Money Diary: A Brand Marketer On £42,000

This week: "I’m a 36-year-old brand marketer who’s worked remotely for six years. This year, I set off on a digital nomad tour of the Balkans, but things went a little awry when I was laid off after my company got acquired. Luckily, I received a generous severance package. Instead of panicking, I decided to stick with the plan and live off my severance pay while I decide what I’d like to do next. My living expenses in Eastern Europe are MUCH lower than they would be in the UK, so apart from sticking with my dream to travel this year, this lifestyle also makes financial sense right now.”

Occupation: Brand marketer
Industry: Tech
Age: 36
Location: Albania
Salary: Previously £42,000.
Paycheque Amount: Technically zero, but I transfer £1,200 of severance into my current account each month. 
Number of housemates: One, my partner C.
Pronouns: She/her

Housing costs: This varies depending on where we are. Our current apartment on the Albanian coast costs £370 for my half for five weeks.
Loan payments: N/A
Savings: I have £86,000 spread across various ISAs and high-interest savings accounts as well as £32,000 in investments.
Pension: I have £39,000 across work pensions and a SIPP. 
Utilities: All utilities are included in our rent. 
All other monthly payments: £11 Netflix, £26 SIM card, £100 SIPP, £440 for 12 months of long-term travel insurance, £70 yearly subscription of Nord VPN.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?Honestly, all I remember from my childhood is my mum telling us we couldn’t have things because we didn’t have enough money. In retrospect, this was clearly a mindset issue she had as we lived in a very nice house in a great neighbourhood. My granny also used to constantly say “take care of the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves.” In short, I recall money being a real point of tension in our home, regardless of our objective circumstances, and the idea of frugality and saving was ingrained from a young age.

If you have, when did you move out of your parents/guardians house?
I first moved out after university when I went on a 'working holiday' that turned into two years away. I moved back home for 18 months while working and saving money to move to the UK.

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
I was fully responsible for myself at 21 when I went travelling.

What was your first job and why did you get it?
Babysitting. All the talk about not having enough made me eager to get out and start earning my keep so I could keep up with my friends without having to ask for more allowance.

Do you worry about money now?
Sometimes. I’ve worked really hard over the last few years to shift the scarcity mindset I inherited from my mum and educate myself about personal finance instead of panicking about it the whole time. I now see that objectively, I’m OK and am taking proactive steps to improve my finances over the long run. I still have the odd panic about the future, but I try not to let it spiral.

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
I received £15,000 when my grandpa passed away. This was a really great surprise as my own mum sadly passed away and I assumed it would go to her siblings.

10:00 a.m. — Our first day in our new city when C isn’t working. We wake up late, faff about then head out for brunch.

11:00 a.m. — Arrive to discover that breakfast in Albanian restaurants ends at 11 a.m. Instead, C goes into full-on lunch mode while I pick a few items that feel brunch-y. Namely some mini spinach and feta pastries, a coffee, and an orange juice. We split most of our bills, £13 for my half.

1:30 p.m. — We continue our slow wander through town to get to know our new home, following the main coastal road until we find a cute cafe with an amazing sea view. Iced coffees all round, £2.10 for mine. We also purchase a moka pot for £6 as our flat doesn’t have coffee-making facilities.

2:30 p.m. — We find ourselves at an abandoned beach bar, which is creepy, but also kind of peaceful. We sit watching the waves crashing (free), and drink the water we bought en-route, £0.50. 

5 p.m. — We’re back on the main promenade with *excellent* people-watching. We plonk ourselves at a bar to enjoy the passing parade and wait for our friend V (whom we met on a bus ride a few days back). V and I have a Coke each and C gets through two beers. C kindly gets these.

10 p.m. — We get home tired and hangry. We’ve only been in this apartment for four days and we haven’t found our groove regarding tiny kitchen “space management,” so we have to do some rearranging before we heat up leftovers.

11 p.m. — FINALLY sit down to eat pasta bolognese. We eat on the balcony before going to bed just after midnight.

8:30 a.m. — I wake up and head to the kitchen to test out the new moka pot. After a couple days kicking my morning off with instant coffee, I have high hopes. We’re outside the EU and while you can find most things you need in the supermarkets (including exceptional produce) I’ve struggled to find good coffee in the two weeks we’ve been here. I take a cup to C and we drink it in bed. 

10 a.m. — We eat overnight oats on the balcony and have a relationship talk — the fun kind — while watching the ocean. Travelling full time can be stressful so we try to be very proactive in checking in with one another. 

12 p.m. — We decide to get ourselves organised for the week and brainstorm some meal prep ideas and pop down to buy the relevant groceries. Wandering around foreign grocery stores is one of my greatest joys in life. On this occasion, we buy enough fresh vegetables to feed a small country, some promising local olive oil and some spices. We leave feeling satisfied with our haul and delighted that veggies for two for a week cost a whopping £16 (£8 for my half). Time will tell if we understood the food labels correctly and have indeed bought what we intended to buy or not. 

2 p.m. — C cooks us lunch — a portion of the shakshuka base they’ve batch-cooked for the week. We eat on the balcony while making arrangements to meet our friend P later for a stroll along the promenade. 

2:30 p.m. — Walk into town to meet P at a harbourside restaurant. We order two cappuccino freddos. Albania loves a freddo — an iced coffee with a whipped milk situation that lends it a dessert vibe, £2.10.

4:30 p.m. — P is an expat here and offers to take us on a little locals’ tour of the town. It’s a warm, sunny afternoon and we’re super interested to learn about good (and cheap) places to eat away from the touristy restaurants along the promenade. They point out a couple of promising lunch places as well as a coffee shop, a mini department store-type place and a hairdresser. 

5:30 p.m. — The walking tour ends at an expat bar where we meet a retired couple who are sailing around the world. I am SO inspired by the adventure that I briefly consider packing it all in here in the Balkans and joining them as a liveaboard cleaner/cook. My Coke cost £2.10.

8 a.m. — I wake up and laze about a bit before commencing my leisurely, funemployed morning routine. Coffee and Duolingo in bed, followed by a five-kilometre run along a seaside gravel road that takes me out of town and back. I saw a snake on this route last time so I’m relieved a cow is my only animal encounter today.

11 a.m. — Back from my run and into the shower before I sit down for brunch — two pieces of toast and peanut butter, and a banana. On the balcony. Obviously.

12:30 p.m. — Reading time. I’m super lucky not to have to rush back into a job and am trying to use the time off for some personal development. I set aside time each day to read and reflect and think about my career in a structured way.

3 p.m. — After reading time is over, I drag myself indoors to chop some veggies for dinner. This requires some coordination as we have a big haul and a tiny amount of kitchen workspace. 

3:30 p.m. — C is getting cabin fever and needs a “brain break” so we head out to a beach bar we spotted on our first day. Our table is two meters from the crashing waves and the view is 10/10. We order a freddo cappuccino each and peruse the menu out of curiosity, including a £4 wine. We agree this is dangerously affordable and make a note for future sundowners! £2.10 for my freddo.  

5:30 p.m. — Wander towards home via the Spar to pick up some chicken so C can get some protein with their dinner. We leave with a whole chicken, some tortilla wraps, a bag of rice, mozzarella cheese and a jar of pickles, £5.50 for my half of the groceries.

8 p.m. — Dinner is ready! Roast chicken for C, we both eat roast veg, feta and rice. I have a small meltdown about readjusting to life in a strange kitchen but it passes. We decompress by going for a walk around the block.

10 p.m. — Our walk around the block gets a bit out of hand and we end up doing a huge loop. At some unidentifiable point, our casual stroll also turned into a smoothie-finding mission. We eventually have late-night success around the corner from our apartment and I am very pleased with my berry and Greek yogurt combo, even though it’s a bit off-piste for me,£3.20. 

11 p.m. — I do a quick write-up for this very Money Diary dear reader and distractedly toss out random AI prompt suggestions for the image generator C is playing around with.

12 a.m. — Lights out! 

9:20 a.m. — For some reason I really struggle to drag myself out of bed today. C is already up and working so I take them coffee and we drink it together while they read me an excerpt from an essay.

10:20 a.m. — Completing Duolingo gives me a little boost while I eat my overnight oats, then it’s straight on to my 40 minutes of power yoga and stretching (with a quick tooth-brush in between). 

12 p.m. — Shower and DIY leg wax. We’re going on a boat tour up the coast with some expat friends tomorrow, which is a good excuse to do my least favourite chore. 

1 p.m. — Munch a pepper, half a cucumber and feta, plus a slice of toast with cream cheese and gherkin and call it lunch.

2:30 p.m. — Commence an epic reading and note-taking session and feel like I’ve made progress regarding my mindset in moving forward. A few things that have felt a bit hazy suddenly feel like they’re coming into focus. I am so scared of wasting this time I have and this small breakthrough reassures me that going at my own pace with this transition is just fine. Off the back of it, I start brainstorming freelance directions I could go in based on what others seem to be offering and which of my skill sets has the best money-earning potential. 

4 p.m. — Emerge from my sunny spot on the balcony to make coffee for C and I and have a catch-up with my dad on the phone. 

7 p.m. — Head out for a sundowner to tap that £4 wine and end up getting a Greek salad and tzatziki too. We’re surprised with a fruit platter on the house so our “light starter” includes dessert as well. All this goodness comes to £5.60 each (sunset view and Albanian hospitality = priceless). 

9 p.m. — We head home happily to eat our “tortilla pizza” and watch a series before heading to bed.

8 a.m. — Wake up feeling a bit groggy but there’s no time to snooze because today we’re going on a BOAT. Make coffee, toast some bread and fill the backpacks with water, sunblock and snacks.

9:30 a.m. — Meet our friend P and some of their friends at the dock before boarding the boat. We’re doing a day tour of the coast, visiting a few beaches and stopping for lunch in one of the bays. Our tickets cost £12 each.

10 a.m. — I’m on a motherfu***ng boat! 

1:30 p.m. — C and I mooch over to the beach bar at our lunch stop and order a salad to share (it arrives with bread, as usual). I order an iced tea too, £3.60.

3 p.m. — Back on the boat and feeling peckish after a little dance-off on the deck. Order an unimpressive sandwich for £2.10.

4:40 p.m. — Back on land but the blow is softened by a return to Sunday’s harbourside restaurant. Order a cappuccino freddo again, £2.10.

5:40 p.m. — We start heading home along the promenade, but the sun is still shining and as previously mentioned, the people-watching here is second-to-none. We decide to go all-in on the holiday vibes and order a cocktail each at one of the bars, £4 for my mojito.

7:40 p.m. — Finally on our way home. We stop at Spar to buy some fresh pasta to go with leftover bolognese and I splurge on a sugar-free “probiotic” biscuit. I’ve cut out sugar, which is going surprisingly well, but the odd cravings I do get have lead me down some pretty interesting food paths. 

8 p.m. — While C chops up a salad and assembles the pasta, I do 10 minutes of Duolingo and hold a few planks and push-ups, just to keep my streak(s) going. 

8:15 a.m. — I wake up starving, so I hot-foot it to the kitchen to get some toast on while I make coffee. Toast and coffee in hand, I head to the balcony for some Duolingo time.

9:15 a.m. — Run along my coastal route listening to a psychology podcast about finding your purpose. Stop on the way home to buy some groceries for dinner: can of beans, six peppers, two courgettes, a small tub of yoghurt in place of sour cream (I know what “yoghurt” is in Albanian but am yet to identify “sour cream” and I don’t want to risk my Mexican extravaganza by accidentally adding curd or something). I will add some leftover chicken breasts and serve them with rice, £3.

11:30 a.m. — Home for a shower. By the time I’m clean and done faffing, it’s time for lunch — a wrap with leftover roast veg and feta. 

12:30 p.m. — Reading time. I set a timer for one hour. This time is such a luxury but I also feel slightly antsy about not having a plan for bringing money in. Once the hour is up I will continue my freelance research. I want to see how others package and charge for their services. 

2:30 p.m. — Spontaneous call with my little brother. He’s recently quit a job he hates and finds mega stressful so I wanted to find out how he’s doing (okay but not great, thanks for asking).

3:40 p.m. — After wasting time doom-scrolling, I get myself back on track with an AI-assisted career plan session. It felt a bit silly at first, but C assures me loads of millennials use AI for personal development “conversations”. Life coaches, the bots are definitely coming for your jobs!

6 p.m. — C needs to decompress after their work day and I’m always up for an evening stroll, so we walk through the backstreets and I take lots of photos of old buildings. 

8 p.m. — We make it home only having made one purchase: a bottle of sesame oil from a tiny “exotic food” shop, £1.20 for my half.

9 p.m. — The long-awaited Mexican meal is finally served. It works well with the yoghurt. We eat and watch two episodes of Ted Lasso before calling it a night.

5 a.m. — I’m woken up by some loud chatter in the street. Too groggy to investigate and will myself back to sleep instead.

8 a.m. — Drag myself out of bed with mixed emotions. I’m excited and motivated to continue with my career planning and I just want to lounge on the beach with a cocktail. Good news is that today is Friday. Tomorrow I can mooch guilt-free!

10:40 a.m. — Sometime between waking up and now I eat toast and peanut butter and read the news as a delay tactic because I don’t feel like Duolingo or yoga. I’m committed to my goal though, so Duo does happen eventually, as does the 20 minute power yoga sesh.

12:40 a.m. — Heat up some leftovers for lunch before cracking on with my reading and note-taking.

2:20 a.m. — Feeling motivated so I open my Miro board and get back to planning. Today I’m figuring out the most impactful items on the loooong to-do list I created yesterday. 

5:30 p.m. — Emerge from a LinkedIn rabbit hole. Turns out streamlining your profile and writing 5 million recommendations in the hopes of a little reciprocity is time-consuming!

6 p.m. — Friday evening, a time for even the unemployed to celebrate. I slap some barely-there make-up on and C and I step out for dinner at our favourite-for-now seaside bar/restaurant. Food was okay, £15 for my half (tzatziki and bread starter, Greek salad and a plate of shrimps, two large glasses of wine and lemon iced tea).

10:30 p.m. — Wash face and hop into bed for some pleasure reading (as opposed to personal development/mindset stuff I’ve been focusing on during the week) and a little aesthetic YouTube. 

12 a.m. — Lights out.

"Honestly, I’ve been tracking my spending habits for a while now and what I’m spending on is surprisingly consistent, even when I’m travelling i.e. groceries and eating out. It’s super interesting to have our first week’s spending in a new country documented, though, as I wasn’t completely sure how much things would cost here. You can do as much desk research as you like, but sometimes things are still pricier or cheaper on the ground. I’m pleased that our living costs are pretty much as expected and very happy that my severance pay will last a pretty long time at this rate. Plus, I’ll have enough to keep contributing regularly to my SIPP."