About Me
Posted on Wed, Mar 25, 2009 at 10:41 by Michelle
This is a blog about my life; studying, cooking, eating, traveling and doing it all the cheapest way possible.
I'm just a normal woman, mum, grandma, housewife.
A lifetime ago I had my own high earning business, and at first I loved it, I liked being at the sharp end, the adrenaline and more probably power that came from doing something exciting everyday.
Because I was self employed I had to work a lot of hours. Then I started to notice I couldn't hold a conversation with anyone because my phone would ring. I couldn't sit down to a meal and eat the whole thing without having to answer a call midway. I didn't like what it was doing to my family, my business had became more important than everything else, so I sold it.
What a culture shock we were in for, we downsized very, very quickly. We went from being able to buy anything we wanted to having to justify every purchase.
During those initial dark months The Old Style Money Savers were my lifeline, they helped me learn to cook and bake my own bread.
This mantra from Martin lewis became my own and was the one biggest thing to help me save money, it’s still something I think of when I want to buy something.
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The other great help is deciding between want and need, I need to pay the mortgage and buy food, I don't need beer, a laptop or a mobile phone although I want all of those things.
Everyone's wants and needs vary of course, some people do NEED a car/laptop/mobile for work. So my mantra is altered a litle from "Do I need it", to "can I manage without it", and I find there is very little I can't manage without.
My one weakness is justlifying my purchases, can I manage without it, mmm yes, probably, but as it costs £200, I can save that over a year just by using it. This is an area I have to be very strict, it is the area I know I cheat when I want something.
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