Merry & Money-Savvy
Guest Blog by Money Healing Club Moderator, Melissa Jensen
November holds a special place in my heart. It's a month made for snug evenings at home, indulging in apple and cinnamon delights, and celebrating the arrival of soup season 🍲. It’s also too bad that the serenity of this underappreciated month often goes unnoticed due to November also ushering in a whirlwind of spending. Get ready, because we're about to step into the most glittering maze of financial temptations - The Holidays. 🎄🎉🪙
💸 This season, the temptations for emotional shopping are more abundant than bad jokes at the work Christmas party. From TV commercials to social media, and even your daily commute (hello podcast ads) can be Santa's little helper in encouraging the splurge.
The holidays can also be a time when we try to compensate for perceived shortcomings through spending.
Guilt over not being with family can lead to pricey plane tickets?
If you've had moments of imperfect parenting, you might feel pressured to make Christmas morning unforgettable🎁📦🎁?
Maybe you don't celebrate the holidays, but feel like you have to participate in Secret Santa or be the office Scrooge?
Or maybe all the holiday cheer around exacerbates your anxiety and depression?
For every emotion we’re dealing with, there's something being sold to solve it. 🛒
These are real challenges, and they won't magically disappear in the next few weeks. But we can prepare by recognizing our triggers and crafting a strategy. By the time Black Friday rolls around, you'll have a plan to navigate the holiday season with both your sanity and your bank account intact. I’m doing it with you💪💵
🎁 Unwrapping Your Trigger
The first step to mastering your holiday spending is to recognize what drives you. Is it guilt, high expectations, nostalgia, or something else? Identifying your personal triggers is half the battle. Then, before you click that "Buy Now" button, pause and ask yourself, "Am I purchasing this because I genuinely want it, or is my trigger leading the way?" 🛍️❓ SCARCITY
📜 Make a List (and Check it Twice)
The holiday season is filled with traditions and cherished memories. Some may be worth the expense - like your favorite seasonal candy, that special gift, or re-creating Grandma's legendary lasagna for Christmas dinner (just me?). Some others… are not.
Before the festivities kick off, make a list of things that would genuinely break your heart if you skipped them, and jot down their costs. Then, build them into your monthly budget, ensuring the money is set aside and won't be spent on anything else. Stick to the list! It's easy to justify every expense during the holidays, but deep down you know most of it will be forgotten by the time the ball drops.
My two cents: those fancy holiday lights are usually a miss, but hosting the first night of Hanukkah is always a hit! 🎄🕎
🙅🏽♀️ A gracious “No thanks” can be awkward at first, but like any muscle, it will get stronger the more you use it.
Do it for the donuts?
🚫🛒Bah Humbug, Black Friday!
This year, I'm joining the Money Healing Club's challenge to abstain from Black Friday shopping, we’re calling “🚫Black out Black Friday🚫”. I've already unsubscribed from sales emails to avoid temptation. (📧 Hot tip, in Gmail, search “unsubscribe”. This will pull up all emails from marketers since they all have to have “Unsubscribe” in their emails. This makes it easy to unsubscribe in one go.)
📆 I’m also preparing a plan for the day, whether it's quality time with friends, a good book to curl up with, or an artsy project to keep myself occupied. This way, I won’t find myself mindlessly scrolling and getting caught up in the whirlwind of consumerism. With the Money Healing Club, I’ll also have a community to share my wins and experiences.
🌟 It’s the Little Things
I'll be the first to admit that it's toughest for me to resist small to medium expenses. $100 for a gingerbread village could pay for a night in a cool destination. But what about $12 for Candy Cane Kisses? Does that really matter? Tiffany Aliche recommends in her book "Get Good with Money" (available at your local library) to transfer these small amounts to savings when you resist spending. You won't have the money to spend anymore, but by month's end, you'll see it has added up - right in your bank account! 🏦🤑
🎁💖 A Little Self-Elfishness
This isn't about landing on the naughty list. During the holiday season, it's easy to overspend while believing it's for others, masking our intentions as altruism (very Taylor Swift-esque). But when January rolls around, we're often left with a spending hangovers: in our bank accounts, credit cards and emotionally. It's absolutely okay to strike a balance between spoiling your loved ones and securing your own financial future. Visualize your financial goals for Future You:
Would Future You prefer that down payment, a beefy investment portfolio, a memorable trip, or that particular gift?
It's fine if the answer isn't the gift because your loved ones value your time and attention more than anything.
❄️ The holiday season doesn't have to be a financial snowstorm. With the right tools, you can sleigh the holidays (get it?) and keep your wallet merry and your spirit bright. Wishing you a season filled with joy, love, and financial peace! 🛷🌟
