (love a colour coded spreadsheet lol!) Obviously not set in stone as who knows what will happen in the next 4 months but...

I have set targets for: 

Have an emergency savings fund of £1k by October

Clear the BNPL stuff - Klarna and PP in 3 - by October

Clear the debts in my husband's name by the end of December (£1,400) 

Nearly cleared the arrears from covid last year (deferred council tax and an energy bill that we were on a plan to pay off)
Just £100 left to pay on this  - so this will also be done by October.

Fingers crossed there will also be a start to our big savings pot of £1,000 by end of the year as well.

Also want to try sink funds for expenses that aren't monthly as they always trip me up.

I am working on an approximately 18 month plan starting this month, as we are also saving to buy/finance a boat to live on. So hopefully the current pain will be worth it and all will come good in the end. I am definitely resisting the urge to buy something just for the pleasure of shopping now and thinking purchases through a lot more. Having the targets in mind really helps with this. I have asked for a pay rise at my current role, but I am fairly certain this will be a no as they don't tend to give pay rises.

From next year, the plan is to have a set amount of money each month to snowball debts in my name, alongside the allocated amount going into the big savings pot and the sink funds. It's an ambitious plan as me and my hubby are not big earners but we are living with family in a very difficult home situation to try and make this work. I do also have a freelance side hustle that I could start up again to help.
Everything crossed - the hardest part is definitely keeping positive, especially as home life is so difficult, but I am trying to keep focused on our dream.