Surviving the Holiday Season
December 22, 2011Opening gifts may be fun but opening the credit bills next month won’t be. No one wants to start off the New Year deeper in debt, but too often that’s exactly what happens. Here are some ways to survive the holiday season without turning into the Grinch:
1) You don’t need to buy everyone a gift. I know people who buy gifts for practically everyone they know. Call me a Scrooge, but I personally limit my holiday shopping to immediate family members and significant others. For everyone else, play Secret Santa or have a White Elephant party. This way you can avoid the awkwardness that comes from giving some friends and family members gifts, but not others (everyone has to draw the line somewhere) and you’ll probably have more fun too.
2) Go for quality rather than quantity. I like to get just one gift for each person on my list so I have more time to put thought into each one. (That’s what really counts anyway, right?) Ideally, the recipient of your gift should know why they’re getting your gift.
3) Consider making your gifts yourself. I don’t have the talent for this, but I’ve known people who’ve created wonderful gifts. Taking them time to create something special and unique can be a lot more meaningful than just something you pick up off a shelf.
4) Shop online. Cyber Monday beats Black Friday for me. First, you can avoid the traffic, the lines, and even the risk of being pepper sprayed or trampled on, and shop from the comfort of your home or office. It also takes a lot less time to click from one site to another and you can choose products from literally all over the world. That means a better chance of finding exactly what you’re looking for and at a better price. Depending on your state, you might also not have to pay sales tax on your purchases. Just be careful of shipping fees.
5) Give kids appreciated stock instead of cash. It’s a great way to introduce them to the world of investments. In addition, when they sell the shares, they’ll pay tax at their capital gains rate, which is zero if they have little or no income, instead of you paying 15% or 20% when you eventually sell it. You can then use the cash you would have given to buy shares at the current price.
6) Take advantage of the after-Christmas sales. You can get great deals on any extra inventory the stores may have. But make sure you’re not buying anything just because it’s on sale. When you spend $20 on a $30 item that you don’t actually need or want, you didn’t save $10. You wasted $20.
7) Plan ahead for next year. Estimate how much you’ll need to spend next year and divide that number by 12. That’s the amount you might want to have automatically set aside each month in a special savings account. When the holidays roll around, you’ll know exactly how much you have to spend, and you’ll have earned a little interest instead of running up credit card debt that you’ll have to pay interest on.
How about you? What do you do to get through the holiday season without going broke? Please share any stories, tips, or ideas of your own in the comment section below. After all, this is the season for sharing!