I think il do that too, thank you xx
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You may know a lot of this already, but it’s an excellent guide to what can be done to sort out credit card debt.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/how-do-credit-cards-work/
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Hi everyone im here again…so ive been writing down my budget…one of my stumbling blocks is that i get paid from work fortnightly…so im struggling to create a monthly budget with that in mind and it also doesnt help with direct debits as the date changes all the time…i get paid fortnightly and once a month i get my benefits…can anyone help?
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Without knowing what kinda monthly payments you have I am not sure this works, but for my. If expenses (car payment, rent, car insurance) I worked with the lender/company to set up payment dates that worked with my every 2 weeks paycheck.
Rent is due near the first. Car payment/insurance is mid month.
I also try to grocery shop around the same time of the month (2x) so that my expenses can be predictable
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Check out Dave Ramsey. He has two programs
, one faith-based and one secular. His “seven baby steps” took us from the brink of bankruptcy, to being debt free, with a decent amount of savings, assets, and retirement. I used to teach his program Fiancial Peace at my church.
Watch his YouTube vids and listen to his podcasts.
Just as you’ve done with sobriety, finances are about discipline and tools. You’ve got the discipline. Now go get the tools.
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Thank you Derek that helps, i will give some of my creditors a call see if i can tweek some of the dates
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Thank you Stevie i will have a look 
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For sure, change the DD debit dates. Most offer start and mid for accounting. With how you are set up, maybe budget on a weekly basis? Ins and outs per week and do a quarterly month balance. This might help you see which weeks 1,2,3,4,5 are critical. If you have unevenness perhaps focus on changing those particular costs that are making 
a troublesome particular week.
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Ive been number crunching since this morning which is not my forte! I have everything in my notebook now all my incomings and out goings apart from my grocery list which i still need some info on prices for etc, ive rang 4 creditors so far . …came up with a price plan for my energy bill which was huge so im a bit happier but my head is gonna burst so im leaving it for the day now and get back on it tomorrrow, thank u
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Definitely take little gains every day. Or you will get overwhelmed.
Absolutely a million times well done.
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Oh thank you so much its lovely to have such great support and advice, honestly with you people here i rekon i can get through anything 
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Bit more done today…you know…i think i had this perception that i was living on the bread line but now its all written down i can see that actually im really not that badly off…i get a cost of living payment soon that i will use to pay off 2 of my debts completely and now that ive sorted my energy bill i can pretty comfortably pay the rest of my debts each month and chip away at them, set aside money for utilities, groceries etc plus some to put aside for savings…ive cancelled 4 subscriptions that i dont use, still need to look into changing bb and mobile but i think now all its really needed is some proper organisation, i know what i have now so feel good about this…im sure challenges will come once im actually living this new budget but with organisation and self discipline i rekon im gonna be ok…
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That sounds like a great start and a solid baseline 
Stick to your plan and adapt when necessary. You can always come here to think loud, writing down this stuff and talking about it helps a lot with keeping on track. I’m proud of you! 
PS: Your thread was the kickoff I needed to go through my own finances for my lawyer. Seems like my ex will have to pay quite some bucks as he never payed any costs for our farm 
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Thank you so much
Im sooo happy that this has inspired you to go through your own expenses and i really hope that you get the money that your due to 
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I’ll keep you posted here because I think nothing is more inspiring and motivating than DOING things and get results.
However they are. Good: Congrats, you’ve done a good job. Be proud, remember it and move on. Other outcome: New deal, start again, start over, maybe learn something, anyway you DID something and it had an effect (yes, not achieving anything is a HUGE effect to learn and split down the why nots!)
I’m really damn proud of you
And thanks again, you really started me going dig deep into my personal procrastinated unloved feared necessary tasks (for nothing, just brainfuck and hamsterwheel avoidance) 
by the way: i did not breakdown nor flip out. it was just number fumbling on a high level 
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My lovely friend, thank you so much your words always mean alot to me, im an avoider too but im trying to remedy that one area at a time and it feels good to take some control back. I find it pretty incredible that through my sobriety work and the tools ive picked up i can use those to improve other areas of my life…one of the biggest things ive learned its that its ok to ask for help and to be helped, love to you and thank you 
Definitely keep me updated here xx
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Great news starlight!
Please do look to see if you can consolidate those credit card debts into something with lower interest. It’s one of the more time consuming things to do but it’s like getting free money!
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The only thing with that James is my credit rating is terrible at the moment so i dont think id get a consolidation loan …
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Definitely understand that. Well, making continued payments for a few months on all your accounts should really help with that and you can revisit it later
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That is really great to hear! Getting the clear real picture can be so helpful, even if it is a lot to deal with. We cannot work on solving a financial problem if we do not have all the information. So organizing and writing it all out is so helpful, as you found!!
I am with Yoda on recommending Dave Ramsey. Before the internet 
, I read his book on cleaning up and consolidating debt (I had a lot). It is a patient process, but chipping away at it helped me get free. His advice stuck with me forever and I worked with a really close friend to help her follow his program and get out of debt as well. The envelope system is what I used back in the day for budgeting. And his pay the highest interest rate bill off 1st was what I followed.
Budgeting is a skill we can learn and it serves us well. Good on you for tackling!!
Lots of good advice you got!!
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