LOW INCOME
Hello guys!
It feels so weird to be writing a blog post, I haven't written one for a while but it is nice to be back. How are you? I hope you are well.
If you have been following my Insta, you may have seen the slightly stressful week I have had. Unfortunately, I have found myself on a low income.
It was a shock to say the least, I thought I would be okay financially, during this worrying time but instead I find myself calling utility companies to postpone payments, reducing our grocery spend and applying for benefits.
I have to admit, at first I was broken. I didn't know what to do with myself, my head was going into overdrive and I just couldn't stop crying but as the days have passed I realise that I can get through this. I have put things into perspective and despite it feeling like a horrible mess, I am still so thankful for the blessings we have. I'm so thankful for our health, the roof over our head, the food in our bellies and my family.
This week, I have been touched by the debt free community. The hundreds of dms and comments offering support, sharing their story and useful resources. Just as I gave up on humanity, the debt free community came through, thank you so much.
But what did I learn from this experience? What would I do differently?
I learnt that:
Let me tell you why…
1.Emergency Fund
So I have been following the Dave Ramsey BabySteps method for a couple of years now. I have always strived for the $1000 Emergency fund and although it has dipped at times, most of my journey, I have had this. I realised the $1000 which is £815 in GBP, wouldn't even cover a month's worth of expenses, so what would I do in this circumstance?
I understand the proposed $1000 is great to cover those urgent last minute expenses such as a Car repair or maybe a family emergency but what if you lost your job tomorrow. How would you survive?
Once I get back on my feet, I will be deciding how many months I want the emergency fund to last and aggressively start working towards this. I am thinking 3 months is a great starter point.
2. Low bills
I am ever so thankful to my past self for purposely keeping my bills low. If we exclude the debt payment. My bills are the lowest they can be, which means it is now easier (at a time like this) to pay my bills. I'm so thankful I had time to clear off all those extra payments such as my contract phone which was £40 a month and I didn’t finance a car last year. As I just know, I wouldn't have been able to afford to keep it up now.
In addition, I have stripped the ‘wants’ away from my budget. Such as Window cleaning, Spotify and Audible, this will all help lessen the burden.
If you would like a copy of a free tracker to take note of changes to your utilities, feel free to download the file below.
It feels so weird to be writing a blog post, I haven't written one for a while but it is nice to be back. How are you? I hope you are well.
If you have been following my Insta, you may have seen the slightly stressful week I have had. Unfortunately, I have found myself on a low income.
It was a shock to say the least, I thought I would be okay financially, during this worrying time but instead I find myself calling utility companies to postpone payments, reducing our grocery spend and applying for benefits.
I have to admit, at first I was broken. I didn't know what to do with myself, my head was going into overdrive and I just couldn't stop crying but as the days have passed I realise that I can get through this. I have put things into perspective and despite it feeling like a horrible mess, I am still so thankful for the blessings we have. I'm so thankful for our health, the roof over our head, the food in our bellies and my family.
This week, I have been touched by the debt free community. The hundreds of dms and comments offering support, sharing their story and useful resources. Just as I gave up on humanity, the debt free community came through, thank you so much.
But what did I learn from this experience? What would I do differently?
I learnt that:
- It is so important to have an Emergency fund
- It is so important to keep your Bills as low as possible
- It is so useful to have ‘Multiple streams of Income’.
Let me tell you why…
1.Emergency Fund
So I have been following the Dave Ramsey BabySteps method for a couple of years now. I have always strived for the $1000 Emergency fund and although it has dipped at times, most of my journey, I have had this. I realised the $1000 which is £815 in GBP, wouldn't even cover a month's worth of expenses, so what would I do in this circumstance?
I understand the proposed $1000 is great to cover those urgent last minute expenses such as a Car repair or maybe a family emergency but what if you lost your job tomorrow. How would you survive?
Once I get back on my feet, I will be deciding how many months I want the emergency fund to last and aggressively start working towards this. I am thinking 3 months is a great starter point.
2. Low bills
I am ever so thankful to my past self for purposely keeping my bills low. If we exclude the debt payment. My bills are the lowest they can be, which means it is now easier (at a time like this) to pay my bills. I'm so thankful I had time to clear off all those extra payments such as my contract phone which was £40 a month and I didn’t finance a car last year. As I just know, I wouldn't have been able to afford to keep it up now.
In addition, I have stripped the ‘wants’ away from my budget. Such as Window cleaning, Spotify and Audible, this will all help lessen the burden.
If you would like a copy of a free tracker to take note of changes to your utilities, feel free to download the file below.
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3. Multiple Streams of Income
This is a scary one as it makes me question ‘How much do I believe in myself?’, I want to build several streams of income so I don't find myself falling down should one not pay. But I need to take those initial steps, which can be so scary. I want to build income streams from my passions such as Frugal Me Free, Planners, Finance and Excel. So this will be something I will be working on over the foreseeable future.
These 3 factors have become bible to my financial journey. Now more than ever, I realise how important each one of these are to ensure we are financially secure at all times but especially during a crisis. I share my journey with you, not to scare but to show how quickly life can change. I would never have thought I would be in this position a month ago. Therefore, being prepared is always a great safety net should anything go wrong. I hope going forward I am able to achieve these goals so should I find myself in this situation again, It is merely an inconvenience.
Thanks so much for reading
Cheryl x
This is a scary one as it makes me question ‘How much do I believe in myself?’, I want to build several streams of income so I don't find myself falling down should one not pay. But I need to take those initial steps, which can be so scary. I want to build income streams from my passions such as Frugal Me Free, Planners, Finance and Excel. So this will be something I will be working on over the foreseeable future.
These 3 factors have become bible to my financial journey. Now more than ever, I realise how important each one of these are to ensure we are financially secure at all times but especially during a crisis. I share my journey with you, not to scare but to show how quickly life can change. I would never have thought I would be in this position a month ago. Therefore, being prepared is always a great safety net should anything go wrong. I hope going forward I am able to achieve these goals so should I find myself in this situation again, It is merely an inconvenience.
Thanks so much for reading
Cheryl x
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