Well I’m a month into my ‘debt diet’ and it’s time to think about October. It’s going to be a challenging one, as I’m switch from fortnightly to monthly pay in November in the new job, so will have a 4 week stretch between pays, but only 2 weeks salary to fill it!
So the snowballing will take a hit this month as I need to pay 3 weeks rent instead of 2 over the next 2 pays to cover it, plus stash extra money away for getting through those two weeks without income.
This is of course why savvy people would have emergency funds! It just highlights even more why I need one and that I’m doing the right thing by getting myself sorted out. With the money I earn, this should not even be a blip on my radar, but it’s actually cause for concern and a real driver to change the way I live.
I’m determined to not use my credit cards unless it’s an emergency over that period.
As part of my ongoing financial awareness, I’m also going to be tracking every single cent I spend this month, to see where it all goes and what else I can cull or adjust to throw on the debt.
So that boils down to:
- Track every cent outgoing for the month of October
- No use of credit cards in October
- Pay 3 weeks rent each pay in October
- Stash $200 extra each pay in October for living expenses during salary switch
Every month I plan to track my spending methodically but get sidetracked.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean when you say 'with the money I earn...' we had good money coming in for years, last month we were on a low income (<$37,000 pa) and we did more with than I could have ever imagined!
I am annoyed at myself for my wastefulness in the past but no use crying over spilt milk now:)
Inspiring post.
ReplyDeleteLike Louise, I get sidetracked - I know what I should be doing somehow the debt demon throws something in my path.
I like your idea of setting goals for the month, and tracking every penny. I seem to have mine in my head all jumbled up !
I'm a great one for getting sidetracked too! It's how I got into this mess unfortunately. So that's why I'm setting myself only a couple of goals at a time so I can focus on them.
ReplyDeleteI'm also trying not to think about the wastefulness, or I'd get so frozen in disguat with myself that I'd never do anything!