I cleared £8k of debt in a year – the bad habits you need to drop and why you need to change ‘the payday mentality’
IT'S PAYDAY - which for many of us means treating ourselves to something that's on our wishlist.
But not for mum Beth Fuller, who recently advised cash-strapped Brits to drop the ''payday mentality'' if they want to save money this year.
According to the cash-savvy mum, who paid off her £8k debt in just one year, this is one of the ''bad habits'' she dropped to ''have £700 more'' every month.
Drop payday mentality
''I had such a payday mentality - I was giving myself, like, pocket money for the month and I could've easily spent that within treating myself in that first week of the month.
''And then I was eating within the rest of my disposable income and further throughout the month,'' she opened up in the video.
''When you have that mentality, you're not just completely satisficed with just one purchase.''
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Although there is nothing wrong with treating yourself every now an then, there is a limit - a line which many of us cross without a fail.
''My money would be gone on payday,'' Beth told the followers on her page.
Buy what you need
Another key tip she shared to fellow TikTok users was to only buy that one thing you popped in the store for - and nothing else.
For instance, if you were to head to buy some petrol, ensure it's only the petrol you're getting and not the treats and other items by the till simply because it's ''convenient''.
''A snack, a cup of coffee and the next thing you knew had added like close to £10 on to just getting petrol, instead of just paying for petrol.
''I was just mentally adding to the basket all the time,'' said Beth, who also had to change her shopping habits on Amazon when ordering baby wipes for her daughter.
Stop being lazy with food
Last but certainly not least is taking a look at how much you spend every month on takeaways or going out for food.
''All I have to do is prep lunch the night before - but some days it just feels like the last thing I want to do.
''But it's so worth it - because lunch now is honestly just so expensive. You go out, get lunch and a coffee, and you can easily spend over £5.
''I can't do that all of the time, so I was just trying to build that habit of saving with food where I can.
''That comes down to thinking ahead with my meals and thinking ahead with my lunches.
''Please, just don't buy a £4 sandwich when you've got that in your house and it just takes two minutes.
''Less glamorous and less fun - but it's made a huge difference.''
Looking at her past habits, the mum previously said: ''I would avoid looking at a bank balance. I dreaded having to log in, having to face what situation I was in across accounts.
“I just had a very bad relationship with actually facing reality with money. And now, I basically have built this habit of checking every day and facing it every day.
“So I check my banking apps every single day, and I check my credit score every month. And I probably don't need to do it every single day, but at this point, it's such a ritual.
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“And now it's actually such a positive thing because I'm seeing money In my current account stay there for all the bills that I know is gonna come out.
''I see my savings look so lovely, and then I see my spending, and I check where I'm at with my monthly spending allowance and I stay on track.''