Create Your Holiday Financial Blueprint

Let’s imagine today is January 15th and you have your mail in your hand walking in your home from a regular work day. You notice that your credit card statement is included with this mail deliver. Your body responds because you are not looking forward to opening this month’s credit card statement. I am happy to inform you that you can avoid this feeling by pre-planning your financial spending for the holidays. Just like routine money management, creating a financial plan for holiday shopping before you start spending helps you remain on track. Pre-planning helps you shop for those you care about while saving money. Below are 3 suggestions to help you plan out your financial holiday expenditures.

1. Determine your large holiday occasions: Your large festive occasions: The holidays provide various favorable circumstances and the question become which event to attend. Selecting your major holidays assists you in assigning your money properly in your financial plan. Potentially, it also makes certain that a little part of your holiday financial planning is saved for unexpected occasions like spontaneous dinners or cocktails with friends.
2. Place your attention on experiences rather than things: We are in a buying culture where we regularly are barraged to spend money. Television, radio commercials or even emails inform us of a sale and now while we are in stores flashing announcement highlights more products to purchase. For this reason, I encourage you to consider if a gift is what you really want to give. I have noticed that people desire mostly to connect and feel that they their lives have purpose. Think if you can provide human connection and meaning for those you love. An example is that your family can volunteer at a holiday soup kitchen and then have an intimate meal at home. Another example is to ask all family members to bring a dish in December to the family dinner. Also, one of my favorite things is to donate to a charity that has meaning for a loved one and give in their name. My uncle for instance is my Godfather and annually I donate to an organization in memory of my aunt who passed from Lupus complications. My uncle is not interested in gifts, but he enjoyed receiving the card acknowledging the gift the organization received in memory of his wife.
3. Intentional Giving: The song says “He’s (Santa) making a list and checking it twice”. I ask you to consider doing the same action. List the people you want to give including those that service your needs like the US Postal worker and your hair stylist. After making this list reviewing it see if someone on your list would benefit more from step 2, of connection and meaning. For those that remain on your list for a gift, decide the amount you are going to spend for each gift. Come up with an idea of how much you want to spend and finally seek promotional codes and coupons online that can help you save.

These steps can truly be completed in a few hours, but it can result in saving hundreds or thousands of dollars this holiday season. An additional money tip for next year is to write down whom you bought for, what you gave them and how much you invested. Save this list and review it in January for two reasons: 1, to see who’d you like to keep on the list for next year and two divide the total amount spent into twelve and save that much in advance so you’ll have the money ready to pay for everything instead of using your credit cards. Remind yourself that the holidays are about fun when you are thinking and planning your holiday social calendar and making shopping plans. Nowadays everybody is very busy so take time to enjoy yourself. Life is short, and it is to be enjoyed. I wish you and your loved ones happy holidays!