I hope I can do this

ftbwannabe · 23 August 2018 at 12:02PM

Oh yes, I love a planning sesh with a recipe book or seed catalogue! Holidays aren't a biggie for me, though, I have started a small pot for hols but need to be better at saying yes to trips other people plan that I can't afford, until it grows.

ftbwannabe · 23 August 2018 at 12:11PM

Not much to update:
Just found a pack of jaffacakes in my office drawer that I'd forgotten about - HURRAH!

No NSD days this week so far as I keep getting bored at work & buying snacks. Pub tonight, I have enough budgeted for one delicious expensive ale.

Was thinking 'I can't wait til payday!' and then realised that it shouldn't be that much of a change, this time/any more: I won't act like I suddenly have an unlimited amount to spend for a week & then struggle through 3 weeks of being skint, if I stick to my plan.

I still have a moderate amount of cash left to spend this month, & when I get paid I'll be topping up my savings/debt repayments but won't magically have cash to burn. Erm, boring! Ha! I need to learn to live with this new steady approach to money, instead of the highs & lows of pay day spending.

I know it won't really be boring in the longterm, when I can calmly pay for things that I've saved for instead of treating money like a magic thing that comes & goes. But getting used to the lack of (imagined) highs will take a while, I think. Same as knowing that not smoking is great, but missing the highs of lighting up. My brain likes TREATS and EXCITEMENT ;-)

efes_shareholder · 23 August 2018 at 12:45PM

ftbwannabe wrote: »

Not much to update:
Just found a pack of jaffacakes in my office drawer that I'd forgotten about - HURRAH!

No NSD days this week so far as I keep getting bored at work & buying snacks. Pub tonight, I have enough budgeted for one delicious expensive ale.

Was thinking 'I can't wait til payday!' and then realised that it shouldn't be that much of a change, this time/any more: I won't act like I suddenly have an unlimited amount to spend for a week & then struggle through 3 weeks of being skint, if I stick to my plan.

I still have a moderate amount of cash left to spend this month, & when I get paid I'll be topping up my savings/debt repayments but won't magically have cash to burn. Erm, boring! Ha! I need to learn to live with this new steady approach to money, instead of the highs & lows of pay day spending.

I know it won't really be boring in the longterm, when I can calmly pay for things that I've saved for instead of treating money like a magic thing that comes & goes. But getting used to the lack of (imagined) highs will take a while, I think. Same as knowing that not smoking is great, but missing the highs of lighting up. My brain likes TREATS and EXCITEMENT ;-)

Can really resonate with this - I think all those months where there was more money than month make it habitable to count down the days until the bank account is replenished

I still do this but its more so I can allocate my debt payments and watch them reduce then have a little reckless spend up

ftbwannabe · 23 August 2018 at 4:27PM

efes_shareholder wrote: »

Can really resonate with this - I think all those months where there was more money than month make it habitable to count down the days until the bank account is replenished

I still do this but its more so I can allocate my debt payments and watch them reduce then have a little reckless spend up

That's a good point, I'm nerdily excited to have all my debt payments go out so I can update my signature & top up my savings account :-)
TBH it's a bit of a game at this point to see if I really can carry on until the 31st, without finding some reason to spend absolutely everything left in my account...

Hey so maybe that can be my new monthly thrill: not the rush of getting paid, but the rush of having made it through the month without spending 100% of my wages.

pidge04 · 24 August 2018 at 1:26AM

Ah yes, treats and excitement. Those devils! I have historically been all about rewards (I work hard and I deserve a treat).

117pauline · 24 August 2018 at 12:00PM

Hi there

You can still have Treats and Excitement, just make it part of your plan.

You mention eating at work due to boredom so you are getting some treats but I bet they get forgotten by the next day. How about this........

Buy some snacks or make something from home so your desk drawer always has 'stock'. Each time boredom hits, take something from the drawer after 15 minutes if you still crave a treat. Each time you ignore the craving, put a 20p piece in a sealed pot. I reckon you will then be craving filling the pot! And 20p is always going to be cheaper than buying something at work

Have a great weekend. I am dodging the full sun by doing jobs around the house intermingled with time on here. Can't wait for my swim at the end of day!

Take care
Pauline

pidge04 · 29 August 2018 at 6:09AM

Just checking in to see how you are

ftbwannabe · 29 August 2018 at 5:00PM

Flying visit to update - thanks for the comments & suggestions! V busy week so less time to update.
I've managed to stay on budget this last week, but WOW the voices saying 'spend spend spend' get so loud in the last week of the month! Weird, & unhelpful!
I spent some £ I didn't plan to, (£20 on allotment + a total of a tenner in 3 sainsburys visits), but I covered it with some magpie/ziffit sales. That's £30 I could have put in my savings - but I also think it was easier to stay on track by letting myself spend. I could increase my grocery/allotment budget, but I think if I did I'd spend up to that max & still tag naughty extras on. In future months, though, I won't have extra coming in from sales.

I've got £12 left budgeted to spend this month (meeting a friend for drinks tonight), but a total of £165 in my account (ear-marked for incoming bills, emergencies, etc) (+ not including the £224 in deposit savings) - which is absolutely unheard of for me.

2 days til pay day. 1.5 if I squint at it right...

SavingAFuture · 29 August 2018 at 6:06PM

I've just had a read through your diary and it's fab! So inspirational.
I love how dedicated you are to doing money saving activities every day.
It's such a good idea - I used so much energy just THINKING about my finances, perhaps I should channel that energy into action...
Best wishes,
SaF x

ftbwannabe · 30 August 2018 at 10:45AM

Thanks SaF! I have a bad attention span, but also a tendency to obsess over things (like hobbies, or tv shows) so I'm trying to have 'being money aware' as a hobby for a while! NB not 'good with money', that's setting myself up for failure, I think. But not ignoring it, & trying my best, & knowing why I'm doing this. Good luck with your wedding savings!

I hope I can do this

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