Enjoy the holidays without derailing your finances
/Sleigh bells. Milk and cookies for Santa. Deck the halls with boughs of holly.
The holidays are a beautiful season for gift-giving. The art of giving gifts is a widely revered practice in indigenous cultures. From Native Americans to the tribes of Africa, bearing gifts is an energetic practice of keeping the flow of prosperity in motion.
Cultural anthropologists and economists have studied the folktales of the gift-giving practice as it is believed to keep both the culture and economy vibrant and alive. Lewis Hyde in his book The Gift examines and asserts that gift-giving is a legitimate economic stimulus.
During the holiday season, the art of gift-giving is in full swing. Love is in the air and if you’re like me, I can literally justify buying way too many gifts for way too many random people. Giving gifts just makes me so damn happy. However, while gift-giving is a beautiful practice - overindulgence can send us down a financial hole that will be hard to dig out of.
Whether it’s buying too many gifts, too many decorations for the home, overstocking the fridge for meals, or buying an outfit for every holiday party, it is easy to overspend during the holidays and put yourself in a tough spot in the New Year. Practicing mindful and intentional spending will give you the freedom to splurge while also protecting your bank account.
Here are some financial tips to help you enjoy the holidays without derailing your finances:
Create a holiday investing challenge. The purpose of this challenge is to give your future self the gift of financial freedom. For every $1 that you spend on the holidays, challenge yourself to save or invest $1. This could be in your high-yield savings or money market account, or you can invest it into a mutual fund or other vehicles.
Make a shopping list and check it twice. As you make the list, research the cost of each items. After your list, calculate the total of the items and use this as your budget for the holidays. Make a commitment to not break this spending promise you made to yourself.
Before you go holiday shopping, write down the names of the people who you wish to give a gift. It’s very easy to show up to a store and see items that make you fondly remember everyone in your life. But are all these people someone who you want to buy a gift for? OR is this impulse spending? If it is impulse spending, consider tip #4.
If you are feeling artsy this holiday season, consider making gifts for friends or for those impulse buys mentioned in the above point. These could be candles, a hand-drawn card, an air freshener made with fresh spices placed in a mason jar, ornaments, a candle holder, or homemade jam.
Use cash when buying for the holidays. It is so easy to swipe and forget. But, if you have to pull out the cash, you will see it dwindle and will be less likely to mindlessly spend.
If you do plan on using your credit card, make a plan to be able to pay it off within 30 days in order to avoid the high interest fees.
Be sure you are sticking to your weekly Money & Mimosas date. At the end of each week, track your spending and reflect on the week’s purchases. Were they in alignment with your values? If not, how can you adjust your behaviors the following week.
Consider creating holiday traditions that do not cost a lot of money. One of my favorite traditions growing up was to go around the neighborhood with my family to look at all of the Christmas lights and driving to the local nativity scene. Other traditions could be baking together, sledding, attending a high school production, or making hot cocoa and watching a holiday movie at home.
Remove the shopping guilt. Some of us feel an obligation to purchase items for friends and family. Check out last week’s Holiday Tips post about the importance of putting yourself, first. Practicing self-love during the holidays is the best gift you can share with loved ones.
Remember the reason for the season. The holiday season is about spreading joy, peace, love and being present with loved ones. This can all be done without spending money.
About Money & Mimosas: Money & Mimosas was started as a passion project by Danetha. A former NFL cheerleader turned entrepreneur, she started blogging as a way to combine all of her passions into a career. Money & Mimosas is enjoyed by tens of thousands of readers in over forty countries with the same dream of achieving financial freedom without living frugally.
