Being poor isnt having to wait for the sale to buy a new flat screen TV

Being poor isnt having to wait for the sale to buy a new flat screen TV

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Last weekend on both sides of the great ocean pond we got a stark reminder of the lengths some people will go in order to grab themselves a perceived bargain. All the major news outlets and social media sites were filled with videos and images of desperate people pushing over each other to be the one of the lucky few who manage to grab a slightly reduced no-name TV.  The behaviour and complete lack of self dignity displayed by these…

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November 2014 Income/Expenses

November 2014 Income/Expenses

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It’s payday today which means the shops have been heaving and the pubs will be merry tonight. But more exciting than all of that is this month’s Income/Expenses! This past month has seen me start on my first semi-long term project at work. While this has meant an hour drive each way.. all of that is expensed by the company and so I’m not left out of pocket. Additionally I now have to begin picking my permanent company car which…

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Taxes Taxes Taxes

Taxes Taxes Taxes

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The big news this week in the UK media has been the announcement from the Labour party that they will introduce a ‘Mansion Tax’ based upon the value of your home if it is worth more than their baseline of £2million. With the general election coming up next year, it’s interesting to see a party actually planning to raise new taxes rather than announce the usual vote swinging promise to lower them. Personally I’m in two minds about this form…

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We make our own luck

We make our own luck

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Last week I had an old school friend who I hadn’t seen for the past year over for dinner. This was one of the friends I had had a house share with when I moved back to the UK and started working full time. We havn’t really seen each-other since I moved in with my girlfriend and bought a house together at the start of this year.  While it was good to see him again and catch up about how…

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No wonder the kids are screwed

No wonder the kids are screwed

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Sitting on the train for the past few days commuting to a client site in Central London has given me plenty of time to browse the daily news articles for a healthy dose of doom n gloom. My current favorite is the Daily Mail, not for it’s journalistic ability.. but for the pure entertainment factor generated by the comments section. One mention of the EU and quickly thousands of comments appear shouting the praises of UKIP and how we’re about…

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October 2014 Income/Expenses

October 2014 Income/Expenses

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It was payday yesterday which means I missed the regular slot for posting this! Apologies for that, however with the miracle of online banking I am still able to pull up all the records. This past month has seen me start a new job and become on of those commuters who sits in traffic for hours on end. Fortunately both the car and petrol are funded by my company so I’m not left out of pocket financially.  With all the…

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Suited and Booted

Suited and Booted

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Last week I spent a majority of the time cleaning out my desk place and returning the mountains of equipment into it’s correct place. Despite my frugal and minimalist aiming lifestyle at home.. I’m the complete opposite at work: All around my desk were piles of electronic equipment, half built laptops and discarded components. I have a terrible habit at work of trying to do too much at once and letting things pile up around me. Not anymore: It’s time…

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How I enjoy being frugal and why you should too

How I enjoy being frugal and why you should too

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I think it’s fair to say that for a majority of us this journey towards financial independence is going to be a long one. Even the gods of early retirement such as MMM still had to dedicate many years of their life towards the final goal. Unless you’re unlucky enough to win the lottery, taking a look over the percentage savings table will show many of us are working our way through at least a decade of income generation in…

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Does perception affect your financial reality?

Does perception affect your financial reality?

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Perception of others and their situations or lifestyles can have a huge impact in how we ourselves feel and act. The recent exposure of Facebook’s secret mood manipulation experiment demonstrated just how easy it is to become affected by the experiences of others. Unfortunately this can also have an affect on our personal finances and financial futures. There are however a number of things to bear in mind which you can use to help avoid letting perception affect your financial…

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October Challenges

October Challenges

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It’s October! Which means the nights are getting darker and it’s getting a hell of alot colder each morning on the ride into work. Last month I made a huge decision when I quit my job and so now have just 7 working days left at my current place. It’s going to be very sad to leave after 5 years, however I know the time was right and I’m excited about the new challenges and opportunities the new place will…

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