This year you can celebrate Christmas without overextending yourself. Here?s how: Shape your attitude. Although the Christmas season can be so stressful that it makes you feel out of control, the truth is that you always have the power to control how you spend the Christmas season ? you can do so by choosing your attitude. If you choose an attitude of being determined to enjoy Christmas while also refusing to spend money you don?t have to pay for it, you can reach your goal of celebrating Christmas without debt and stress. Keep in mind that there are two distinct aspects of Christmas: the emotional side, and the financial side. If you decide to keep the two aspects separate (rather than mixing them together, thinking that you have to spend lots of money in order to feel satisfied at Christmas), you?ll be free to create a reasonable Christmas plan and stick to it.
Develop a plan. Write a plan for your family?s Christmas this year, starting with a purpose statement describing what you all would like Christmas to be like this year and why. Consider how to best express your family?s values through the ways you celebrate Christmas, and plan to invest your time and money into activities that will reflect those values. Study your budget and a calendar to look realistically at the amount of money and time you?ll have available this upcoming Christmas season, and decide to make your plans within those limits so you can truly enjoy Christmas without worrying about overextending yourself. Aim for at least these basic elements of a successful Christmas: a relaxed and loving time to worship Jesus and spend time with family and friends, realistic expectations about gifts, an evenly paced Christmas season schedule, and reliable family traditions.
Use cash. Decide to use only or mostly cash to pay for your Christmas expenses. If you do decide to use a credit card, do so only to shop online, where it?s dangerous to use a debit card (debit cards don?t provide fraud protection like credit cards do). Make sure that you pay off any credit card purchases in full so you won?t incur any interest charges. Set aside cash for shopping in stores by: determining who you?ll be buying gifts for this year and how much you want to spend on each person, labeling an envelope with each person?s name and inserting the right amount of cash in each envelope, and placing the envelopes in a safe place so you can access them when you go shopping. If you don?t currently have all the cash you want to have for Christmas, think creatively about how you can earn extra cash before Christmas arrives, such as by working odd jobs or temporarily cutting back on expenses such as eating out.
Deal wisely with holiday dilemmas for big groups. It can be awkward trying to figure out how to deal with gift exchanges within big groups, such as extended families and office coworkers. One solution that can work well is to ask each person in the group to write a wish list describing some kinds of gifts that he or she would truly enjoy within a certain price limit. Then, rather than simply drawing names draw wish lists. That way everyone can give meaningful gifts and receive something they?ll really like, while also keeping costs down. Give inexpensive yet caring gifts. Since gifts are messengers meant to convey your love to the people you give them to, you should avoid giving cheap presents to people. But you don?t have to go into debt in order to provide good gifts to the people on your Christmas list. Prepare to choose the right kinds of gifts by getting to know what matters to the people to whom you want to give presents this year. Observe and listen for clues about what each person enjoys. If you?re not sure what someone would enjoy, don?t hesitate to ask. Keep in mind that you don?t have to purchase every gift; instead, you can make gifts by hand or give your time and talents to someone (everything from cooking or cleaning for them to fixing their car or computer). It could be very meaningful for you to honor people by supporting the causes that they support. If you know someone who?s passionate about helping the environment or animals, plant a tree or adopt a pet in his or her honor. If you want to honor someone who cares deeply about helping sick people become well, become a living donor of blood, a kidney, or bone marrow to people in need. When considering giving to charities, research each one carefully so you know exactly how they will use the money or goods you plan to give.
Give gifts from your kitchen or garden. Most people love to eat, so they?d appreciate a delicious yet inexpensive gift of something you?ve either made in your kitchen or grown in your garden. You can present such gifts elegantly in gift jars or baskets. Find bargains when you?re shopping. Look for sales, use coupons and other discounts, and consider alternatives to your local mall, such as art supply stores, office supply stores, and hardware stores. Use caution at outlets, since products there may defective. When purchasing gift cards, avoid those that charge service fees or don?t give people change back in cash when they use them. Give family gifts rather than individual ones. Consider giving one gift to an entire family instead of individual gifts to each person in that family. Some family gift ideas include: a calendar, a cookbook, or a gift basket.
Cut back on decorating expenses. Use what you have around the house to make your own wrapping paper and decorate your door, table, and mantel. Buy an inexpensive, real Christmas tree, decorate it simply yet elegantly, and recycle or replant it after Christmas. Entertain guests without stress. When hosting family and friends at your home during the Christmas season, keep in mind that they?re more interested in spending time with you than they are in having you impress them. Relax, be yourself, and enjoy your time with them. Adapted from Debt-Proof Your Christmas: Celebrating the Holidays without Breaking the Bank.
Dr. Lewis Akpogena
akpogena@yahoo.com
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