To ask how you change your mindset when it comes to money

[isitjustmine]

Really looking to change my financial situation this year but I'm really struggling with actually changing my mindset when it comes to spending.

The temptation to spend is ridiculous and I have no self control whatsoever. Can't ever seem to say no to a takeaway, a meal out, clothes, other treats etc.

AIBU to ask how to change? It seems impossible

Put money into a savings account you can’t easily transfer out of.

Also have a savings goal, this will make you more determined

I agree with setting up a standing order to go into savings the day after payday. Even £50/month if you can afford it. Soon you’ll see your savings rise and will be so pleased you’ll just want to keep them there.

Thanks everyone, really appreciate this tips! I know I can do it. I have to.

I've had a look at the Yolt app and find the layout of it really confusing, anyone else used this?

I have a Revolut app so when I get paid I put my fun money into it for the month. I have that as my Apple Pay card and I use it for all my work coffees lunches etc. I leave my other cards at home so I have to really think before I spend.
Dh and I agree to one take away per month and we help each other stick to it.

Spreadsheets and separate accounts are all good advice but not going to change your actual mindset.
When I needed to get a grip of my spending I started thinking about how many hours work it would take me to pay for an item.
“I like that £30 jumper but do I like it enough to work 4 hours to pay for it (net pay)? Nah.”
Just a quick, at a glance, rough calculation where I would have to be honest about how much I wanted/needed an item.
Also, if you have any silly indulgences then calculate what it is over a year. Back in the olden days mine used to be 5 Millies Cookies per day, every single working day. £2.75 x 5 x 48 = £660 just on cookies! I cut it right down after I did that sum - that was a fairly decent summer holiday to me!

I tend to buy online more than in shops, so I put it in my basket but do t check out until hours later or the next day. It gives me time not to impulse buy and check my financials first. I also only have one takeaway a month.

Regulate the emotions you currently regulate with spending, another way. Preferably not drugs or alcohol!

Download the free Dave Ramsey podcasts and play them in the background when you’re driving/commuting or doing housework/pottering around at home. There are 3 new shows 6 days a week so plenty to occupy your mind with a new way of thinking.

I changed my mindset to money when I started doing the slow fashion challenge a couple of years ago. It basically means buying second hand clothing, using. Clothes you already own and not buying anything brand new. It really opened my eyes to how often I was shopping and how much money I was saving shopping second hand. I now try and buy things that I actually need now. I also have started saving money and have become much better with handling money as I'm thinking about it more.

@Ragwort I'm exactly the same! I find it natural to save but difficult to spend on anything I don't need.

People waste a lot of money; if you stick to only buying what you genuinely need and even then, bargain hunt for second hand, use cash back sites and keep to a budget that should help you save.

Something that helps me is thinking about costs over a year - eg buying a cup of coffee three times a week from Starbucks/Costa would cost over £300 a year, or buying just one £20 item of clothing a week would cost £1040 a year. Eating out twice a month spending £30 each time would be £720 a year.

Ask yourself is it worth it, can you afford it and is that where you want your disposable income to go?

Very interesting thread.

I feel really motivated now, so glad I started this thread! Pleas keep adding your tips it's so useful

@Thinkle

I had a similar trick where my spreadsheet divided my remaining disposable income up by the number of days left in the month.

So on day 1 £300 = £10/day. On day 20 £250 = £25/day.

It's not actually that hard to plan for fun money - just say to yourself, I can have a coffee every day or lunch and a night out once a week etc. It's better to plan for these things than to just let money trickle away.

And save a chunk as first priority!

This might be a good frugal challenge? Starts today!

www.frugalwoods.com/2020/01/01/today-is-your-last-chance-to-join-the-uber-frugal-month-january-2020-group-challenge/?utm_source=frugalwoods&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=post-email

Another good tip is to make sure you always have some easy, quick long-life meals at home and at work to stop you going out or getting a takeaway when you haven’t had time to cook - eg at home frozen pizzas, or tinned tuna, sweet corn and dried pasta, at work cans of soup and crackers. Not the healthiest but saves you in a fix.

Do you use a round up app? Such as Plum or Moneybox? It links to your bank account and it rounds up your spending to the nearest £ and takes the total round ups each week and moves to an account separate from your bank.
You can access the money at any time if you need it but it does ask you about 100 times if you REALLY want to move they money. You’ve also got the ability to set a direct debit alongside the round up, I did £5 a week so it’s barely noticeable.
Since January 2019 I’ve saved £1000. That was my target and I’m amazed that I’ve not touched the account at all.

I think once you see the amount wracking up you don’t want to touch it. It’s addictive seeing it grow.

In terms of capping your spending - how about giving yourself an amount of disposable income per week and allowing yourself to spend it if you want or roll it over to the next week.
You could then try to reduce it slightly weekly or monthly and see how you get on.

You have to decide to start saving, even if it’s just £2 coins in a jar. Make the decision to start and stick to it! Small steps

I did this a few years ago, OP. I went from depending on credit cards to now having very good savings habits (to be fair, my income has increased a lot in the past five years as we’ve both had promotions but even amounts aside, it works).

My single biggest tip to you is to set-up a direct debit on the day you’re paid that goes straight into a savings account, ideally one that you have to give notice to withdraw.

Soon, you won’t even notice that amount is gone.

It honestly just takes time for it to become habit. We have spread sheets and all sorts of things. We have just set up monzo accounts to separate bill money from fun money too. We have been utterly terr8woth money but now 5 years later we are pretty good. I also have come to dislike consumerism which helps curb my spending although with online shopping I find it easier to just impulsively buy things. I have seen a tip somewhere that you shouldn't save your cards online as it makes it too easy to buy, if you had to get up and find your card would you still buy it? I really need to do this!

Ooh I just joined the frugal challenge! I also regularly read the make £10 a day threads and I currently earn about £40 a month from online surveys.

It’s not just about how much you are wasting but also how much you can add to your income. A really important personal goal can help to motivate.

Also you could a no spend challenge? Colour in every day when you spend only on basic bills, food and transportation on this chart (attaches) and you can join a Facebook support group to help keep you on track.

We have a Monzo account that allows you to divvy up your money into envelopes / pots and live out of them. For instance we have pots for groceries, exercise, socialising, pocket money, pet costs, dental costs, clothes.

It’s helped me massively in setting a monthly budget and living within our means, also makes sure we have money available for every conceivable situation we can think of. It’s totally changed my mindset and is super easy to use. Wish I’d done it years ago before racking up thousands and thousands in debt!

Sorry for typos

If you want to save ...set a specific amount and treat it like any other bill or direct debit...it HAS to be paid and once it’s paid it’s gone. If you save into a monthly saver it limits the withdrawals so no easy access.

I always look at what I’m about to purchase. I ask myself questions like ....do I need it, is there something better I can spend my money on, will it truly make me happy. If the answer is no I put it back.

I usually make a list of items I need and stick to those. Ie if I need a new jumper, a purse and a pair of shoes. They are on my list and I will purchase them if not on the list however much I like something I don’t unless I have spare money ie funds above savings I’ve already set aside.

I have an account for my own spends and don’t spend more than is in there.

Good luck and thumbs up for wanting to change so that you build up some savings...can never be a bad thing

Do a budget. If you don't know what you're spending you won't be able to save. A simple spreadsheet is the easiest - find someone who can programme one for you as you can't do it yourself.

Review your budget monthly and adjust as required - for instance my childcare is different every month so I change that figure, and I can adjust to take account of the end of Council Tax payments for the year or a slightly increased DD (such as phone bill). A spreadsheet is by far the simplest way to get this functionality.

Don't budget yourself so tightly that there's no room for treats or the things you like to do. You will end up breaking your budget if you do that, and then you'll feel bad and be more likely to abandon the whole thing. Budget for what you actually like to do. For instance I travel by train to the office 3 days a week, I like to buy a coffee for the journey and get lunch in the canteen. So I allow myself £30 per week for that. In fact I more often than not bring my coffee in a flask, often bring my lunch and the canteen is ridiculously cheap, but it means that when I do want to buy coffee or lunch I'm not blowing my budget and won't feel bad about it. If I haven't spent £30 that week I top it up to £30 for the following week rather than taking out a whole new £30. I rarely spend the whole £120 in a month, but it does mean that I don't feel like I'm taking money from my savings because I had a couple of coffees.

Save a set amount on your payday, not what may (or may not!) be left at the end of the month. See above re: setting your budget when working out how much to save.

Use cash for your non essential spending - I usually take my £30 mentioned above in cash.

Different bank accounts for different purposes - I have 4 I use regularly - current/bills account that my wages go into, savings, grocery shopping and misc. spends account. My spends account is Monzo, the app is really good for tracking what you're spending. I find having a separate account for groceries helps me track what I'm spending and set a realistic grocery budget each month.

Are you also environmentally minded? So much of what you are tempted to spend on is probably also bad for the environment. I use this as my excuse. Example: bag of crisps. Bad for my health, bad for my wallet. Who cares. Yum. As a piece of plastic waste (the packet) that won't biodegrade? Far easier to say no to!