As we get late into the year, we know Santa’s been busy in his workshop for months preparing for Christmas Eve. To do his job well he needs to be super organised! Perhaps we should all be a bit more like Santa when it comes to Christmas.

For most of us mere mortals, Christmas is something we usually only start preparing for a few weeks out. That can make things rushed and when we’re rushed (possibly tired and perhaps stressed) we can often start making decisions we’d perhaps make differently if given our time over.

I’m married with three young kids, I’m self-employed and just like you, I know just how few hours there are in the day!

So, in order to help deal with some of the pressure of Christmas and the risks of overspending, here are a few tips…

• Set a budget!
• Set a budget!
• Set a budget!

… this is the easiest part! Pick a number that’s an affordable amount for you to spend on Christmas. Unfortunately, CommSec research in 2017 found 43% of Australians won’t set a budget on their Christmas spending.

Once you’ve set your budget, you need to set a plan and monitor your spending. Here are a few ideas that might help over the next few weeks:

• Set a time for shopping – Give yourself a set period to get out and get the job done. The big retailers spend a fortune marketing to us to get us to just keep spending more and more in the lead up to Christmas. You need to be smarter than them.
• Buy small stuff first – If you know your budget and you buy a few smaller items first, then you’ll know what’s leftover to spend in the final flurry. Again, the marketers will be doing everything they can to part you with your money, so if you buy the big items first, you’re likely to blow the budget by continuing to spend.
• Don’t AfterPay – whether it’s using AfterPay or any form of credit, it’s all borrowed money and the temptation to spend more money is incredibly powerful. It comes back to knowing your budget. Don’t let yourself be talked into spending more than you can afford.
• Make a list and check it twice – The more you can use lists, rather than buying on impulse, the better the results you will get. I’m sure you’ve experienced a Christmas where you sit back and think, “Why on earth did I buy that?”. Well, you avoid that when you plan ahead and that’s why lists work so well. A final tip, don’t only use a list for presents, be sure to make a list when it comes to Christmas meal planning. My guess… you’ll save a fortune!

Amazingly, CommSec also found 7 million Australians do not track their spending over Christmas. It’s not hard to see why so many Australians wake up with a spending hangover come Boxing Day.

And blokes… c’mon! CommSec’s research also highlighted that 76% of women start shopping at least a month before Christmas compared to 53% of men, BUT 23% of men will leave shopping to the last minute. This is the recipe for budget blowouts!

When it comes to preparing for Christmas, Santa runs a well-oiled machine. Plan ahead for your Christmas and not only will your financial position be a whole lot better, your stress levels will be a whole lot lower.

‘Tis the season for giving… give yourself the gift of a free appointment with an INDEPENDENT financial adviser and find out what you could be doing to get yourself financially fit (or fitter) for Christmases going forward. Head to wealthtrain.com.au or call 0411 484 464.

I’ll bet Santa has a financial plan!

Cheers,

Daniel