Personally, I think the first of January is a rotten time to attempt to make positive changes to your life. January and February are dreary months, not exactly the best time to give up vices or pick up virtuous behaviours, so I do it around March. The spring is the time of rebirth so what [...]
We are rapidly approaching the end point for the £10 Week Challenge which I found a thought provoking experience. I did not find the not spending difficult at all. I try to keep my larder, fridge and freezer pretty equipped and since I do my meal plan based on what I have bought at the market on [...]
A quick Mission Possible catch up – the steps we have gone over so far are: Get out of Debt , where we discussed the different approaches to getting out of debt. Filling in the Black Holes, where is your money going? Corral that dough. Invisible Savings, how to save without pain. Now folks we [...]
Today I am at day five of the £10 week challenge, what a relief! Actually, all in all, it is not too bad. I don’t spend a huge amount of money during the week, where I freelance there is absolutely nothing in the area so there are no temptations. I bring my lunch and they [...]
I bet you don’t think these two things have anything in common but they do. When circumstances change they both need to be revised. You are supposed to get your bra fitted if you gain or lose weight, the same thing goes for your budget. If your income increases or circumstances change, you need to [...]
We all try to be super precise when noting down our spending and a lot of the time we end up underestimating the amounts. Unless you have the time to go through every single receipt, it’s worth adding a bit extra to what you spend when you draw up your budget. Think about your morning [...]
I seem to be bumping into more and more ‘well off’ people that circumsances have changed whether it be from divorce, businesses failing or just the banks putting the squeeze on them. Well welcome to the frugal gang! We have all been there at sometime, I have been on frugal bandwagon for longer than I [...]
Everyone wants to live somewhere lovely and desirable. But if you over extend yourself in committing to a rental or even worse a mortgage that you can not support you are in real trouble. In both America and the United Kingdom, your home is considered your castle. How much should your castle costs? Not more than [...]
This is a sign that is on every bulletin board on my estate. It scares me but it speaks of the brutal truth, there are people that will forgo paying their rent so they can have an impressive Christmas spread and more stuff under the tree. In the UK, Christmas advertising starts in October so [...]
Starting tomorrow I am joining forces with the mighty Penny Golightly to see if we live for 7 days with only £10 spending money. Penny has done this before but I have never put such a tight budget on myself, on purpose that is. This is not a week to just hibernate and watch tv [...]
Friday is tip day on The Lean Times. It has happened to all of us at one time or another; we lose a job. This has just happened to me so here are a few tips on what I did as soon as the lightning bolt hit. 1. See what you can cut back on [...]
No, budget fun is not an oxymoron. I am talking about budgeting for your fun. Being on a budget can seem a bit dreary, especially if you have a deep hole to dig yourself out of, but if you make sure you keep yourself happy in small ways you will find being on a budget [...]