I paid off £8,000 of debt in a year – why you need to change 'the payday mentality'

IT'S PAYDAY – which for many of us means treating ourselves to something on our wish list.

But not for mum Beth Fuller, who recently advised cash-strapped Brits to ditch the 'payday mentality' if they want to save money this year.

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According to the money-conscious mum, who paid off her £8,000 debt in just one year, this is one of the 'bad habits' she has ditched to 'have £700 more every month'.

Ditch the payday mentality

''I had such a payday mentality: I gave myself pocket money for a month and I could easily have spent it treating myself in the first week of the month.

“And then I ate the rest of my disposable income and more throughout the month,” she opened the video.

“If you have that mentality, you are not just satisfied with one purchase.”

While there's nothing wrong with treating yourself every now and then, there is a line—one that many of us cross without question.

“My money would be gone on payday,” Beth told followers her page.

Buy what you need

Another important tip she shared with other TikTok users was to only buy the one thing you came to the store for — and nothing else.

For example, if you are going to buy gas, make sure it is only the gas you get and not the treats and other items at the checkout simply because it is 'convenient'.

''A snack, a cup of coffee and the next thing you knew, you'd added almost $10 to your gas bill, instead of just paying for gas.

“I was mentally adding products to the cart all the time,” says Beth, who also had to change her shopping habits on Amazon when ordering baby wipes for her daughter.

Stop being lazy with food

Last but not least, look at how much you spend each month on takeaways or eating out.

“All I have to do is prepare lunch the night before, but some days it just feels like the last thing I want to do.

''But it's so worth it, because lunch is honestly just so expensive now. You go out, get lunch and a cup of coffee and quickly spend more than €5.

''I can't do that all the time, so I just tried to get into the habit of saving food where I can.

''That comes down to thinking ahead with my meals and thinking ahead with my lunches.

''Please don't buy a €4 sandwich if you have it at home and it only takes two minutes.

“Less glamorous and less fun, but it has made a huge difference.”

Looking at her past habits, the mother previously said: 'I would avoid looking at a bank balance. I was afraid I would have to log in and face the situation I was in on different accounts.

“I just had a really bad relationship with actually facing reality with money. And now I've actually developed the habit of checking and confronting it every day.

“So I check my banking apps every day and I check my credit score every month. And I probably don't have to do it every day, but right now it's such a ritual.

“And now it's actually so positive because I see money in my checking account for all the bills that I know are going to come up.”

“I see my savings looking so good, and then I see my expenses, and I look at where I am with my monthly spending allowance and I stay on track.”