sort out my finances

For years my finances have been dreadful. I don’t have a clear idea of how I spend my money, and ended up deeper in the red every month. Things are a little better now, mostly because my salary went up, and because I put repaying my student loan on hold for a while.

I need to take stock of where I am.

• get a clear idea of monthly income vs expenses
• end a month in the black
• pay taxes that just came in the mail
• pay upcoming dental costs
• pay back loan from S.
• look over my insurances, any changes that should be made?
• put money in savings account. first goal: 1 month of salary as emergency backup 2 months ago

Money is a pain when you haven’t really got enough… and when you are used to having a certain amount then it is a problem trying to get by on less.

I haven’t really got any cause to complain. I am in a job which pays, I have been in my house, which we are buying on a mortgage, for more than a decade, and in ten years it will be mortgage free. But I used to earn in the order of £10k more than I do now, and the change is still taking some getting used to.

On the upside, I live in a country with a national health system so I don’t have to worry about medical insurance, my daughter is in a good infants school which we don’t have to pay for, so I guess the important things are covered.

I need to return to my ‘normal’ state of thinking, a more ‘glass half full’ state of mind than a ‘glass half empty’ one.

And I need to do the various bits and pieces which will make sure that I am paying my way, budget my spending properly etc. My aim should be to be debt free (apart from the mortgage) at the end of 2013.

• Consider doing some extra out-of-hours work, possibly freelancing.
• Pay down credit card bills so that I am not paying interest
• Only buy things I need 5 months ago

I want to figure out how much my best friend and i owe eachother then get the difference off her. I want to make a monthly budget and stick to it. I want to find a job or extra way of bringing in more money and save it up to use on an investment. I need to become more aware of what i spend. 12 months ago

Gonna do this next 17 months ago

Changed my pay details 17 months ago

now to sort out savings. 22 months ago

Need to transfer money from my icici account to santander account before i decide what to do with the extra cash reserves. 22 months ago

I need to find a new regular savings account where i can put in £250 a month when i get paid. 2 years ago

opened! If only interest rates would get anywhere near a decent figure, I’d be sorted! Half my stipend going into this each month. Since I won the super scholarship it works out as pretty good wage, and I have been so poor for so long that I don’t trust myself not to go and spend the whole lot on golden teapots unless I lock half of it away on a regular basis! By the time the PhD is finished I should be well on my way to a flat deposit! 2 years ago

I,ve been reading a great book on financial principles titled Richest man in Babylon.All i can say is that it teaches you in the most straight forward manner how to apply the basic principles of financial stability and wealth.Great book which has given me fresh impetus. 2 years ago