Budget Wars - A New Hope (with apologies to George Lucas)

Bobarella · 16 January 2017 at 10:15AM

Morning All

Wealth

* Not good in the current account or business account. I got a lump sum into the business account yesterday, paid my business rates (£183 per month) daylight robbery, I get literally nothing for that as a business and they want to put them up in April....Cleared the electric bill (£89 remained at that point) struggling with the electric bill because it's so cold that all customers want the heating on, but my heating works off the electric so my bills are getting scary. Paid my water bill (£53) & one other small bill of (£21) that was it, all gone again.
We still have to find the money to pay for another 9 days living expenses, plus the kicker a £95 energy bill for our own home. Not really sure at the moment how we are going to do this....Sent OH out with my last £20 this morning to pay for his travel for the next two days then he is WFH for the rest of the week. I have £7 in my purse and dregs in my current account.

* I had an email last night from a potential client who has been put in touch a few months back. We are going to sort a meeting for this week.

* I'm going to walk a different route today and do flyers. I have to do something to feel I am making a difference. There is the chance I may make money to help in the short term this way. Last week I had £100 in new business actually in and paid that I didn't expect, plus collecting money from people that had already booked.

* My son was delighted to find a plastic £5 on the school run this morning. See there is wealth to be found!!

Health

* Now I am on OH dental insurance I really need to book the dental work I swerved last year. I can't believe I've had a hole in my tooth since November! But will have saved us £350 we can't afford so....

* Will be walking a lot again today.

Organisation

* I need to go to the business today and check again on the fault that occurred yesterday. Sadly/fortunately, I don't have any clients till the weekend, so if there is a problem I should have time to call someone out. How to pay them will be another matter.

* Will make a flask to take out for the day as I doubt I will come home between now and the school run. Make a sandwich too, check water bottle, after school snacks and nappy supplies.

I had a sudden realisation yesterday that it will be 5 years in May since I went SE and opened my first business. And 6 years in February since I was made redundant from my last 'proper' job. That is a very long time. In all that time I have never cracked the payment thing, as in having enough money from what I am doing to try and give us the life I'd hoped for. It is a sobering thought really. I sometimes wonder if I have been incredibly stupid and selfish to have done this to my family. How would I feel if the boot was on the other foot and OH had decided to pack his job in and take a wild leap into the blue? Would I support him as he has me? Ah....You can tell the lay of the land today can't you. Bit tired, bit fed up and washed out for inspiration. But...Let's see what the day brings, this time next year we could be millionaire's Rodney

Bob

kirtsypoos · 16 January 2017 at 10:44AM

Ratison wrote: »

Agree with this - and if you don't want to have to say it to people, maybe you could provide all prospective customers with a FAQ sheet, and have some questions about payment on there, about when deposit is expected, and how long full payment is expected after that. Saves you having to be strict in person, and you could send a generic reminder email with a set template a day or so before deadlines, with payment details.

Love this idea Ratison, gets the info over to people without too much uncomfortable-ness Bob
I do think the right decision is to sell the equipment, even if it doesn't need to cover your immediate shortfall, at least you will have a fallback amount in the bank if that makes sense.

Sorry that you are having a tough thinking day. I might not know you in RL, but I know enough from here to know that you would have supported DH without question, and at the end of the day by becoming SE, you are trying to build a better life for your family. The business is taking off, albeit slowed down by cancellations/non payers but it will come right, and you are doing the best you can (and far better than most people would be able to) in the meantime.

Chin up Bob, you're an inspiration to so many

NoOneAround · 16 January 2017 at 11:00AM

I had a sudden realisation yesterday that it will be 5 years in May since I went SE and opened my first business. And 6 years in February since I was made redundant from my last 'proper' job. That is a very long time. In all that time I have never cracked the payment thing, as in having enough money from what I am doing to try and give us the life I'd hoped for. It is a sobering thought really. I sometimes wonder if I have been incredibly stupid and selfish to have done this to my family. How would I feel if the boot was on the other foot and OH had decided to pack his job in and take a wild leap into the blue? Would I support him as he has me? Ah....You can tell the lay of the land today can't you. Bit tired, bit fed up and washed out for inspiration. But...Let's see what the day brings, this time next year we could be millionaire's Rodney

Bob[/QUOTE]

Morning Bob,
This sounds so familiar except I'm a few years ahead of you - it's been over 15 years since I was made redundant and refused relocation to a big job, and start SE. It may not have been the best decision I made financially, and on bad days it's so easy to think it was a mistake. But take a moment to think about it. What exactly have you "done" to you family? Been there for them? Spent time with them? Seen them grow and develop? Nurtured little people? Put them first? None of that even by the biggest stretch of imagination is the definition of the word selfish

Despite all money issues now my biggest "regret" is DD growing up in a nursery. I remember with sadness moments like going in all excited and telling them she walked her first steps the evening before, only to know by their reaction that they'd seen it the morning before. We are not living the life I had imagined or hoped for by now, sometimes I feel quite disappointed, but I do know that I did what I thought best and stand by each decision I made

and I know you do too. Best to take a chance and learn from experience than forever wonder what might have been If.

Oops, sorry long post. Written as much to remind myself as to say you are doing amazing - keep going

NOA
x

sashybo · 16 January 2017 at 12:24PM

Bob, I think you're very brave to have gone SE and still be making a go of it. You must be good at it to have been doing it so long.... so you're still figuring things out but it just shows that you're adaptable and up for a challenge. :T

I don't think I'd have the guts to go SE even if I had a good idea, so well done for going for it. :beer:

JWPopps · 16 January 2017 at 1:30PM

Bobarella wrote: »

Morning All

I had a sudden realisation yesterday that it will be 5 years in May since I went SE and opened my first business. And 6 years in February since I was made redundant from my last 'proper' job. That is a very long time. In all that time I have never cracked the payment thing, as in having enough money from what I am doing to try and give us the life I'd hoped for. It is a sobering thought really. I sometimes wonder if I have been incredibly stupid and selfish to have done this to my family. How would I feel if the boot was on the other foot and OH had decided to pack his job in and take a wild leap into the blue? Would I support him as he has me? Ah....You can tell the lay of the land today can't you. Bit tired, bit fed up and washed out for inspiration. But...Let's see what the day brings, this time next year we could be millionaire's Rodney

Bob

Bob, that's amazing! Well done!

Here's a flipside to your feelings: my mum was in a job she loved and excelled in for 18 years when she lived down south. She got made redundant but found another job immediately, in senior management. It meant relocating 150 miles north, to a place she didn't know anyone, still difficult for us as her family to visit.

She was earning big money, but could still only afford a damp little bungalow built on her landlords' garden, because she had debts from before. But she was making it work, getting involved with the community...

...and then she fell out with her immediate boss. She was trying to improve things for others, and in doing so was told she was sacked with no notice as she was costing them too much money. It was written into her contract that they were allowed to do that.

It took her a full year to find a job after that, and now she works in a job she really likes but is massively overqualified for, and it's only part time, plus a huge pay cut. She's gone from owning her own home, having the respect of her colleagues and an active social life to living in her daughter's spare bedroom and working part time while she scrabbles to pay off debts. She doesn't have many friends round here either, they're all 300 miles away.

And do you know something? Slowly, slowly, she's finding ways to be happy again. She's even considering going back SE part time, doing something she used to do ages ago.

Sorry, this is a very long story to get to the point that there is no guarantee you'd be happier or richer if you weren't SE - and you likely wouldn't have such a flexible balance to be able to spend enough time with family...

So give yourself a huge pat on the back for sticking with it!!

:j:beer:

f0xh0les · 16 January 2017 at 3:34PM

You support him, he supports you. End of.

crazy_cat_lady · 16 January 2017 at 7:43PM

Love to you Bob - I think you're doing a fantastic job. Don't be too hard on yourself. You're not running up loads more debt, and there are things that money can't buy that you get from being SE - like time with the family. It's a real balancing act.
You will work this out, you always do and I have the utmost faith in you xxxx :grouphug:

Bobarella · 16 January 2017 at 8:41PM

kirtsypoos wrote: »

Love this idea Ratison, gets the info over to people without too much uncomfortable-ness Bob
I do think the right decision is to sell the equipment, even if it doesn't need to cover your immediate shortfall, at least you will have a fallback amount in the bank if that makes sense.

Sorry that you are having a tough thinking day. I might not know you in RL, but I know enough from here to know that you would have supported DH without question, and at the end of the day by becoming SE, you are trying to build a better life for your family. The business is taking off, albeit slowed down by cancellations/non payers but it will come right, and you are doing the best you can (and far better than most people would be able to) in the meantime.

Chin up Bob, you're an inspiration to so many

Kirsty thank you. Its so nice to read all of that. I appreciate your kindness.

Bobarella · 16 January 2017 at 8:46PM

NoOneAround wrote: »

I had a sudden realisation yesterday that it will be 5 years in May since I went SE and opened my first business. And 6 years in February since I was made redundant from my last 'proper' job. That is a very long time. In all that time I have never cracked the payment thing, as in having enough money from what I am doing to try and give us the life I'd hoped for. It is a sobering thought really. I sometimes wonder if I have been incredibly stupid and selfish to have done this to my family. How would I feel if the boot was on the other foot and OH had decided to pack his job in and take a wild leap into the blue? Would I support him as he has me? Ah....You can tell the lay of the land today can't you. Bit tired, bit fed up and washed out for inspiration. But...Let's see what the day brings, this time next year we could be millionaire's Rodney

Bob

Morning Bob,
This sounds so familiar except I'm a few years ahead of you - it's been over 15 years since I was made redundant and refused relocation to a big job, and start SE. It may not have been the best decision I made financially, and on bad days it's so easy to think it was a mistake. But take a moment to think about it. What exactly have you "done" to you family? Been there for them? Spent time with them? Seen them grow and develop? Nurtured little people? Put them first? None of that even by the biggest stretch of imagination is the definition of the word selfish

Despite all money issues now my biggest "regret" is DD growing up in a nursery. I remember with sadness moments like going in all excited and telling them she walked her first steps the evening before, only to know by their reaction that they'd seen it the morning before. We are not living the life I had imagined or hoped for by now, sometimes I feel quite disappointed, but I do know that I did what I thought best and stand by each decision I made

and I know you do too. Best to take a chance and learn from experience than forever wonder what might have been If.

Oops, sorry long post. Written as much to remind myself as to say you are doing amazing - keep going

NOA
x [/QUOTE]

Thank you NOA your story about your daughter is so bittersweet. I had the same experience with DS, not the walking part but he was at nursery from 8 months 4 days per week. That is a whole other post in itself, mother guilt....Thank you for pointing out that life isn't necessarily about the financial side (perhaps ironically given the site we are chatting on)

Bobarella · 16 January 2017 at 8:50PM

sashybo wrote: »

Bob, I think you're very brave to have gone SE and still be making a go of it. You must be good at it to have been doing it so long.... so you're still figuring things out but it just shows that you're adaptable and up for a challenge. :T

I don't think I'd have the guts to go SE even if I had a good idea, so well done for going for it. :beer:

Thanks Sashybo it's very nice of you to say that. I will keep 'up for a challenge' in my mind, as it made me feel very positive reading that phrase. :T

Budget Wars - A New Hope (with apologies to George Lucas)

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