I hope that whoever takes the time to read this latest personal challenges update is having an amazing week. I’m aware that I’m repeating myself, but I can’t believe how quickly the year is going, and we are now into the second half of 2021. I’m feeling reasonably confident that parkrun will return later this month. I can’t wait to volunteer. I’m feeling slightly less confident that the next post I publish on here will be a weekly Couch to 5k training update.

If you read the three personal challenge posts I published at the beginning of the year, you’ll be aware that I set myself some money-saving challenges for 2021.

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If you haven’t read these posts, please do check them out Challenge 1 | Challenge 2 | Challenge 3

Challenge 1: Will I be able to get through the year without buying any new clothes and shoes?

If you read my May personal challenges update you’ll be aware that I failed the first challenge in style. I’m still feeling incredibly disappointed in myself but I’m going to continue to share monthly updates in an attempt to hold me accountable during the remainder of the year.

I’m pleased to be able to report that although I did end up purchasing some new clothes in June, these clothes were a birthday present for someone else. I worked out that if I don’t spend time on tempting websites such as TK Maxx, then I don’t see clothes that I want to buy.

Challenge 2: Can this shopaholic get through the year without entering any races and without buying any more running clothes?

I was a little concerned that what I’ve previously described as race related #FOMO would increase when I started following the Couch to 5k. Happily, this didn’t happen during June, and if anything, the almost daily email updates from certain race organisers put me off wanting to pay to enter a 10k in London. I’m aiming to complete my 50th parkrun by the end of the year, so I won’t be entering any organised races.

I follow so many runners on social media; I found the second part of this challenge more difficult. At times it felt like every time I went online, I spotted an advert promoting the Lululemon ‘We Made Too Much’ sale. I love Lululemon so not buying anything was difficult.  When I spotted a parcel lying in my porch, I was a little concerned I’d been shopping in my sleep. The mystery parcel contained a SAY SKY ‘Fast Food’ running t-shirt I knew I hadn’t ordered.

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After spending a couple of hours wondering what I should do with the t-shirt, a friend phoned to see if I liked my belated birthday present. He’d bought me the ‘Fast Food t-shirt as he felt that it reflected my love of McDonald’s burgers. Mystery solved.

Challenge 3: Can I make £2021 in 2021 through a selection of side hustles and other sources of income such as cashback websites?

And finally, how much money did I manage to make through my various side hustles and other sources of income during June? As in previous months, in an attempt to keep things simple, I’ve listed each side-hustle and source of income separately.

Selected side hustles

• Prolific Academic surveys – £23.80
• eBay sales – £61.22
• Facebook Marketplace sales – £55.41
• Sponsored blog posts – £0.00

Other sources of income

• Overtime at work – £0.00
• Share dividends – £168.50
• Interest from bank accounts – £0.62
• TopCashback cashback – £0.00
• Vouchers from points and gift cards – £15.50
• Competition wins – £0.00
• Freebies – £242.75
• Roadkill finds – £1.00
• Random – £5.05

June total: £573.85

Rolling 2021 total: £1952.78

June was the best month yet and I remain well on course to reach my £2021 target by the end of the year.

Prolific Academic was less prolific than in previous months, mainly because I didn’t spend my evenings on my laptop. I listed some more of my unwanted ‘stuff’ on eBay and managed to sell a pair of Orla Kiely pillowcases, some running capris, and a Dorothy Perkins top. I also sold a running visor, running jacket, and running gilet on Facebook Marketplace. These eBay and Facebook Marketplace sales added £106.04 to my June total. Now that I’ve worked out how to list on Facebook Marketplace, I’m aiming to list a few more bits and pieces next month.

As for my other sources of income, as in previous months, without my share dividends my monthly total would have been much lower, I’m not looking forward to the day I have to sell my shares. I redeemed some of the points I’d collected on my Club Bistrot Pierre for a two-course meal. I spent so much in Bistrot Pierre last month I now have enough points for another two-course meal.

I can’t go into too much detail, but after several years’ of blogging, last month I landed what I’d describe as a dream collaboration. I’ve added the approximate value of this collaboration to the ‘freebies’ category. As for the ‘random’ category, I’m still carless, so I decided to continue with my weekly Ocado food deliveries. This meant I was able to return £5.05 worth of carrier bags.

I’m going to sound quite negative now, but I’ve no idea if I’ll ever be able to match June again. The first six months of the year have been so successful; it feels like they have set a very high standard for the final six months of the year. I’m aiming to increase the amount I list and hopefully sell on Facebook Marketplace and eBay. I currently have a few 28-day fixed-price listings on eBay, and I have a pile of unworn clothes to list, it’s just a matter of finding making the time. If all else fails, I’m going to put in some extra hours at work so that I can complete all of the training courses I need to complete before I can be added to the incident roster at work.

And finally, I hope that you enjoyed reading this quick(ish) update as much as I enjoyed writing it 🙂

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