Brian started gambling to earn some extra money (Picture: Jam Press/@frugal_spender) When it comes to New Year’s resolutions , saving is often top of the list for many, but it can be tough to know where to start.
To help us along, a dad who paid off £5,000 of debt in 10 months – on a wage of £23,000 – has revealed his top tips for those looking to save cash in 2022.
Brian Mitchell, 32, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, had struggled with his finances for years and at the end of 2019, he realised swift change was needed.
He grew up in South Africa but moved to the UK when he was 14. Due to a poor exchange rate, the money his family saved did not last long. Brian notes that while they never went without the necessities, cash was tight.
As a teenager, Brian got a job in the service industry. Living month to month, he met his partner Georgie at 21 and they had a daughter three years later.
At 28, Brian joined the police on a salary of £19,000. Georgie worked part-time but the family were still struggling to get by.
At that point Brian started gambling to make some extra cash. He soon realised this was a dangerous idea – but not before he had racked up a considerable chunk of debt. Brian decided to take control (Picture: Jam Press/@siobhanbealesphoto) ‘I was chasing some sort of win to improve my financial situation,’ Brian recalls. ‘Obviously, as with any gambling, this did not work and I found myself in over £5k of credit card debt.’
By that stage, Brian’s salary moved to £23,000, but he began to worry how he would pay back the money.
‘I decided to take control and learn as much as I could about personal finance and how to manage money,’ he explains.
‘I remember the day like it was yesterday. I felt ashamed and trapped by the debt and knew something needed to change.’
In less than a year, Brian was debt-free. Following on from his experience, he is now helping others tackle finance issues.
Dad who paid off £5,000 debt in 10 months reveals his top saving tips To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video ‘I paid off the debt within 10 months by working as much overtime as I could, selling unwanted/needed items on eBay and picking up extra work,’ he says. ‘It took me six months of being very intentional and intense, and I paid off all of this debt with my own salary.
‘I scraped everything I could together, started a side hustle, sold what I could and picked up overtime at work.’
He continues: ‘I made it my sole focus. Becoming debt-free became my only goal (other than my obvious commitments).
‘I read over 30 books within a year, watched countless YouTube videos and armed myself with knowledge.
‘I kept motivated as I saw the amount I owed other people drop, I even got excited to pay off large chunks of it – it felt like a literal weight off my shoulders. Brian and Georgie with their daughter (Picture: Jam Press/@frugal_spender) ‘I also started to learn about investing, which I didn’t do until I became debt-free, but the thought of growing my money and becoming wealthy helped keep me motivated.’
After he paid his debts in 2020, Brian left the police and started a social media business. Meanwhile, he set up a wedding and events company with his now fiancé Georgie and a blog called Frugal Spender, which shares money advice with others.
And now, to help you on your own saving journey, these are Brian’s top tips to get on top of your finances this year. Budget, budget, budget
‘The Golden Rule of personal finance is to spend less than you earn,’ Brian says. ‘The only way you will know if you are spending less than you earn is by keeping a personal balance sheet, known as a budget. Don’t be put off by the boring name ‘budget’.‘By putting your income vs outgoings on paper (or a spreadsheet), you will be forced to face the truth. Do what you can to lower your outgoings.‘It might seem easier said than done, but from my experience, you could shave off a fair bit each month by cancelling unused subscriptions and lowering your TV package to what you ACTUALLY watch. Once you have lowered your outgoings as much as you can, focus on increasing your income by working overtime or starting a side […]
source Dad shares how he paid off £5,000 of gambling debt in 10 months on £23k salary
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