STICK WITH ONE DIARY
Being disorganised can cost you a small fortune
I have a confession to make. I am hideously, hopelessly, terrible at organisation. I have lists to remind me to look at lists – which I then lose. My desk would make a neat freak freak out.
Like many people, I live in a world of organised chaos. It works, kind of, but I would love to be one of those people who are methodical and enjoy planning. Oh well.
However, there are a few really simple organisational tips that anyone can do (relatively) painlessly that can save a packet.
Top of this list is taking control of your diary. Here’s how to do it.
Many of us use online diaries, usually linked to our phone or tablet provider, email service or app. Too much choice can result in confusion and mistakes, so stick to one calendar and use it for everything.
Most calendar functions allow you to combine calendars across different email addresses or within the app itself, which means you can keep work and leisure separate.
Chose the one that works for you and stick to it. forgotten that you’re paying for them. Cloud storage, music streaming, premium services (like on dating apps), voucher and membership schemes. All of these subscriptions debit you a monthly – or more likely annual – fee.
These fees can come off the debit or credit card you paid on initially, or even off a mobile phone bill, so you might not have noticed you are paying.
Grit your teeth and go back through your bank, credit card, e-payment service (like PayPal) and phone bill and look for these sneaky debits. If you’re not using the service cancel it and if you never signed up, ask for a full refund.
They have to cough up if they can’t prove you agreed to the debits. I usually suggest going back 13 months so you can catch all the annual debits. But if that seems like a faff, do it in monthly chunks – it’ll only take about 10 to 15 minutes and again, you could save a fortune and potentially reclaim some cash.