Holidays are here, and you have been mulling over what gifts to buy and where to shop this Christmas. You have probably been saving up the entire year for this Holiday Season, so that you can buy gifts and presents for friends and family members, as well as yourself. It is understandable that several individuals find it a difficult task to spend their entire savings at one go, especially as this stash has been created painstakingly while one made wiser spending choices and lifestyle changes which helped them save their valuable earnings.
However, the fact that several fail to see is that spending is as essential as saving is – spending your savings for recreational and gifting purposes keeps the motivation of saving for the next holiday season alive. Moreover, it is only fair that one gets to spend their hard earned money for themselves and their loved ones – only saving and minimal expenditure would make the entire exercise pointless. On the other hand, the concern regarding blowing up one’s entire financial reserves in the holiday season is perfectly understandable, too. The only viable solution for this seemingly impossible situation is to find ways which allow one to save while spending.
Making smart choices while spending can be the right solution for those who have worked hard the entire year in order to gather significant savings, and do not find the option of scraping it all towards buying gifts during the festive season attractive. While the possibility of spending in order to save might not seem viable to several, it is a very logical choice indeed for those who wish to make smart choices and spend wisely. Think about it – you deserve a good round of shopping and spending in return for tracking your expenses all through the entire year, and what can be better than the opportunity to make some unique savings with the help of wise spending decisions.
Following are some useful tips which would allow one to spend while saving at the same time:
Decide how much you can afford to spend – Spending without a solid plan and a realistic estimate can land you straight into trouble. One might blow up his or her entire savings, and then some more unnecessarily without a concrete spending plan. There is no doubt that you have made several conscious efforts in order to accumulate this reserve, and hence determining the upper limit for spending would enable you to spend it prudently.
Allocate cash separately for each category – Assign spending limit for each spending category separately so as to have a fair idea of priorities and avoidable expenditures. Jot down the expenses according to their priority and importance. Making separate envelopes of cash according to the order of priorities might be a wise idea, as you would clearly know what it is that lies on the top priority list for you.
Plan realistically – While buying gifts for loved ones and yourself is a great idea and with the holidays arriving soon, going overboard with the spending can land you into unforeseen troubles. Overspending on gifts and presents can render you helpless in case of a sudden financial contingency, and hence keeping some of the reserve intact is always sensible. Let us face it – no bargain offer or discount makes sense if you have no cash reserve remaining for buying what you need, because you spent it for buying what you do not need. For example, buying an app that helps you financially or a new iPad to help you blog; might be more important for you than purchasing those Lady Gaga shoes.
Indulge sensibly – No one can ever deny the fact that indulging in luxuries is fun once in a while, and the urge becomes stronger as the festive season approaches. Spending wisely is a prerequisite to this assumption, since no one but you would be acutely aware of your spending power and savings requirements. Spending money is essential to keep the economy functional as well, but one should not attempt it on the expense of risking their own financial well-being.
Be mindful of the imminent expenses – Beware, credit cardholders – your spending cycle must also allow you to be able to repay the outstanding dues and bills. Imminent expenses for the period before or after the holiday season should be accounted for, and one must always keep the expense amount for these aside so as to not to end up spending them away. Neglecting the bills and dues and unmindful spending would never bear any positive results for anyone.
Avoid unnecessary expenses – You are all set to buy the microwave oven or cooler that you have wanted for long, expensive as it is. What will make the spending more worth it? Avoiding unnecessary expenses would help you to make the spending less heavy on the wallet as well as your conscience. Avoid eating out as much as possible, drink coffee at home or office, stick to your shopping list, and put a stop to impulse buying.
Buy in bulk – Holiday shopping is fun, but one would be able to spend wisely by purchasing gifts and presents in bulk. There are several online websites which provide a wide array of gift items at process lower than one’s wildest imagination, provided one buys in bulk. Custom bulk order options are available as well, so there is no reason why you should not take advantage of this favorable opportunity.
Purchase gift certificates – Gift cards or certificates make up for a wise choice. One can buy the items of their choice, right from utilities to electronics, with the aid of the gift certificates, and you will no longer be worried about not making the right gift choice. Logging onto reliable and renowned websites would enable you to find exciting gift cards for different items, and in many cases you would need to pay less than half the face value of the item.
Saving whilst spending at the same time is a very prudent move – it allows you to spend as you deserve to, while contributing towards savings at the same time.