Freedom through Frugality: Sabaka's Journal

[Sabaka]

Well, it looks like it is time for the first monthly summary of 2018!

January 2018


Ledger

Name - Cost - Date

Misc - 0.52 - 4/1/18
Book - 1.83 - 4/1/18
Food - 5.37 - 05/01/2018
Jeans - 6.8 - 15/1/18
Food - 7.14 - 17/1/18
Book - 10.77 - 28/01/18
Food - 4.4 - 29/01/18

Total (£) - 36.83

Overall, a solid month to start the year. I wasn't tempted by any of the January sales, and again bought the jeans through eBay. They do look like something out of a 70s music video parody, but they're only for work anyway Food costs were low, and I was particularly impressed by some of the meals (still all vegetarian) this month. One of the books was expensive, however I hope to sell this on eBay once I have read it, so it is not an entirely 'sunk' cost.

Investments

Quite a large amount of activity this month.

After taking sometime to think about it, I decided that I was not comfortable with the level of risk in cryptocurrencies, and so I sold the majority of my holdings. Luckily I done this before 'Black Tuesday', when cryptocurrencies across the board lost a lot of value. Roughly, my entire cryptocurrency holdings were worth around £6000 at the time (from an initial investment of £1800) and I sold £3906.7p worth of coins. I kept what was then worth around £2,000 worth of various coins invested.

Using the £3906.7p (plus regular income), I made contributions of £3061.82p into my standard ISA, and £335.21 into my LISA. Using the remaining proceeds from the crypto cash, I made a £1576.50 subscription into a new IFISA (Innovative Finance ISA).

I'll let Google define the IFISA:

"An innovative finance ISA (IFISA) lets you use your tax free ISA allowance while investing in peer to peer (P2P) lending"

The platform I am using offers loans promising a variety of rates of return, but they generally range from 7-11%. My own expected rate of return is 10.75%.

I have decided to make this new investment because: 1) It offers a very good rate of return
2) It offers an element of diversification
3) I find finance and investing very interesting generally, and making this new investment gives
me a chance to experiment with a different area of it

For the purposes of documenting it here, I will calculate the value of the IFISA as: the initial investment + the projected rate of return - the 1% fee taken by the platform.

Overall, the total value of my combined ISAs is therefore (as of writing): £15,780.91p

Speculation

My remaining crypto coins have a current combined worth of: £908.63p. Down from around £2000 before the slide this month

Alltogether, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund (£300) is £16,989.54p

Focuses for February

My course is back under way. That and work take up most of my time, however I am finding the course enjoyable, so it's not so bad. I do have some time to read, and I'm just finishing up Edmund Burke's 'Reflections on the Revolution in France' and some of his other writings. Really enjoyed them, in fact some of the greatest writing I have ever read. I highly recommend.

Also been reading 'De Officiis' by Cicero. A great read if you're interested in a virtuous life, stoicism, ancient philosophies, etc.

Well, that's about it. See you all soon!

[Sabaka]

Well, it looks like it's time for another update!

February 2018 Summary


Ledger

Name - Cost - Date

Event - 27.65 - 1/2/18
Dentist - 35.7 - 4/2/18
Food - 9.12 - 12/02/2018
Stationary - 11.37 - 12/02/18
Book - 10.99 - 12/02/18
Shoes - 37.9 - 16/02/18
Food - 18.49 - 21/02/18
Book - 3.74 - 22/02/18
Phone - 107.48 - 25/02/18

Total (£) - 262.44

Hmmm . Unfortunately, a number of unexpected costs arose this month. Firstly, after a routine check-up the dentist recommended that I replace two fillings. NHS subsidised, but not completely fee.

Secondly, my beloved Adidas suede sneakers finally gave up the ghost after four years of faithful service. The toes quite literally came off. I sourced a new pair of Dr Martens from their clearance sale for £33.95 (including delivery, which, as compulsory purchases go, is a fairly good one, in my opinion.

Thirdly, my phone decided that it no longer wanted to barely work at all. It has had minor issues for a while, and I had planned to purchase a new handset when my current contract finished in August. I bought a refurbished model through eBay, and so far (I've only been using it for a couple of days) I'm sufficiently happy with it. Still stuck on my £32 p/m contract until August however!

Of course there was the stationary cost also, which is a part and parcel of my diploma, so not much to complain about that.

As for the other purchases, the event cost isn't a necessary one, however, it is to hear a particular speaker in Oxford who I have wished to see for ages, so I'm not so concerned about that. One of the food costs was very high by my past standards, however I wanted to experiment with cooking some Japanese cuisine, and some of the speciality ingredients cost a little more. Also, in the future, I plan to incorporate some sort of fish into at least a third of my cooking (for health reasons), and so therefore my costs could slightly rise. I've set a budget of £30 p/m, which I believe to be reasonable. Book costs were maybe somewhat high, but if you are spending money on anything, I don't think books are a bad bet .

More positively, I did work a few extra shifts this month, meaning that will have absorbed the extra expenditure (and left me a little left over, according to my maybe-dodgy calculations ). I'm guided by my (probably not mine originally, but oh well) concept of 'revenue-neutral' spending. This is inspired by the revenue neutral bills I understand are used fairly frequently in U.S politics, whereby any new bill which proposes additional govt' spending has to make sure that it does not increase the U.S debt level. Therefore, applying this to my own case, any extra expenditures I plan to make I try to cover with either additional revenue (through working extra shifts, selling old goods, etc) or cutting my original spending. Hope that makes sense .

Investments

A very boring month compared to January. A total contribution of £904.50p into my various ISAs this month. Of this £520.14p into the standard ISA, £326.57p into my LISA and £57.79p into my IFISA. Overall, the combined current value of my ISAs is (as of writing) £16,511.51p.

Speculation

After hitting some real lows last month, the crypto market has recovered a little. Also, for full clarity, I've added a very small holding of Bitcoin to my crypto coin portfolio. I have held these for a while, but I did not include them in the overall portfolio as they were designated to a charitable donation I will be making in the future. However, given the recent falls, I shall be making a cash donation instead, hence the inclusion of the coins now in my portfolio. Also, I've had some issues getting a valuation for one of my coins, so this will be a part guesstimate. Overall, the total value of my remaining coins is (as of writing) £1,300.

Therfore. the total value of my combined normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is £18,111.51p Of course, my crypto amount is as of now a guesstimate, and in turn this figure might not be entirely accurate, but it should be close enough.

Focuses for March

I plan to reward myself with a holiday at the end of this diploma, and so have decided to not make any ISA contributions (other than into my LISA) this month, saving cash instead. I'm not entirely sure where I would like to go yet. Maybe Iran, I've always found Persian history quite interesting. Not much else really. I read a few different investment books this month, including 'The Complete Guide to Property Investment' by Rob Dix and 'Forex for Beginners' by Anna Coulling. Both good books, and have definitely given me some new ideas regarding investing. One of these especially being the power of leverage, which I might have to utilise myself if I'm ever to achieve FIRE! . Also, my current Stoic reading text is 'De finibus bonorum et malorum', again by Cicero. So far in, I prefer it to De Officiis'.

Alas, that's about it. Seeya soon!

[JeanPaul]

Impressive reduction of expenses from the beginning to now!

[Sabaka]

Thanks man, I just had a flick through your journal, pretty much where I would like to be in 10 years!

Anyway, time for another monthly summary.

March 2018 Summary


Ledger

Name - Cost - Date

Food - 7.09 - 5/3/18
Mother's Day - 12.78 - 11/3/18
Book - 2.4 - 14/03/18
Food - 7.98 - 15/03/18
Food - 9.63 - 25/03/18
Food - 5.83 - 30/03/18

Total (£) - 45.71

Overall, a much better month compared to the previous one. I managed to avoid any unnecessary spending, so that is good. My food costs were a little over the £30 monthly budget I set myself, however I had to cook some extra meals this month due to my parents going on holiday (and therefore not being able to cook dinner for me - I have it hard, I know ) Also, I quickly decided that incorporating more fish into my diet was not required, and therefore it is back to vegetarian/vegan meals. I'm pretty much a fully fledged vegan/vegetarian now, apart from the odd bit of milk, honey or cheese and when my parents cook meat. I really enjoy it. It's cheap and I am the feeling healthier than ever before.

Note: I did begin to make some holiday purchases this month (flight, accommodation, etc), however I have decided to keep this in a separate 'holiday ledger' in order so I can better track the expenses. Once my holiday has come and gone, and all related expenses have been accounted for, I shall include it in the journal (otherwise I'd be cheating! )

Investments

As stated in the previous month's entry, I was saving towards my holiday this month. Therefore, the money that would usually have been allocated into investments has instead been transferred to my safety cash fund. Consequently, the only investment this month was into my LISA of £323.98. Overall, the combined current value of my ISAs is: £16227.82p.

Speculation

Well, after regaining a little in the previous month, in this month the crypto market fell to new lows. I am really glad that I was lucky enough to have sold the bulk of my crypto investments when the market was high, meaning that I can view the current downturn with a certain sense of equanimity (although it never feels nice to lose money, even if the losses are unrealised!) I was able to sort out the valuation issues, and so the following figure is correct, to the best of my knowledge. Overall, the total value of my crypto portfolio is (as of writing) £602.

Therefore, the total value of combined normal and speculative investments, plus my (now increased from £300 to 1228.81p) safety cash fund is £18058.63p.

Focuses for April

As mentioned above, I have started purchasing holiday-related items. I have decided to go for two weeks in Greece, travelling throughout the country to visit all of the ancient ruins and museums. I'm already a little excited, but I'm trying not to go into over-planning mode as I still have the diploma to focus on. Not much else really. I have been reading the complete works of John Milton, and I've enjoyed them so far. Poetry has always alluded me slightly, but I've got on better with these works. Anyway, that's about it. Thanks for stopping by, I'll see you all soon.

[Sabaka]

Monthly summary time!

April 2018 Summary

Ledger

Note: From this month, I shall be recording a sum in my ledger under the term 'Recurring expenses'. This is a total sum for all of my expenses that occur monthly (eg. Rent, phone bill, etc). I have decided to include this in my monthly journal in the hope that it provides a better reflection of my overall expenses.

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 183.6 - n/a
Book - 9.49 - 3/4/18
Food - 11.13 - 6/4/18
Book - 5.56 - 14/04/18
Food - 9.36 - 18/04/18

Total (£) 219.14

All in all, a good month. My monthly food costs are trending upwards, however. I had begun to feel very lethargic at work, and so I done some research into how I could rectify this through some dietary changes. In particular, I read an online summary of the book 'How not to die' by Dr Michael Greger (I will read the actual book eventually!). My diet was already very close to this one, but I expect I will be buying some additional foods. Overall, if I can keep within a budget of £40 p/m, I will be happy.

Book buying is again a sin, but a sin I can live with. Food, books, exercise, etc play a huge role in my life, and contribute massively to my happiness. As long as the spending in these categories does not become too substantial (and I don't expect it ever will do - I'm a very slow reader for one!), it is money I am willing to part with. A part of my desire for FI is that it would give me a greater capacity to enjoy the things above. If the pursuit of FI ever meant having to give up on said things in the present, for me, it would not be worth it.

Investments

After a very dry March, we had a lot more activity in April. Firstly, I have decided to close my IFISA. (Yes, the one I opened only a few months ago ) Although in my defence, I rushed into opening the IFISA, so therefore I shall view closing it as rectifying a past mistake . Anyway, the total amount received on closing my IFISA was £1678.28p. This was from a total contributions into the IFISA of £1710.62. So my mistake cost me £32.34p. Obviously not great, but I believe there was the potential for a far greater loss, so it is a loss I shall bear.

In terms of my other ISAs, this month I made a total contribution of £2555.82 (mostly funded using the IFISA withdrawal amount). Of this, £1889.16p went into the standard ISA, and £666.66p into the LISA. Also, the govt' paid into my LISA the £1000 bonus due for the 2017/2018 tax year, which has given a nice little boost to my net worth. Overall, the combined current value of my ISAs is (as of writing) £18532.51p.

Detracting the amount that was essentially transferred from my IFISA to my other ISAs, my savings rate for April was 89.68%.

Speculation

The crypto market rebounded a little in April, resulting in a current combined value for my crypto coins of (as of writing) 934.04p

Therefore, the total combined value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund (which includes cash destined for holiday spending, but which I shall include in my total net worth until it is spent) is £20465.63. Hey, how about that! We're broken the £20k barrier. Maybe my prediction of £30k for the end of 2018 is not so unfeasible. Also, if Bitcoin really does go to £1000000000000 per coin (as so many youtube comments reliably state) I might achieve FI 14 years early!

Focuses for May

Final two months of my diploma . I just submitted my coursework assignment yesterday, and, fate permitting, I will achieve a good enough grade that I do not have to edit and resubmit it. Now it is time for massive preparation for the exam in early July. My normal reading this month was Berkshire Hathaway's shareholder letters from 1965-2016 (all collated in a kindle eBook) . I have really enjoyed them, and I'd recommend to anyone who is interested in business/investing. Anyways, not much else. Thanks for reading, see y'all soon.

[Sabaka]

Monthly summary time!

May 2018 Summary

Ledger

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 183.6 - n/a
Food - 11.52 - 1/5/18
Food (Flaxseeds) - 10.87 - 1/5/18
Book - 6.64 - 02/05/18
Book - 2.99 - 10/05/18
Food (Vitamins) - 13.95 - 11/05/18
Food - 8.13 - 14/05/18
Food - 14.08 - 22/05/18
Diploma - 6.75 - 24/05/18
Food - 0.75 - 29/05/18

Total (£) - 259.28

A little more of an expensive month, compared to so far in 2018. After reading 'How Not to Die', I've decided to add a couple things to my diet (flaxseeds and vitamins), but as I have bought these two things in quite large quantities I should be good for a few months now. My standard food costs were higher than I would have ideally liked, however speciality ingredients (miso paste this time) once again bumped up costs. However, if my calculations are correct, the total cost of the flaxseeds and vitamins together should work out at around £6.39 p/m. Adding this to my standard food costs this month of £34.48, the total figure (£40.87) still came below my upper limit of £45 p/m. So overall, not too shabby.

Book costs were fairly low. This was helped by re-reading a couple of books this month, those being 'ERE' and 'How I found freedom in an unfree world'. The only other cost was the diploma one, which is actually the train ticket to get to the location of my exam in July (very close now! ).

Investments:

Another boring month . In total, I contributed £707.22 into my ISAs this month. Of this, £396.39 went into the standard ISA, and £333.33 into the LISA. Overall, the current combined value of my ISA is (as of writing) £19,991.58.

Speculation:

The crypto market most resembles a bouncy ball, in that depending on how hard it hits a floor, it correspondingly bounces even higher, before inevitably dropping once again. At the moment it is dropping, and the current combined value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £856.48

Therefore, the total combined value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) £21.963.95

Note: I contributed an extra £100 to my safety fund this month. The safety fund itself is made up of money designated for holiday expenses - only a couple of months now! - and a standard fund for emergencies/larger expenses).

My savings rate for May was 83.69%. I'm not sure how relevant the SR statistic is for my situation, due to the fact that I don't have to pay for many essential costs (accommodation, etc) as I live at home. Ah well, it's there.

Focuses for June

The final month before my final exam, so June will be a month of mostly revising, revising and revising . In all honesty, I've been pretty much devoting all my time to studying since I started the diploma (All the way back in September! ) so I'm mostly just continuing that trend. I can't wait to finish though, and, fate permitting, I will get the grade required.

My normal reading for May was, as stated above, re-reading 'ERE' and 'How I found freedom in an unfree world'. I particularly enjoyed the opening in ERE, where Jacob compares the current state of things to Plato's 'Allegory of the Cave'. I've read other things in the past where the this allegory is used as an explanation for the topic being discussed, but none have been as fitting as the one in ERE.

I really enjoyed 'How I found freedom freedom in an unfree world' also. One issue I tend to find with this book is that I find that it somewhat overstates the efficiency of an individual's own hedonic calculus. Also, I find that sometimes the book strays too far into moral relativism territory, although that is largely a personal criticism. Overall, the message of the book, that you should: - think independently; - not expect to be able to control or even influence externals; and - be conscious that you use your time in a way that does not bring you too much dissatisfaction; is a good one.

Anyway, that's about it. See y'all later.

[Sabaka]

Hi everyone, update for June!

June 2018 Summary

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 183.6 - n/a
Food - 10.96 - 6/6/18
Book - 0.99 - 8/6/18
Father's day - 19.46 - 09/06/18
Donation - 50 - 09/06/18
Book - 12.7 - 17/06/18
Food - 11 - 18/06/18
Present - 17.82 - 26/06/18
Book - 6.94 - 26/06/18

Total (£) - 313.47

A much more expensive month as compared to the rest of 2018, which isn't great. However, much of the increase was due to the donation and
fathers day/present cost, so I can at least take some comfort that I'm not spending much more money on myself! I've made less meals this month due to time constraints, so whilst the overall food cost is low it is likely to be an anomaly when compared to future months.

In other very good news, my expensive (£33 p/m) 2 year phone contract has finally ended! I have switched to a new sim which offers similar benefits for the princely sum of £7.50 p/m. Additionally, this sim is a 1 month rolling-contract. One thing I've discovered since I started pursuing FIRE is that I really dislike being tied down with anything long-term, especially when there is money involved!

That's about it. Hopefully next month will be a cheaper spending month.

Investments

A second boring month in a row, which is a record for me . In total, I contributed £599.05. Of this, £569.04 went into my standard ISA, and £30.01 into my LISA. Additionally, I have £330.00 sitting in my current account waiting to be contributed to my LISA. The reason I have not put this in yet is because I am changing my method of contribution to direct debit and the first of these is set for July.

I have also changed the asset allocation of both my standard ISA and LISA. I have moved the entire ISA into a Vanguard total stock index fund, and the LISA into 80% bond index funds, 20% property index funds. The reason for the standard ISA asset allocation is purely simplicity. The reason for the LISA's new conservative asset allocation is that I intend to withdraw this money within 5-6 years to purchase a property.

Overall, the total current combined value of my ISAs is (as of writing) £20,618.96

Speculation

The crypto market has crashed hard. The current total value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £537.30.

Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) 22,259.69.

My savings rate for June was 60.4%. Due to my very low income, slight increases in spending decrease my savings rate substantially. This is something I'll have to keep in mind.

Focuses for July

My exam is in 4 days! I'm very nervous, but I feel I've done a great deal of preparation, so I hope I do well. After my exam, I'm going back to full-time hours at work, and so my savings rate should improve (I'm hoping for plus 90%!). Until mid-August I'll be concentrating on doing the necessary things to find a new job. I'll then be on holiday and that's when I'll receive my results! Fate permitting, I'll get the diploma and then I can start applying for new jobs. If not, I'll have to go back to the drawing board and reconsider a lot of things.

I've read a few different books this month. 'Man's search for meaning' by Dr Viktor Frankl, 'Common sense investing' by John Bogle, and I'm currently reading 'Rome's Last Citizen: The Life and Legacy of Cato, Mortal Enemy of Caesar'. All of these are great, I'd highly recommend.

Anyway, that's about it, see everyone soon!

[Sabaka]

Hi everyone, time for another update!

July 2018 Summary

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 183.6 - n/a
Food - 8.81 - 9/7/18
Train ticket - 6.95 - 18/07/18
Food - 8.72 - 20/07/18
Book - 4.31 - 23/07/18
MMA gloves - 25.04 - 18/07/18

Total (£) - 237.43

Managed to come in quite a bit cheaper this month, which is good. Last month of the higher recurring costs, my £32 p/m phone contract is completely finished now, something I am very happy about.

My exam got delayed! Turned up at the venue to be told that I could not take it that day due to IT problems. Fortunately, it got rescheduled fairly quickly and I have now sat the exam . This is why I had to purchase another train ticket.

Book costs were low as I did not have as much time to read due to working full-time and revising. Similar situation with the food costs, did not have enough time to plan elaborate meals so simple fare it was, which lowered the usual cost quite a bit. MMA gloves were necessary, I've just started training some grappling type stuff and Muay Thai gloves are an absolute pain for grappling. I did manage to use a £10 Paypal voucher though, so I got some decent quality ones for a fairly low price.

All in all, a good month .

Investments

A boring month. I've decided against using a direct debit to contribute as I just don't feel as comfortable with it. In terms of contributions, in total I contributed £1273.14p into my ISAs. Of this, £943.14 went into my standard ISA and £330 went into my LISA.

Overall, the total combined value of my ISAs is (as of writing) £22,450.67p.

Speculation

Crypto market is still low. The current total value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £552.58p.

Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) 24,118.68p.

My savings rate for July was 119.78%. Which obviously makes no sense . It is this high because I deferred making a contribution in June. From next month, I think I will instead use a 3-month average savings rate, as this will smooth out anomalies such as this.

Focuses for August

Holiday in two weeks! I'm really looking forward to it. I did make some additional holiday purchases this month, but as stated in a previous journal entry, I am keeping all holiday expenses in a separate ledger for the sake of ease. After holiday, time to start applying for new jobs. I hope I find one quickly, the current job is becoming a real grind. I have started to read 'Natural Born Heroes' by Christopher McDougall recently. Very entertaining, and its given me lots of new ideas regarding fitness!

Anyway, that's it, see y'all soon.

[Sabaka]

Update time!

August 2018 Summary

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 157.5 - n/a
Food - 12.24 - 1/8/18
Food - 2.8 - 03/08/18
Food - 25.12 - 20/07/18
Book - 6.99 - 12/08/18
Present - 12 - 27/08/18

Total (£) - 216.65

As expected, costs were lower this month, helped by being away on holiday for two weeks. Food costs were generally okay, the bill for '£25.12' is for another supply of vitamins, which should last me another 6 months now. I managed to avoid feeling the need to purchase new clothes for my holiday, which I am proud of!

Holiday spend

I lost track of the spreadsheet at some point whilst on holiday . Having done my best guesstimate, I believe my overall spend for my holiday equals £880.69p. This is under my £1000 budget, so therefore I am quite happy with it. Although I was helped in this by my parents 'lending' me approximately 75 euros to spend.

Investments

In total, I contributed £883.41p into my ISAs. I've decided to put a little money into p2p lending again, investing £553.41p into my IFISA. I also made the standard contribution of £330 into my LISA.

Overall, the total combined value of my ISAs is (as of writing) £23,690.05p.

Speculation

Crypto market is even lower! The current total value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £413.46p.

I have also decided to increase my safety fund amount to £800 (from £300), as I anticipate I might be having to make some larger cash expenditures in the coming months. Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) £24,903.51p

My current savings rate (using the new calculation method of the average of the previous 3 month's SRs) equals 78.08%. That is a bit of a more normal number compared to last month. I want to keep my long-term average above 75%, hopefully pushing on to 80%.

Focuses for September

I passed my Diploma! Now I have just got to apply for as many (suitable) jobs as possible and hopefully get one soon! I have done some research, and apparently a starting salary in £20,000 - £30,000 p/a range isn't completely out of reach. I'm hoping I will find a job that will enable me to continue living at home and would not require a car, although I might have to slide on one of these points.

Holiday was good. I don't know actually, parts of it were good but there were also parts where I felt profoundly depressed. I guess that in my excitement for the holiday, I forgot the classic quote from Socrates: "Why do you wonder that globe-trotting does not help you, seeing that you always take yourself with you?". I think I need to work on myself.

Anyway, that's about it. I've been reading a selection of Plutarch's Greek Lives, and I'm really enjoying them. Highly recommend.

See y'all soon!

[Sabaka]

Another little update because I'm stupid!

I forgot to add a £1000 investment into another p2p account into my figures. I have made this investment due to a particular cash bonus that is currently being offered by this company, which will effectively boost my rate of return to 14.1% for the year.

This will also obviously have some effect on both my savings rate for the month and my total net worth. I will do all the calculations in the next journal entry.

This reminds me that I really need to learn how to do a basic spreadsheet to keep track of all this stuff!

[Bankai]

Yeah, it's a nice bonus from RS. In a similar fashion, you can open a 'sacrificial lamb' bank account and switch it to a bank offering sign up bonus. And repeat until you've collected all the bonuses currently offered. Some banks require 2 active DDs to qualify for the bonus, but you can always just do paypal + £1 for charity.

Also, grats on your diploma! And with a £30k job, you can reach SR in high 80's while staying at home.

[Sabaka]

@Bankai

Hi man! Haha, you guessed it with RS! I've seen that a couple of other p2p sites offer similar offers, and I've just signed up for another one actually, which offers a better bonus of £100 for a £500 deposit (although this company is more risky, I believe). That's a great idea regarding the 'sacrificial bank account'. In fact, I've just switched my main bank account due to a reward scheme being offered, but I hadn't considered setting up a separate bank account specifically for the purpose.

And thanks for the congratulations. If I am being more realistic, I'm probably looking at a wage of around £20k-£25k. This would still be a big increase on my current wage however, and allow me to push up that SR!

Good luck with your own journey!

[Sabaka]

Monthly update!

September 2018 Summary

Name Cost (£) Date

Recurring exp - 157.5 - n/a
Present - 10.52 - 2/9/18
Food - 9.4 - 03/09/18
Food - 10.22 - 13/09/18
Bike lights - 9.99 - 14/09/18
Book - 12.35 - 18/09/18
Book - 10.99 - 22/09/18
Food - 10.1 - 24/09/18
Misc - 7.54 - 29/09/18
Jeans - 6.98 - 30/09/18

Total (£) - 245.59

Food costs were generally good this month, managed to keep most costs close to a £10 threshold. This is definitely helped by cooking one massive bulk meal instead of 3 slightly smaller bulk meals. The main reason I have been doing this is not cost-based however, but in order to save time. Bulk cooking 3 different meals tends to take up the whole day and when you've only got two days off a week, this hurts

Book costs were again quite high, although nothing too bad. I plan to reread some of these books in October also, so I doubt that I will be spending any more money on books next month.

Some extra misc costs also this month, such as the bike lights and jeans. Both of these were pretty necessary. I am often riding in the dark and so bike lights are essential for safety, and my old jeans (1 of only 2 pairs! ) had become threadbare, so after a quick search on eBay I managed to find some secondhand Levis going for £6.98 with p+p, which I think is acceptable.

All in all, a fairly good month.

Investments

In total, I contributed £3631.90p into various savings schemes this month . I turned 21 during the month, and my parents gifted me quite a large amount of money as a present, which was a very nice surprise. It was also slightly higher than it otherwise would have been due to the fact that, after only 1 month, I decided I should not have made a certain p2p investment and therefore decided to start liquidating that position. . I really need to practice investment discipline .

Of the actual investments themselves, £2801.90p went into my standard ISA, £330 into my LISA and £500 into a different p2p account offering a good cashback offer.

Overall, the total value of all my disparate investments currently equals (as of writing) £27,187.23p.

Speculation

The current value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £379.25p.

I have also decided to increase my safety fund amount to £1,000, due to anticipated larger expenditures that may be on the horizon. Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) 28,566.98

Savings rate was quite difficult to work out this month, due to the large inflow of irregular income and the fact that I was transferring investments across to different accounts. However, doing my best guesstimate, I believe my SR currently equals 89.72%

Hopefully next month will be a more simple affair!

Focuses for October

The great thing about having got my diploma is no more studying. This has in turn meant that there is much more time for reading! I've read two books and am currently on my third. One of these is 'Catastrophe' by Max Hastings, about WW1. I really recommend this book, it is very moving. I also read 'Investing Demystified' by Lars Kroijer, which is a really good all-round investment/personal finance book, especially for U.K investors. I was already pretty much following the advice set out, but the book was very helpful nonetheless.

Finally, I am currently reading 'Basic Economics' by Thomas Sowell. This is a great book, and is a great foundation for looking into Economics if you have never studied it before. I was expecting that it may be a little dry, but in fact it is very entertaining. Highly recommend.

Work has become really tough. Fortunately, after applying like mad, I've had some success in getting some job interviews, so I am hoping that something comes from these as soon as possible.

Anyway, that's about it. Have a great month everyone!

[Sabaka]

Hello everyone, update time!

October 2018 Summary

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 157.5 - n/a
Food - 12.22 - 10/10/18
Donation - 10 - 19/10/18
Boots - 88 - 19/10/18
Food - 10.21 - 22/10/18
Present - 51.38 - 26/10/18
Book - 0.99 - 31/10/18

Total (£) - 330.30

Overall, a somewhat good month. The boots were quite a high cost, but having now worn them in they seem to be of quite a high quality, and therefore should give me a good couple years at least. The present is for a Russian friend who I met on an online app. She has helped me a lot with communication practice, etc and her birthday is coming up, so I thought I'd send an 'English gift box' .

Otherwise, book and food costs were generally good, so all in all I'm quite happy.

Investments

In total, I contributed £1109.48p into my ISAs this month. I have managed to completely liquidate the p2p investment that I wanted to, however another p2p investment which I had made purely for a cashback offer has gone slightly wrong. Due to obtuse T&Cs, I will no longer be getting the cashback

Concerning the contribution, £779.48p went into my standard S&S ISA and £300 into my LISA.

Overall, the total value of all my disparate investments currently equals (as of writing) 29,357.97p

Speculation

The current value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £317.33p.

I have also decided to add another £500 to my safety fund, again due to anticipated larger expenditures that may be on the horizon. Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) 29,675.30p

Savings rate was again quite difficult to work out this month, due to the large inflow of irregular income and the fact that I was transferring investments across to different accounts. However, doing my best guesstimate, I believe my SR currently equals 90.91%

Focuses for November

I've had a couple interviews, no success. I have just had an interview today, and I've got another 3 coming up. I'm really hoping I can be in a new job before the end of November. I definitely don't want to be in my current role at the start of the new year. Other than that, this month I read Dostoevsky's 'The Idiot'. Amazing, but so sad. Apparently a lot of Russian literature is the same, I don't know if I'll be up for it . I'm currently reading a book about Magna Carta, which is also shaping up to be good.

I'm also thinking of taking a Microsoft Excel course. I'm embarrassingly bad at creating spreadsheets, and I'd like to change this.

Anyway, that's about it, seeya later

[Sabaka]

Всем привет!

November 2018 Update

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 157.5 - n/a
Train fee - 7.85 - 1/11/18
Food - 11.08 - 04/11/18
Donation - 10 - 04/11/18
Train fee - 6.55 - 05/11/18
Book - 4.99 - 05/11/18
Book - 10.98 - 20/11/18
Matched betting - 17.99 - 20/11/18
Food - 10.32 - 21/11/18
Webcam - 14.99 - 26/11/18
Russian kb stickers - 1.89 - 26/11/18

Total (£) - 254.14

Food costs were good this month, helped by eating a lot more food from home rather than buying my own and bulk cooking. Train fees were again for interviews, one of which actually worked out this time. I've been offered a job! It's with a big U.K bank, and I will be starting in January. The pay isn't much more, it's approximately £20,000 p/a, although there are also share options which are quite attractive .

I've finally taken action regarding the book costs also. I've signed up for the library again and checked out my first book! The webcam and the the Russian kb stickers are to help with my Russian learning. I've decided to hire an online tutor, and I'm also looking into purchasing a recommended course. I feel that I had gotten as far as possible with my other resources.

I've also been looking into side hustles recently, and decided to start one of my own. It's matched betting, and the cost was for an online subscription service that is necessary. This cost will be monthly, however I'm already in approximately £80 profit, and I've read that by putting in 4-6 hours a week average earnings of £500 p/m are possible. I've also decided to give Merch by Amazon a go.

Investments

In total, I contributed £486.56p into my ISAs this month. Quite a drop from last month, but this is due to me stockpiling cash as I plan to hand my notice in so that I leave before Christmas, which means I'll have nearly 3 weeks off before the start of my new job. As someone who absolutely hates losing money, this is hard for me to do. However, the prospect of working over Christmas is not appealing whatsoever.

Concerning the contribution, £156.56 went into my standard S&S ISA and £330 into my LISA.

Overall, the total value of all my investments currently equals (as of writing) £28,679.63

Speculation

The current value of my crypto coins is (as of writing) £199.50p

As stated above, I've been stockpiling cash this month, due mainly to the fact that I will be missing out on 3 weeks pay because of my decision to hand my notice in so that I finish before Christmas. However, matched betting also requires the use of a float, and I will not be including this in my NW as it is a hassle to work out. Therefore, the total value of my normal and speculative investments, plus my safety fund is (as of writing) £30,083.33p

Savings rate was again quite difficult to work out this month. However, doing my best guesstimate, I believe my SR (rolling average) currently equals 81.83%

Focuses for December

I've cracked the £30,000 mark! Really happy, and now the target is £50,000. Bring it on! . I can't wait to get a few weeks off work, and to never have to wake up at 12am for a night shift again! I'm also (surprisingly) looking forward to my new job. We'll see how long that lasts once I've actually started .

What have I read this month? One book was a history about ancient Britain, which was really fascinating actually. It was by an author called Neil Oliver, but I can't remember the title at the moment. I'm currently reading the Snowball by Alice Schroeder, which is a biography about Warren Buffet. An amazing insight into a great man, I'd highly recommend.

Over December, I plan to work on my side hustles and spend lots of time learning Russian and reading (hopefully library books ). Anyway, that's about it.

Пока!

[wolf]

Well done with the SR! And congratulations to the 30k!

What's your new job?
And more importantly, why do you learn Russian?

I've also read the biography about Warren Buffett. I found it also fascinating. There are some great insights in the book.

[Sabaka]

@wolf

Thanks man.

It's called a "personal banking adviser". Which I think basically means talking to people about their finances and mortgages, etc.

So I know how say 'I surrender' when they invade . No, I just have always been fascinated by the culture, literature and the history. Plus it keeps my brain ticking over .

Yeah, WB strikes me as a really good man. Just goes to show that we shouldn't judge people on their wealth or anything.

[Sabaka]

Hi everyone,

The new year is upon us! First, I am going to do my normal monthly summary for December, and then a special year summary.

December 2018 Summary

Name - Cost (£) - Date

Recurring exp - 175.49 - n/a
Russian course - 120.88 - 1/12/18
Amazon Merch - 137.98 - 01/12/18
Food - 9.6 - 05/12/18
Christmas gifts - 113.37 - 11/12/18
Misc - 4.5 - 12/12/18
Book - 3.49 - 12/12/18
Books - 23.27 - 19/12/18
Food - 10.28 - 19/12/18
Food - 15.47 - 24/12/18
Suit + Misc - 79.05 - 27/12/18

Total (£) - 693.38

Wow . High costs this month, and one of them was definitely unnecessary. This is the 'Amazon Merch' cost. Basically, I thought I would try out Amazon Merch as a side hustle to gain a little extra money, so without doing much research I paid for a designer to come up with 10 shirts. I know, stupid me. I forgot the maxim that there is "no such thing as easy money". However, the shirts are uploaded now and, who knows, maybe one of them will go viral and take me out of the red .

There were a fair few extra costs this month, such as the obvious Christmas gifts, the suit and clothing costs and the Russian course cost. The Christmas costs were necessary (less I be exiled from the family), as were the suit + misc costs (I don't think my new boss will like it if I turn up in my joggers) . I am really liking the Russian course, and I feel like I am progressing well, so I think that is also worth it.

All in all, although an expensive month, it wasn't like I splurged on completely unnecessary items, so I am fairly happy.

Investments

In total, I contributed £1525.44p into my ISAs this month. A good amount, especially compared to last month. I could have invested more, but I am keeping a larger cash buffer than usual as I might not receive a paycheck until the 20th of February. Of the amount invested, £330 went into my LISA and the remaining amount of £1195.44p went into my standard S&S ISA.

Instead of a separate section dedicated to crypto, I've decided to just include their value in my overall investment value. As I am no longer purchasing crypto coins and the value of the ones I still own are so small, I think this is the best decision. Also, as my safety fund is used as a float for my more profitable side hustle (matched betting), I have decided to exclude this from the investments value, as it is a hassle to work out exact value of the float. Due to this, the total value of my investments will be a little lower this month, by approximately £1,000.

Overall, the total value of all my investments equals (as of writing) £29,005.80p.

Focuses for January

Given that this is the last monthly summary of 2018, I will instead put my focuses for January in my yearly summary .

[Sabaka]

Yearly summary

2018, overall, was a good year. Looking back at the targets I set at the end of 2017, I have reached most of them. In terms of finances, I have reached my £30,000 NW goal. I also passed my financial adviser course and have found a new job within that sector, which should offer me greater earning potential in the future and help me on the fast track to FIRE.

I also did spend a couple of weeks on holiday in Europe, which was a target I set for myself. Although my biggest takeaway from this was that unless I was going on holiday with someone or to do something specific, then I wouldn't particularly see the need to travel abroad again. However, one must try these things, so I don't regret the holiday as such.

I also set a rather vague goal of "learning about various things to improve my life". I feel I have done this, to an extent. I have continued to read the Stoics and research their philosophy, although I could become better at applying some of their theories in practice. I also read various other books, from which I believe I have picked up things. In the future, however, I would like to be more defined with the goals I set myself regarding learning and skills.

So, what are my targets for 2019? I shall list them below:

Work:

- Achieve my CeMAP (a specific qualification for mortgages, which will help me in my career).

- Do my best at work, learning quickly and being a good employee.

FIRE:

- Reach a £50,000 NW (I am actually hoping that I can exceed this a little, but a lot depends on where the market goes).

- Maintain at least a 75% savings rate.

Life:

- I want to begin a defined fitness plan again. Because I was busy with work, studying, etc, it was hard to maintain an actual fitness plan. I have kept up my fitness, but I want to be in a situation where I am actually setting goals and recording progress again.

- Join at least two organisations/clubs. I basically have no friends, and I have never had a girlfriend either. I want to rectify this situation, so therefore I am going to look to join at least two organisations/clubs of some sort, whatever they may be.

- Progress with Russian. I pretty much managed to do at least 1 hour a day for the entire last year. I want to continue this.

Well, that's about it. For everyone who has kept in touch or read this year, thanks, and good luck on your own FIRE journey's for 2019.

Happy New Year!

[Mae]

Congrats for hitting your 2018 goals! Good luck with those of 2019!

Can I just say that I am extremely jealous you live in the UK and thus closer to the Scottish Highlands :p