Welcome to the REAL WORLD...

Having graduated without overdrafts or loans thanks to the support of my wonderful and very giving parents, I thought that living in London as a working girl would be a chance to give something back to them and to say goodbye to the poor student days of coupons and crappy food and instead branch out on my own and enter the adult world where you could buy a cheeky Mulberry once in a while, eat out regularly and maybe, just maybe SAVE. 

Oh how wrong I was.

Instead, I have become twice as strapped for cash as I ever was, choosing a career for enjoyment as opposed to money. It has got to the point that over 70% of my monthly income is on outgoings, which leaves me with around £50-50p/w to live on (that includes having to buy food!!!). I am very thankful to my parents who have helped me out at times when I literally had 0.01p in my bank account a fair few times...

So, for all the graduates who are thinking of moving to London, whatever you do, SAVE before you make the move. Make the most of living at home and not having to pay extortionate amounts on accommodation. Make the most of lovely home-cooked meals. Make the most of chats with the family and spending time with your parents.

But if you do decide to do it, here is a few handy tips to help you budget and save!

Plan your Meals

Always do a weekly menu plan before you do a big shop. This way you will only buy what you need and resist those promotions for things you won’t really eat! This also helps with planning meals that can carry on to the next day to save money & waste, for example, I make a huge Spaghetti Bolognese in the slow cooker so I can have spag bol one night and the next night I will use the remainder to make a lasagne or have it with something different like rice.

I usually do a big meat/fish shop once a month and spend around £35. I will buy mince, chicken breasts, fillets of sole/cod/haddock etc and then I will portion them into sandwich bags and freeze. Then I do a grocery shop every 3-4 days where I will spend between £5-10 on fresh produce so that I don’t waste any food. I also do a shop purely for the food I eat whilst I am at work. I spend around £10 for the week, which will consist of Muesli, Yoghurt, Salad leaves, Veg and Lunch meat (chicken breast chunks, ham etc).

Don’t spend more than you have!

A simple one but one so many people fail to stick to and fall into the cycle of going into overdraft every month! Make a budget and stick to it so you know all your outgoings for the month and what you estimate to have left over for extra’s. I generally make sure that all of my outgoings go out the same day I get paid so that I know exactly what I have to last on for the rest of the month.

Put some away

As soon as I get paid, I pay my rent, bills, phone bill etc and then try and put around £100 into a separate account that I don’t have a card for so would need to transfer it by going online or into the bank. That way I can try my best to survive on what is actually in my bank account and because it isn’t physically there to spend at the touch of a button, I usually resist. It is good to have there at the end of the month, just in case you desperately need something. Like food, or…new shoes? I jest. I haven’t bought a pair of shoes in at least 6 months….#depressing.

It might also help to get a savings jar and put your spare pound coins in there. I would suggest a "jar of dreams' because you have to smash it to get into it so it is a good one if you lack will power!! 

Make a wish list

Last but not least, I always make a small wish list that I will treat myself to on pay day to celebrate my hard work. I am not talking about the latest iPad, a Mulberry bag or some new KG’s, instead just some, affordable useful things that repay you for your hard work. I usually make quite a large list and then carefully select between 3 and 5 items which make the cut. This month, I am going to treat myself to a new cookbook (sad I know), a new Lipgloss (much needed), some magazines and a nice pair of shorts I spotted in Topshop.

I don’t mean to put you off the big city people, but just be realistic. If you have the chance to live at home, I would really recommend it whilst you are job-hunting, interning and even when you land your first job for the first year or two. You will then be able to live somewhere lush and enjoy all that London has to offer without worrying where the next penny is coming from.


A massive thanks to my parents for supporting me nonstop through my move, but mostly for teaching me how to budget and do things for myself. 

O

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