It’s that time of year when the pressure to buy, spend, shop, and cook is here. If you’re like me and grew up in the Western World you know that spending, buying, and cooking are encouraged during Oct-Jan.
Guess what it’s okay to not be a big spender I know I was once a spending queen. I spent money, cooked all night, shop until I drop, and prided myself on being a last-minute shopper. I was a total typical consumer. I had over 10 credit cards, charge accounts, and anything else the retail associate could talk me into signing up. However, it’s a new day and if we want to get rich while we are still young, energic, and curious enough to enjoy it then we must rethink our spending habits. Especially when it come to the holidays it so easy to get off track with our success goals.
#1 Tip Take advantage of places that offer layaways, buy now pay later, or make gifts. The cool thing I remember my parents doing in the 90’s was layawaying items which means you buy things and pay on them. This is smart because, you can hold on to some of your dollars and keep your cash reserve up. You can easily do a good search and figure out what is your best options for you. Some retail stores also offer layaways in their stores.
#2 Tip Don’t allow the commercialization of Xmas make you feel pressured to spend money if you really don’t have it. Everyone must live in their own tax bracket and the cliche of “Keeping Up with The Jones” is real. Many people can afford their lifestyles and a lot of people are living on credit and are working from pay check to pay check. Don’t break your bank just to spend money on things that will just go on sell the next week. Not only that building wealth is living on less for a little while until you can afford to spend like The Jones.
#3 Tip You could pick up extra hours on your job or get a side hustle if you really have to be the super star Santa in your family. I know a lot of people have to be Santa so you could do jobs like Door dash, Uber, or Amazon Flex to make extra money to buy those great gifts. This is a good idea because, you don’t have to used your credit cards or take out a loan. If you don’t have to be Santa or if you’re taking a pause from being Santa an extra side hustle would still be a great idea. However instead of buying gifts you could use the extra money to invest in something that will make you money like real estate. Lastly if your single, no children, an adventurous couple, or someone who wants to take advantage of their holiday time take a vacation. Instead of being stuck with people you probably don’t like anyway you could be somewhere having fun for the holidays like Mexico, The Bahamas, Jamaica or any place you dream of visiting.
Thank You for reading my blog on saving money during the holidays. The reason why we want to save money is so we can invest in something that will make us money, pay off the debts like mortage or credit cards. Having a nice saving account also can give you freedom to leave a job, move out of your parents’ basement, end non reciprocal relationships, or end a marriage that is not working for you.
Tangela Stephens 