December is so much fun, isn’t it?
Because of Christmas, December is my favorite month. But the worst part about December? It has to end!
I love the new year, but I hate thinking Christmastime won’t be back around for another 11 months. For some people, the new year has a different meaning. It’s that time of year when they dread walking out to the mailbox—afraid to see how much they’ve added to their MasterCard balance in the last 30 days.
While I don’t go into debt to buy things, I know that’s how a lot of families survive Christmas spending. They don’t have a lot of extra money lying around for gifts, so they head to the mall and pull out the credit cards.
I don’t judge you if you do that, but I do believe there’s a better way.
We’re well into the new year, and if you bought Christmas on credit, the bills have started rolling in. If you’re in that situation, I want you to do two things.
First, let’s make a plan to pay off those bills as quickly as possible. The last thing you want is to still be paying for last year’s Christmas while your also paying for this year’s. That’s no good.
Make a budget. Sell some stuff. Get on a plan that allows you to knock out this debt quickly. While you’re reviewing your bills, take a look at your spending habits.
Where did you make wise decisions, and where could you have done better? Do you need to trim your list for next year (Should you really feel obligated to buy Uncle Bob yet another $10 gift card?)?
Second, start planning to make this year’s Christmas different. By “different,” I mean without using debt. So let’s say you’ve paid off your Christmas credit card bills in May. That means you have about six months to plan for this coming Christmas.
If you figure your Christmas budget will be about $500, then you need to save about $83 per month until December. You see, the cool thing about Christmas is that you know it always comes on December 25! No surprise there, right? So there’s no reason not to plan ahead.
The earlier you begin working on your spending plan, the less stress you’ll feel come November and December. What if (dream with me here!) you could have all your Christmas shopping done before December? That might take a little extra discipline, and you might need to save a little extra per month, but think about the relaxing feel of sitting at home, sipping eggnog, and watching Hallmark Christmas movies while everyone else is out there in the holiday chaos. How amazing would that be?
The key to all of this is simply having a plan. You need a plan to get out of your current Christmas debt and a plan to move forward without using debt the next time around.
Believe me, I hear from people every day who live without using debt. When it comes to spending, December is just another month for them.
If they can do it, you can do it.
Photo by David Everett Strickler
Rachel Cruze
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