¡Hola, hola amigos! ¿Qué tal? Welcome to another Spanglish savings report, this time being for the month of September 2020.
The 2020 summer is officially a part of the past as sunny and warmer days are long gone. Autumn has fiercely been introduced by the storm called Alex (they put names to everything nowadays, don’t they?), which is having a notable impact on the area I live in.
I am writing this on Saturday morning and I truly hope I can go for a run later on! haha… 😉
Table of Contents
September in a nutshell
September was a busy month, being perhaps the busiest month of this year so far.
If the building sector is madness as per se, now imagine how things are developing thanks to Covid-19 lockdowns.
Many developers are losing money fast, and I could truly sense it during September, where I was pushed hard to accomplish tight designing deadlines. Microsoft Teams is a great tool, but it is sometimes a bit TOO good I’d say!
Anyway, I don’t want to complain much about it. It is how it is and I just must deal with it and move on. Other parts within the UK are struggling much more, especially in manufacturing areas close to Rolls-Royce or Airbus.
So, I am quite grateful for what I have, a job that consistently pays me in a monthly basis and I still enjoy, despite temporal overwork.
My chances of getting that pay rise are nearing to zero, as coronavirus keeps spreading badly in the UK, a fact that contributes to an increase in local lockdowns.
According to the NHS Covid-19 Test and Trace app, the risk of the area where I live is medium, so no local lockdowns have applied here yet.
It’s interesting that the UK needed more than 6 months to develop and implement the app, whereas China did it in just a few weeks. I would have expected a much faster development since the UK holds many of the best universities in the world?
I watched something I shouldn’t have watched
I don’t normally watch the news, but I “accidentally” did so yesterday. It was one of those BBC overdramatic Youtube video news type that wants you to eat chocolate after watching — these are so common in the UK! (I won’t share it here, as I don’t want readers to put weight on unnecessarily).
The video showed real people commenting how much they struggle to make ends meet, desperate for finding a new job or pushing for more movement on the streets to propel their business earnings (e.g. taxi drivers).
Watching that video made feel sad for even existing in this world.
Do you know who am I in the eyes of most of these people?
An immigrant who is stealing jobs in the UK.
I can’t blame them. I grew up as a poor kid, I know first hand how poverty feels like and I can sympathize with these people for blaming others for their struggles.
Financial chaos brings a chaotic lifestyle and thinking — I know that well, and it does not help me feel better but worse.
As I watch unemployment rates rising I start feeling that I may not be that needed in the UK.
Should I then leave the country and stop stealing jobs as we near the end of the “transition” period?
Income, Expenses & Savings Rate
As per 2020 coronavirus standards, September was another good month in terms of savings.
Our major expense was the purchase of a Ninja food processor and blender for £150 (normal price £200, get a £50 discount HERE!) which we have been happily enjoying since then :D.
I am on my way to form a new healthy habit.
— Tony | One Million Journey (@JourneyMillion) September 12, 2020
Drinking a delicious smoothie after a running session.
? pic.twitter.com/cv5tw4pVY7
Hopefully, that will keep me healthier as I grow up older so I can enjoy the returns from my investments for a longer period (assuming that I stop losing money, of course). If I can avoid retiring “twisted” that would be great!
This is the general overview of my income and expenses so far in 2020:
My total income in September was £2,347.04 (2590.71 EUR).
Expenses: £820.78 (905.99 EUR)
I was able to save £1,526.26, which results in a savings rate of 66.6% in 2020. My goal is to maintain an average savings rate above 50%, so things keep looking good on this side.
Monthly Cash Flow Sankey Diagram
Breaking it down into categories, this is how my cash has flown during September in Pound Sterlings (£):
Income
Septemeber brought me another two free shares worth £17.35 into my Trading212 Invest account. So, many many thanks again for using my referral link to join the platform.
In July I wrote a short article to explain how to get started with Trading 212 and get a free share worth up £/EUR 100. So, check it out if it sounds like something interesting to you.
Interests come from my bank accounts, bonds and my P2P investments. Interest earnings on my bank accounts will be slashed, so I will need to check out whether it’s worth to open accounts somewhere else.
Dividends this month came solely from my dividend stocks.
Expenses
I paid the standard £450 on rent and bills.
I spent £143 at the supermarket, as average. We are enjoying the new Lidl Plus app very much. If you spend more than £200 a month in Lidl you can save £12 a month. On top of that we enjoy from weekly discounts on some products. The app also gives you a scratch card every time you purchase in the store. My girlfriend enjoys doing this. We won a 25p discount on Friday. YIPPEE!
Transport this month includes car taxes only. I haven’t added any petrol in the tank, this shows how much I am using the car, which is good for my pocket but not good for my XOM shares.
Services include blog expenses, phone and a recently added Disney +.
Goals
Time to have a look at how I am keeping on with my 2020 goals. As Peter Drucker said 40 years ago, what gets measured gets improved.
Some of my goals aren’t monthly measurable, but some others are. I’ve built a simple table to display the progress.
September goals
August goals (comparison purpose)
Overall, I am doing well on my goals except on the weight loss.
- Disappointing results on my way to reduce my weight. I was expecting to have lost at least 1kg in September :(. I keep running, keep pushing myself and keep hitting new records, so losing 0.5 kg seems nothing. I also stopped eating yoghurt before going to sleep, a bad habit I had. I need to figure out what to reduce next.
- Resting heart rate is at 57 BMP, as I keep running and exercising on a daily basis. I am Bueno 😀 ?
- I am above the 10k daily steps target having walked more than 2.74 million steps! I am very Bueno 😀 ?
- I am still on track with my reading goals. In September I finished rereading Peter Lynch’s One Up On Wall Street. I started reading it when I was going down the beach on hot days instead of reading from the Ipad. I enjoyed it pretty much and ended up buying his next one Beating The Street which is turning out to be a bit disappointing. I am also reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg before I read Atomic Habits by James Clear next.
- Only 6 posts left to the 40. ?
That was it. Hope your month was ok?
I hope you all stay and remain safe.