Or “how to survive the January blues when there is more month than money”! Every year January is tough, but this year more than ever we are all feeling the stretch of “more month than money” left before pay day. Add this to a very cold and dark month and it is no surprise that January gets a bad reputation!
At Ditch Debt with Dignity it’s our mission to provide free, non-judgemental, confidential and professional advice and support to people who are privately struggling with their finances. This could be you, a friend, colleague, partner or family member who are just struggling to understand the maths behind a salary, pension, tax, savings or how the cost of living increases (or energy bills!) affect that and our lives.
We will help you find hope in a financial crisis. And sometimes that just starts with getting through January and thinking of things to do when the budget is tight!
5 things to do to get through January.
- The dark mornings and dark afternoons are tough but try and get out in the daylight if you can. This might sound strange when we are talking about dealing with money worries, but the lack of daylight and reduced exercise or movement reduces our ability to cope with stress and blurs our decision-making process.
- No-spend-days, we’ve mentioned these before and it can be as simple as an afternoon of board games that are already in the house, inviting friends round for a BYOB evening or watching a TED talk; the idea is to set yourself a goal of spending no money for a day, a weekend or even a week.
- Can you use up the things in your freezer to save going to the supermarket? No-spend-days are an excellent way to get creative and experimental in the kitchen!
- Start planning the next month or few months. Find a notebook or blank piece of paper and start planning your February budget plan. January will end and the long days can be an excellent time to plan ahead for the best way to get through the next month or even the next quarter. Our Ditch Debt with Dignity Money Magic Workbook is a great place to start too – find it here.
- Talk to someone. Your family, your friends, partner or anyone you can trust to share how you’re feeling – they might not be able to fix the situation but sharing your worries and anxiety about money will help and you might be surprised to find out how many of us actually feel the pinch in January.
Lastly, if you don’t feel able to share with anyone around you, at Ditch Debt with Dignity we are here to help! That could be by listening, sharing resources or online guides or helping you create a budget and plan for the right debt repayment solution. You can email us at info@ditchdebtwithdignity.com for a free, confidential and discreet chat.
And hang in there, there’s not long to go!