Most of us have gotten swept up into Holiday fever and blitzed our budgets in the process. All it takes is one well-played “Jingle Bell Rock” at the mall…and the next thing you know we are shopping zombies with an off-budget Pumpkin Spice Latte in one hand and six bags of off-budget purchases in the other.
Scary. Stuff.
What are we to do? How do we survive the Holiday season with an intact budget?
Today I want to share with you 6 ways to keep this year’s Holiday season from ruining your finances.
Budget!
First things first…you need a budget before you head into the deep end. Think of it as your life saver. The budget will give you freedom to set expenses aside for Holiday spending (gifts, travel, parties, and clothing) but also a hard stop so you know when you are done spending in those categories.
Sticking to the budget is the hardest part but it will prevent you from going over the deep end this year and derailing your other financial goals.
Planning!
“If you fail to plan you plan to fail.” Benjamin Franklin
A great way to stretch your holiday budget is to sit down with it and plan out how you will likely spend it. In addition to your monthly budget, Dave Ramsey even has an even more detailed Christmas Budgeting App specifically for tracking gift purchases per person you are shopping for this holiday season.
Sitting down with your realistic budget and making a plan for what you can afford and an idea of what you will get all the various people in your life is a great way to prevent a budget blow-out.
Know Thyself!
How tempted are you when you go out shopping? How will you make sure you are on budget?
If Black Friday will cause you to overspend and throw all caution to the wind…don’t go shopping that day. Perhaps you hit some deals up on Cyber Monday instead.
Or maybe you are the person who forgets your budget at home a lot. Perhaps you create multiple copies and have them in your purse…car…at work…just make sure you can’t forget it.
Basically know what your weaknesses are going to be and try to plan around them.
Become a Deal Shark!
It’s easy to bust through your budget for holiday spending whether it’ large or small. Becoming a deal shark will help you stretch your budget farther, making each dollar work hard for you!
Obvious days for snagging a deal are Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or each weekend leading up to Christmas. There will be sales and more sales you can shop during that time.
However, don’t forget Craigslist, eBay, or Thrift Stores for gently used items. The holidays are a time when some people are selling things just to get some extra cash in their pocket so you can snag a real deal. Or they are cleaning out the closets and donating great items to local thrift stores.
Make sure you capitalize on these deep discount opportunities before paying retail prices!
Get on Pintrest!
If your budget is really tight this year, maybe Christmas is going to be a craft. That doesn’t mean “cheap” or “bad” but it does mean you can make several gifts for a much lower cost than buying at the store.
Get on Pintrest and search for “DIY Christmas Ideas” or something along those lines and you will discover hundreds of blogs and articles. This is a great way to give highly personal gifts while staying within budget.
Stop fearing others!
For some, this might be the biggest hurdle to your holiday spending. It’s easy to fear what this or that person will think about your gifts, decorations, or holiday activities. It’s especially difficult if other people in our lives refuse to budget themselves, respect our budgets, or be grateful for whatever gifts we can afford this year.
When you are getting out of debt, there can absolutely be pressure to feel like you need to spend “x” amount on family because they spend “x” amount on you. Other people could resent you for something as silly as not spending as much on them as they spent on you. Oh well. That’s sometimes the reality and as long as you are doing what’s best for you and the budgeting goals you’ve got this year, you are doing an outstanding job.
No more keeping up with the Jones…not at the holidays and not ever! And hey, maybe later when you are in Baby Step 7 you can have a year where you’re incredibly generous with your family and friends for all the years you had to tightly reign things in! 🙂
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