Reason for challenge:

To gain control over my finances, spending, and saving. To have an understanding of what is going out of my bank, at any one time, removing the guesswork and surprise, which in turn will reduce stress and uncertainty. 

What is needed to complete this challenge?

Saving:

• List and calculate all the money leaving my bank account, month by month, over a year. Things like direct debits, bills, money owed, etc.
• Make notes of the dates of any annual, or bi-annual payment that need to be saved up for. Eg Car/house insurance, MOT, Car Tax, etc.
• Put in place a savings fund for these extra bills, so the money is available when needed.
• Make an emergency fund, for any unexpected events.
• Have a saving fund for holidays and large purchases.

Spending:

• Create a flowchart for spending money. The flowchart needs to work through the situation, and come to the best action for me to take, while knocking me out of my impulse buying cycle.

I will add to this as I go, as this is my first time doing a challenge, and I may need to adjust it in places. I also would like to make sure that this is the best approach, so I will start doing some research into methods that other people use.