Only buy supermarket foodstuffs:
A little bit of fast food here and there. A few breakfasts and lunches with work colleagues. I thought it's not that big of a deal, but it is! It's outrageous how much money those places charge. Some outlets charge £1 for a glass of orange juice, when you could easily buy the equivalent of 10 glasses from the local supermarket! From now on, I aim to buy all of my food and snacks, no matter what it is, from supermarkets. I need to make sure I am taking packed lunches to work all the time, this might mean canned food, for simplicity. There's lots of other good stuff in supermarkets, so the more time I spend in there, the more bargains I can spot. This is not about being cheap and stingy, this is about being sensible. David Bach who wrote the books "The Automatic Millionaire" and "Start Late, Finish Rich", described this convenience spending as the "Latte Factor", where seemingly small purchases add up over time to more than you realise.
Stick to my monthly budget:
I had a brief period for about 4 months last year where I logged everything I purchased, onto a spreadsheet at the end of the week. I discovered that I spent twice as much as I thought I did! I found out that I would bring home an average of about 60 spending receipts per month, when I really thought I only did about 10! Logging everything was too cumbersome in the end, so I curbed my spending and stopped making detailed logs. I do miss the tracking of my spending because it was good to see exactly what I'd spent my money on, so I might try to re-introduce it on a basic level by only recording the amount of money that leaves my accounts, rather than individually writing every single purchase.
Don't carry cash or cards on my person, except for pre-planned purchases:
I spent some of last year travelling around different parts of the UK looking for properties to invest in. I found the time to do this, but I also had to find the money. This meant I had to carry my cash card so I could pay for travel. I ended up also buying snacks on the way, and I would forget to take my cash card out of my wallet so it was always there for convenience purchases. I know I had to spend some of that money on travel, but I should have controlled this more.
Wait until the next day before purchasing anything:
I've come across some great bargains and on the rare occasions when I have cash on me I have taken the plunge. I recently purchased the book "I will teach you to be Rich" - by Ramit Sethi when I saw it in WHSmiths store. I had intended to buy this book weeks ago, but it was unreleased in England, and it slipped my mind. When I saw it, I couldn't believe it and snapped it up immediately. I paid £12.99 for it. I later checked Amazon.co.uk and they are selling it for £7.29, almost half price!! I don't regret the purchase as it's a good book (so far), but I have to learn from this lesson or I will end up repeating the mistake on bigger investments.
Shop around before buying anything:
I will be looking to buy things as cheaply as possible. I won't simply buy the cheapest junk I can find, I will buy the cheapest, best stuff; meaning that I make sure the item is fit for purpose and isn't simply junk that falls apart as soon as you touch it. This should be standard, but it's the kind of thing it's easy to forget about if I don't continually remind myself. I won't buy anything unless I've tried to check 3 different shops for the best bargain. Using price comparison websites is a fast way to accomplish this. I'll be stopping in at charity shops, using eBay more, and I will also go to car boot fairs, as I've heard people are selling their old stuff at fantastic prices there.
Live for free:
This year, I aim to “live for free”, by using what I already have, and buying next to nothing. If I decide I must have an additional item in my life, first I'll try to: get it for free, borrow it from a friend, rent it, or get it as second-hand and cheaply as possible. I know I will have to spend money, but by taking this attitude, I hope to try to get value from what I already have, rather than rushing out to spend more.
Don't go out to any job “drink-ups” or parties, any more:
The problem with having a job is that colleagues expect you to socialise and go out with them. There's nothing wrong with this, but the going out always seems to be at expensive bars and restaurants. I've felt as though I would be the odd one out if I didn't go, and I silently cried every time I was expected, (along with everyone else) to part with, say £20 for group money to buy drinks. This "whip around" always disgusted me, as the final whip total could come to over £200, and yet I knew that many of my colleagues were in debt. Many times, £50 or more would be left unspent, and this remaining money always seemed to magically go missing and be forgotten about. I wondered if I am the only person who has noticed this, but I did not want to seem rude or cheap by making a big deal out of it in case I was wrong. How does alcohol in a pub/bar/restaurant cost so much anyway? Look at how cheap the same stuff is in the supermarket.
2 years ago I attended a Christmas work party in a local restaurant. The final bill came to hundreds of pounds, for about 8 people (I cried inside)!! It was only one plate of food each, one desert, and alcoholic beverages. I kept the receipt, and when I looked at it in a more sober state the next day I saw that the restaurant had also added on a £60 "service charge" to the bill. This was neither requested nor asked for by anyone. We had already paid for the meal and they charged us extra for no reason. The food and service was nothing special. Even if I had spotted it at the time, I would not have wanted to cause a fuss and seem cheap, due to peer pressure.
One of my colleagues was asked to attend a work function last year, and he politely turned it down saying he would rather spend time with his wife. I could see the fear in his eyes, as he was expecting everyone to start treating him like an outsider. Nobody treated him any less favourably as a result, so from now on, that's what I'm going to do as well. I have attended a few work functions in the past in order to "show my face", but now I'm going to have a zero tolerance approach. So what if my colleagues might think I'm a boring tightwad.
Make at least one property investment:
The property market is as good as it's going to get. I've spent years saving money, which is doing bad returns in the bank. Now is the time to add to my property portfolio. I feel it in my bones.
Re-assess my will, and maybe re-do it:
It's always best to have a will, or a messy situation can occur afterwards. Those who are good with money plan it all the way, from life to death.
Overcome procrastination:
Everything must start from somewhere. I've got so many financial plans. How do I find time to do them all? By making procrastination a study, and resolving to act immediately on my goals, I think I will be much more effective. In cases where things need to be waited on, such as not buying items immediately, I will at least write the task down immediately, so I don't forget later. Action, is the master key to financial success.
I will use Wikipedia to gain knowledge about what I'm buying as there may be other developments within the industry. I thought about buying a PDA, 2 years ago, but by checking Wikipedia I discovered that the decline of the PDA was due to the increase in popularity of mobile phones which now have better features and usability than a PDA. This showed me that it was best to get a better mobile phone instead. I need to use Wikipedia more often.
I've also used Wikipedia to check on areas for future property investments I might want to make one day. You can check the history and features of an area without relying on estate agents. It's amazing how much information is out there.
I will use Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert site religiously. From insurance and banking, to shopping and spending, this site has it all. It is the best Personal Finance site in the UK. Every financial decision I make from now on, will be run past the website first, ensuring that I have a far better chance of getting the best bank interest rates, insurance, etc.
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