December 7, 2023 • 19 mins
Ever dreamt of a holiday that doesn't leave you drowning in debt? Brace yourselves, because that's exactly what we're gifting you this Christmas! From my special series, "12 Days to a Debt-Free Christmas," you'll learn to strategize your spending, create a sinking fund, and set realistic expectations for your holiday budgets. Get ready to wrap your mind around innovative DIY gift ideas and clever ways to include those extra costs - shipping, charitable donations, and holiday treats - without breaking the bank.
But we’re not stopping at just saving your wallet. This episode is also about saving your peace of mind. Get a load of personal financial support and guidance at thefinancialmoment.com/support, because a debt-free holiday is the ultimate gift you can give yourself. Also, share these financial wellness tips with friends and family – after all, the holiday season is all about spreading love and joy.
Tune in next week for more priceless insights on controlling your finances during the holidays. It's time to jingle all the way to a debt-free holiday season!
Let’s Stay Connected!
🌐 Website: thefinancialmoment.com
📸 Instagram: @thefinancialmoment
💼 Money Coaching: Need deeper support? Visit my website to learn how we can help you take control of your finances.
📢 If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review the podcast! Your support helps us reach more people on their financial journey.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to Elevate your Paycheck, the
podcast that is dedicated totransforming your financial
journey.
I'm Carolyn, your host andmoney coach that will guide you
out of that paycheck to paycheckcycle and onto a path towards
financial independence.
Are you ready?
Let's do this.
Hey, welcome back to thepodcast.
(00:25):
I'm so excited.
This is our first episode ofElevate your Paycheck.
I'm Carolyn, I am so ready toup level your money, and what
better day for the first launchto be on my birthday, december
the 7th.
So I'm in a great mood for thislaunch.
I have something special instore for you guys.
(00:47):
You have to listen to the endof the episode, but it is going
to be well worth your while.
I think I'm also super excitedbecause tomorrow I'm actually
having a birthday party with allof my friends and family, and I
don't think I've had like oneof those kind of birthday
parties since I was probably 16.
So this is an exciting time andI'll tell you guys all about it
(01:11):
next week, okay, so why don'twe jump into this week's topic
Now?
I know we're heading into theholidays.
My birthday kind of triggersoff the holiday season in my
household.
I'm adamant about having aChristmas tree up by my birthday
.
So that is a mandatory, and Ithink that's because, when I was
(01:33):
born, my mom she kind ofswaddled me up and put me under
the tree and I guess I was likea gift to the family, and so the
Christmas tree is veryimportant to me and this whole
season is a very important timein my life.
But having said that, we cankind of get carried away with
Christmas on the holidays.
(01:53):
So I thought, well, what betterway than to go through the 12
days to a debt-free Christmas?
So I've launched this series onInstagram.
So if you follow me there,you're only going to notice that
I'm going to be putting outdaily tips on how you can really
have a debt-free holiday.
And for my listeners, you guys,I think what I'm going to do is
(02:16):
break it into three episodes.
So make sure to share thisepisode and this podcast with a
friend.
What better gift can you givethem than a debt-free holiday?
So let's think about why havinga debt-free holiday is so
important.
The holidays, for some people,can bring a lot of stress and
anxiety, and that's not just dueto money.
(02:39):
It can be the result of a lotof different factors.
So it's important to me to helpyou alleviate at least some of
the stress during this time ofyear.
And what's the number one thingthat can happen?
We can go into debt.
Why?
Because perhaps we're trying tokeep up with the Joneses, we're
trying to impress other people,we're trying to make sure that
(03:03):
our kids have what otherpeople's kids have.
There's so many differentfactors as to why we go into
this debt at this time of year,so why should we avoid it?
Well, number one a debt-freeholiday means less financial
stress.
We talked about the stress thatthe holidays can bring.
Why put more additional stressworrying about money?
(03:25):
Individuals can enjoyfestivities without having the
burden of knowing that thiscredit card bill is coming
eventually in the new year.
And what comes with thosecredit card bills if you're not
able to pay it off in full, isinterest.
And why are you payingadditional money on things that
(03:45):
you've purchased in the past?
It doesn't make any sense,right?
We run around trying to get thesale and the deal, only to go
and give that extra money thatyou've saved now to the credit
card companies in interest.
It really just doesn't make anysense, and this can lead to an
effect on your credit score Ifyou have this high amount of
(04:08):
debt coming in in January, yourcredit score is going to be
impacted, especially if youcan't pay that off.
So you really want to preserveall these things, right?
These are the gifts that youwant to give to yourself.
The gift of being debt-freeover the holidays means endless
possibilities in 2024.
In addition, you want to protectyour mental health, right?
(04:29):
That's definitely resolutiontime in January, and then we
head into February, where it'slike the February blues and I'm
sure a lot of that has to dowith the weather in my area, but
also it's the fact that youknow all of the reality of your
financial situation is coming tolight during that time, and so
you know it's just post-holidayblues.
(04:50):
If you can eliminate that, whyadd to it?
Right?
We are in the last month of theyear and if you do have debt
right now, you don't want to addany additional burden to
yourself, right?
You want to enjoy the holidayswith your family and friends.
It doesn't mean you need tooverextend, so let's set some
(05:11):
realistic expectations.
So I want you to take somenotes as we go through 12 ways
that you can ensure your holidayis debt-free.
All right, first up is a holidaybudget.
Now, it doesn't really soundlike the two words go together
Holiday sounds like super funand budget sounds like super
(05:32):
boring but it doesn't have to bethat way.
You just want to make sure thatyou've created a plan.
That's what this is really allabout is just creating a plan of
what you're going to do overthe next few weeks.
Okay, I know I'm a little bitof a nerd when it comes to
spreadsheets and things likethat, but I have a spreadsheet
that I think it dates back to2009.
(05:55):
And I probably have an earlierversion of that spreadsheet as
well, and I list out somecategories that I know I'm going
to spend money on over thisseason and I put a dollar amount
beside each one.
In the gift section, I actuallylist out the people that I'm
going to buy a gift for andagain, I put a budgeted amount
for each person and at thebottom, I total it up and that's
(06:19):
the amount that I need to makesure I have for the holiday
season.
And the idea is that you createa sinking fund for this season,
right?
Because you know you're goingto be spending extra money.
So the total at the bottom, youdivide that by 12, and this is
what you want to save for theupcoming year.
So you're following December.
(06:40):
When it comes around, thatmoney will be sitting there.
You know it may vary dependingon the people, things that
you're going to be doing on theseason or whatever, but at least
you have set up some moneyaside for this purpose.
So I wanted to go through whatmy categories are to help you
create a similar budget, andthis can be done on a notepad or
(07:01):
it can be done in your phone,it can be done on a spreadsheet,
however you want.
Don't make it complicated, justwant to make sure that you have
something written downsomewhere.
Okay, so first category is gifts.
We talked about that and reallyget detailed about this.
You know, list out your family,your friends, your colleagues,
(07:21):
your neighbors, your teacherssorry, your kids teachers, maybe
your teachers, you knowwhomever you're going to buy a
little something for, right.
You want to really list it outand put a conservative dollar
amount beside it, right, and Isay conservative because we can
always bump up the budget if wehave room right, but at the
(07:43):
beginning we really want to beas conservative as possible to
see what our total is at the end.
So that's one section, thegifts.
And in the second section, alot of us forget about this, but
it's the decorations.
And you know, most of the timeI get my husband to pull up the
boxes from the basement andbring them up and you know I
(08:03):
start decorating the tree andthe house and et cetera, but I'm
like you know there's justsomething missing, right, and
then off to winners or marshals,or home sets.
I go to try and, you know, fillin the gaps, right, and so
decorations needs to be includedon that budget and you're going
to put an amount that you thinkis reasonable to spend.
(08:24):
Now, the next category is foodand drinks.
This is probably the largest ofall the categories because you
know we do have a lot of eatingactivities during the season.
Now, it could be that you arehosting Christmas dinner, but it
could also be that you're goingout for dinner.
A lot, right, a lot of us haveoffice parties.
(08:44):
You know our friends areinviting us over, we're having
parties at restaurants,get-togethers, things like that.
So I'm not only am I talkingabout budgeting for your holiday
meal, I'm also asking you tofactor in these other events.
So pull out your calendar, seethe events that you have
scheduled and really kind ofcome up with an amount for each
(09:07):
one of these things that you'regoing to put into your food and
drink category.
Okay, Next up is travel expenses.
I know some of you don't livein the same city as your
families, and so you need tokind of think about that.
Right, if you're going to visityour family or you're going to
go visit a friend, are you justgoing to do some traveling, like
you during the holidays?
(09:28):
Then again, have a separatebudget for that right.
And travel comes with lots ofdifferent things transportation,
accommodation, flights, carrentals, gas.
You know there's so many thingsthat come with travel and
that's probably for anotherepisode, but if that is
something that you're doingaround the season, then
definitely factor that in aswell.
Okay, here's something that wetend to forget, and that is
(09:52):
postage and shipping.
So if we're sending off giftsto people that are, you know,
far away and maybe they're aloneat Christmas time and you just
want to cheer them up and havingthem have something come to
their door, then think about thepostage and the shipping.
One tip that you can do isactually order something on
(10:12):
Amazon and have it directlyshipped to that person, so you
kind of avoid the shipping costs.
You know Amazon may charge youshipping if you don't have Prime
, but you may kind of saveyourself a little bit if you
just ship it directly from thesupplier.
Another category that you mayforget about is any charitable
donations that you make duringthis time of year.
(10:34):
Now, not only are you helpingthat particular charity, but
it's also paying you back aswell, because you're going to be
able to claim that on thisyear's income tax.
So, honestly, that's a win-win.
So next up is entertainment andactivities.
What you want to include inthis category is a is things
that you're going to be doingaround the season.
(10:56):
So whether that be concerts ortheater performances or
different holiday attractions, Iremember when my kids were home
for two weeks during theholidays.
It was just so much fun.
You know you're home and you'redriving you crazy after the
excitement has worn off forChristmas and they just wanna
get outside and do things.
So just budget for that, right.
(11:18):
You know, if there's no snow onthe ground, you're gonna have
to take them somewhere to keepthem entertained and off the
video games.
So just make sure that you havesomething kind of set aside for
that as well.
Now, sometimes what I would doin the gift category is also add
a little line for myself and myfamily, because there is
clothing that you'd kind of tendto buy around this time of year
(11:41):
and you know you wanna look alittle nicer for Christmas Day
or you're going out to holidaygatherings or you have a work
party.
You know you gotta budget infor a little bit for clothing
expenses as well.
One additional tip with this ismaybe just want to buy one
piece.
So if you already have a skirt,you're buying a new top.
Or if you have a top and youwanna buy some new pants or
(12:03):
whatever right, try and mix andmatch within your wardrobe and
that's going to make you spend alittle bit less money.
And finally, don't forget aboutfestive treats and different
traditions that you may have.
I know a friend of mine.
She gathers with a group offriends and they do this all day
baking thing right, and theybake all these different types
of cookies and treats andwhatever, and they split it all
(12:26):
up and they each have theirpackages and they have something
to be able to entertain withthroughout the season.
So you know they probably poolin their resources, but you
wanna make sure that you've kindof budgeted for that, above and
beyond the grocery amount thatyou've already allocated.
Okay, did I capture everything?
Well, that's what's on my list,but if there's something that's
(12:47):
missing, make sure you add itin there.
This way, you're just overlyprepared for the season.
So the second thing that youwanna think about when you are
considering giving gifts to theindividuals this is the second
column, I think, in myspreadsheet is what I'm actually
going to purchase and dependingon the year, like I said, this
(13:09):
goes back to 2009,.
So my budget fluctuated basedon when you know it was
happening in my life.
So, coming up with alternategift-giving ideas, really kind
of get into what that personlikes, what their interests are,
and then determine what it isthat you're going to buy.
(13:30):
You know a lot of people havelists these days and they're
great, they're good forsuggestions and things like that
, but sometimes the creativitygets lost and the things that
they have on their list isbeyond your budget and so kind
of still going into the theme ofwhat it is that they like and
want, but having something thatis special thought about by you
(13:54):
may help to save money in thelong run.
So a friend of mine is reallyinto kayaking and camping and
all the outdoorsy thingsProbably the total opposite of
me, but anyway.
So I was thinking about what tobuy her for Christmas.
One year I decided to get her aphone charger that is operated
(14:17):
based on solar energy, so whenshe's out on the lake, you know
she can still charge her phoneand be able to take pictures and
do all the fun things.
When she got that gift, she wasjust over the moon, because you
know, her phone always dies andso you know.
It's things like that where youkind of think about what is
important to the person and thenyou can get creative and find
(14:39):
things that they would havenever even thought about
themselves.
Another way to really cut backand scale back on the amount
that you're allocating towardsthe holidays is to really do DIY
things right.
There is so much I meanPinterest alone can give you so
many ideas.
There's YouTube, social mediaoh my goodness.
(15:01):
People have definitely doneevery idea that you could
possibly think of.
So if you're really into savingmoney and you're had a little
bit of a creative gene in you,then go to the internet.
They'll tell you all thedifferent ideas that you can do
so you can do a DIY fordecorations, for gifts, for
(15:23):
teacher presence, like there'sjust so many things that you can
do that can help you to scaleback on the amount that you're
spending.
Okay, so we did talk a lotabout the budget and, like I
said, I don't want to scare youguys with that.
I just want to make sure thatyou have planned appropriately
so when you go out there, youknow exactly how much money you
have to spend on each area.
(15:45):
So, remember, today is mybirthday, so I have a special
gift for all of you.
A lot of people have showninterest in having some coaching
, which is, you know what?
Just a little bit of help whenit comes to this many management
thing, right.
And now that I have been doingit for a little while, I have
noticed that when it comes to,you know, setting up the budget,
(16:07):
examining the expenses, youknow, doing the work, a lot of
people kind of like, oh, do Ihave to?
This is uncomfortable, like Idon't like using spreadsheets.
You know there's so muchresistance there, right?
So I thought, okay, what can Ido to give you guys a special
gift that's going to set you upfor 2024?
So with my current coachingpackage, it comes with six
(16:31):
sessions, and normally we dothree sessions once a week.
I give you a little bit of abreak to do some work and then
we do three more sessions.
So, within all of this, we talkabout goal setting, we analyze
your current state that'sincluding your debt.
We create a budget, we reallyanalyze your cash flow, create a
(16:51):
cash flow statement, reviewyour current income and expenses
, we plan for the unexpected andso much more.
To be honest with you withinthis time period, so, as a bonus
, if you reach out to me withinthe next 48 hours, I am going to
include a personal audit andbudget done for you.
(17:13):
What that means is I'm going todo the work that you guys hate
doing and comb through yourexpenses and really set you up
with a custom budget.
Now, honestly, this ispriceless, because I don't
normally do this at all.
I work with you to develop abudget, but I thought you know
(17:34):
why not be generous it's mybirthday and give you guys as
much help as you possibly need.
So if you want to partake inthis program, the cost for my
coaching services will go up in2024.
So you'll be getting the 2023pricing and, on top of it, I'm
going to do this free audit andbudget for you.
(17:57):
Managing your money does nothave to be complicated.
I know a lot of you feeloverwhelmed.
Perhaps things that havehappened within 2023 have had a
negative impact on your financesand you really don't know where
to start to fix it.
Really, take some time at theend of this year to reflect on
your situation and determinewhat it is you're going to do
(18:21):
about it, and if you don't knowhow to come up with a plan, then
definitely reach out.
There are so many differentways that I can assist and help
you, and I want 2024 to be yourbest year ever.
So I hope you guys have awonderful week and make sure to
(18:42):
tune in next week, because we'regoing to keep going with our
debt-free holiday tips and shareit with a friend.
What better gift can you givesomeone than a debt-free holiday
?
So have a great week and I willsee you guys same place in same
time.
Thanks for listening to theElevate your Paycheck podcast.
(19:03):
If you love this episode andneed deeper support, head to
thefinancialmomentcom backslashsupport to see how we can
support you, no matter where youare at today.
We help our clients organizetheir finances, create savings,
eliminate debt and create aroadmap to their financial goals
(19:23):
which makes them more incontrol than they've ever
dreamed possible.
So head tothefinancialmomentcom.
Backslash, support and makethis the next step in your
financial journey.
You're listening to Elevate your Paycheck, the
podcast that is dedicated totransforming your financial
journey.
I'm Carolyn, your host andmoney coach that will guide you
out of that paycheck to paycheckcycle and onto a path towards
financial independence.
Are you ready?
Let's do this.
Hey, welcome back to thepodcast.
(00:25):
I'm so excited.
This is our first episode ofElevate your Paycheck.
I'm Carolyn, I am so ready toup level your money, and what
better day for the first launchto be on my birthday, december
the 7th.
So I'm in a great mood for thislaunch.
I have something special instore for you guys.
(00:47):
You have to listen to the endof the episode, but it is going
to be well worth your while.
I think I'm also super excitedbecause tomorrow I'm actually
having a birthday party with allof my friends and family, and I
don't think I've had like oneof those kind of birthday
parties since I was probably 16.
So this is an exciting time andI'll tell you guys all about it
(01:11):
next week, okay, so why don'twe jump into this week's topic
Now?
I know we're heading into theholidays.
My birthday kind of triggersoff the holiday season in my
household.
I'm adamant about having aChristmas tree up by my birthday
.
So that is a mandatory, and Ithink that's because, when I was
(01:33):
born, my mom she kind ofswaddled me up and put me under
the tree and I guess I was likea gift to the family, and so the
Christmas tree is veryimportant to me and this whole
season is a very important timein my life.
But having said that, we cankind of get carried away with
Christmas on the holidays.
(01:53):
So I thought, well, what betterway than to go through the 12
days to a debt-free Christmas?
So I've launched this series onInstagram.
So if you follow me there,you're only going to notice that
I'm going to be putting outdaily tips on how you can really
have a debt-free holiday.
And for my listeners, you guys,I think what I'm going to do is
(02:16):
break it into three episodes.
So make sure to share thisepisode and this podcast with a
friend.
What better gift can you givethem than a debt-free holiday?
So let's think about why havinga debt-free holiday is so
important.
The holidays, for some people,can bring a lot of stress and
anxiety, and that's not just dueto money.
(02:39):
It can be the result of a lotof different factors.
So it's important to me to helpyou alleviate at least some of
the stress during this time ofyear.
And what's the number one thingthat can happen?
We can go into debt.
Why?
Because perhaps we're trying tokeep up with the Joneses, we're
trying to impress other people,we're trying to make sure that
(03:03):
our kids have what otherpeople's kids have.
There's so many differentfactors as to why we go into
this debt at this time of year,so why should we avoid it?
Well, number one a debt-freeholiday means less financial
stress.
We talked about the stress thatthe holidays can bring.
Why put more additional stressworrying about money?
(03:25):
Individuals can enjoyfestivities without having the
burden of knowing that thiscredit card bill is coming
eventually in the new year.
And what comes with thosecredit card bills if you're not
able to pay it off in full, isinterest.
And why are you payingadditional money on things that
(03:45):
you've purchased in the past?
It doesn't make any sense,right?
We run around trying to get thesale and the deal, only to go
and give that extra money thatyou've saved now to the credit
card companies in interest.
It really just doesn't make anysense, and this can lead to an
effect on your credit score Ifyou have this high amount of
(04:08):
debt coming in in January, yourcredit score is going to be
impacted, especially if youcan't pay that off.
So you really want to preserveall these things, right?
These are the gifts that youwant to give to yourself.
The gift of being debt-freeover the holidays means endless
possibilities in 2024.
In addition, you want to protectyour mental health, right?
(04:29):
That's definitely resolutiontime in January, and then we
head into February, where it'slike the February blues and I'm
sure a lot of that has to dowith the weather in my area, but
also it's the fact that youknow all of the reality of your
financial situation is coming tolight during that time, and so
you know it's just post-holidayblues.
(04:50):
If you can eliminate that, whyadd to it?
Right?
We are in the last month of theyear and if you do have debt
right now, you don't want to addany additional burden to
yourself, right?
You want to enjoy the holidayswith your family and friends.
It doesn't mean you need tooverextend, so let's set some
(05:11):
realistic expectations.
So I want you to take somenotes as we go through 12 ways
that you can ensure your holidayis debt-free.
All right, first up is a holidaybudget.
Now, it doesn't really soundlike the two words go together
Holiday sounds like super funand budget sounds like super
(05:32):
boring but it doesn't have to bethat way.
You just want to make sure thatyou've created a plan.
That's what this is really allabout is just creating a plan of
what you're going to do overthe next few weeks.
Okay, I know I'm a little bitof a nerd when it comes to
spreadsheets and things likethat, but I have a spreadsheet
that I think it dates back to2009.
(05:55):
And I probably have an earlierversion of that spreadsheet as
well, and I list out somecategories that I know I'm going
to spend money on over thisseason and I put a dollar amount
beside each one.
In the gift section, I actuallylist out the people that I'm
going to buy a gift for andagain, I put a budgeted amount
for each person and at thebottom, I total it up and that's
(06:19):
the amount that I need to makesure I have for the holiday
season.
And the idea is that you createa sinking fund for this season,
right?
Because you know you're goingto be spending extra money.
So the total at the bottom, youdivide that by 12, and this is
what you want to save for theupcoming year.
So you're following December.
(06:40):
When it comes around, thatmoney will be sitting there.
You know it may vary dependingon the people, things that
you're going to be doing on theseason or whatever, but at least
you have set up some moneyaside for this purpose.
So I wanted to go through whatmy categories are to help you
create a similar budget, andthis can be done on a notepad or
(07:01):
it can be done in your phone,it can be done on a spreadsheet,
however you want.
Don't make it complicated, justwant to make sure that you have
something written downsomewhere.
Okay, so first category is gifts.
We talked about that and reallyget detailed about this.
You know, list out your family,your friends, your colleagues,
(07:21):
your neighbors, your teacherssorry, your kids teachers, maybe
your teachers, you knowwhomever you're going to buy a
little something for, right.
You want to really list it outand put a conservative dollar
amount beside it, right, and Isay conservative because we can
always bump up the budget if wehave room right, but at the
(07:43):
beginning we really want to beas conservative as possible to
see what our total is at the end.
So that's one section, thegifts.
And in the second section, alot of us forget about this, but
it's the decorations.
And you know, most of the timeI get my husband to pull up the
boxes from the basement andbring them up and you know I
(08:03):
start decorating the tree andthe house and et cetera, but I'm
like you know there's justsomething missing, right, and
then off to winners or marshals,or home sets.
I go to try and, you know, fillin the gaps, right, and so
decorations needs to be includedon that budget and you're going
to put an amount that you thinkis reasonable to spend.
(08:24):
Now, the next category is foodand drinks.
This is probably the largest ofall the categories because you
know we do have a lot of eatingactivities during the season.
Now, it could be that you arehosting Christmas dinner, but it
could also be that you're goingout for dinner.
A lot, right, a lot of us haveoffice parties.
(08:44):
You know our friends areinviting us over, we're having
parties at restaurants,get-togethers, things like that.
So I'm not only am I talkingabout budgeting for your holiday
meal, I'm also asking you tofactor in these other events.
So pull out your calendar, seethe events that you have
scheduled and really kind ofcome up with an amount for each
(09:07):
one of these things that you'regoing to put into your food and
drink category.
Okay, Next up is travel expenses.
I know some of you don't livein the same city as your
families, and so you need tokind of think about that.
Right, if you're going to visityour family or you're going to
go visit a friend, are you justgoing to do some traveling, like
you during the holidays?
(09:28):
Then again, have a separatebudget for that right.
And travel comes with lots ofdifferent things transportation,
accommodation, flights, carrentals, gas.
You know there's so many thingsthat come with travel and
that's probably for anotherepisode, but if that is
something that you're doingaround the season, then
definitely factor that in aswell.
Okay, here's something that wetend to forget, and that is
(09:52):
postage and shipping.
So if we're sending off giftsto people that are, you know,
far away and maybe they're aloneat Christmas time and you just
want to cheer them up and havingthem have something come to
their door, then think about thepostage and the shipping.
One tip that you can do isactually order something on
(10:12):
Amazon and have it directlyshipped to that person, so you
kind of avoid the shipping costs.
You know Amazon may charge youshipping if you don't have Prime
, but you may kind of saveyourself a little bit if you
just ship it directly from thesupplier.
Another category that you mayforget about is any charitable
donations that you make duringthis time of year.
(10:34):
Now, not only are you helpingthat particular charity, but
it's also paying you back aswell, because you're going to be
able to claim that on thisyear's income tax.
So, honestly, that's a win-win.
So next up is entertainment andactivities.
What you want to include inthis category is a is things
that you're going to be doingaround the season.
(10:56):
So whether that be concerts ortheater performances or
different holiday attractions, Iremember when my kids were home
for two weeks during theholidays.
It was just so much fun.
You know you're home and you'redriving you crazy after the
excitement has worn off forChristmas and they just wanna
get outside and do things.
So just budget for that, right.
(11:18):
You know, if there's no snow onthe ground, you're gonna have
to take them somewhere to keepthem entertained and off the
video games.
So just make sure that you havesomething kind of set aside for
that as well.
Now, sometimes what I would doin the gift category is also add
a little line for myself and myfamily, because there is
clothing that you'd kind of tendto buy around this time of year
(11:41):
and you know you wanna look alittle nicer for Christmas Day
or you're going out to holidaygatherings or you have a work
party.
You know you gotta budget infor a little bit for clothing
expenses as well.
One additional tip with this ismaybe just want to buy one
piece.
So if you already have a skirt,you're buying a new top.
Or if you have a top and youwanna buy some new pants or
(12:03):
whatever right, try and mix andmatch within your wardrobe and
that's going to make you spend alittle bit less money.
And finally, don't forget aboutfestive treats and different
traditions that you may have.
I know a friend of mine.
She gathers with a group offriends and they do this all day
baking thing right, and theybake all these different types
of cookies and treats andwhatever, and they split it all
(12:26):
up and they each have theirpackages and they have something
to be able to entertain withthroughout the season.
So you know they probably poolin their resources, but you
wanna make sure that you've kindof budgeted for that, above and
beyond the grocery amount thatyou've already allocated.
Okay, did I capture everything?
Well, that's what's on my list,but if there's something that's
(12:47):
missing, make sure you add itin there.
This way, you're just overlyprepared for the season.
So the second thing that youwanna think about when you are
considering giving gifts to theindividuals this is the second
column, I think, in myspreadsheet is what I'm actually
going to purchase and dependingon the year, like I said, this
(13:09):
goes back to 2009,.
So my budget fluctuated basedon when you know it was
happening in my life.
So, coming up with alternategift-giving ideas, really kind
of get into what that personlikes, what their interests are,
and then determine what it isthat you're going to buy.
(13:30):
You know a lot of people havelists these days and they're
great, they're good forsuggestions and things like that
, but sometimes the creativitygets lost and the things that
they have on their list isbeyond your budget and so kind
of still going into the theme ofwhat it is that they like and
want, but having something thatis special thought about by you
(13:54):
may help to save money in thelong run.
So a friend of mine is reallyinto kayaking and camping and
all the outdoorsy thingsProbably the total opposite of
me, but anyway.
So I was thinking about what tobuy her for Christmas.
One year I decided to get her aphone charger that is operated
(14:17):
based on solar energy, so whenshe's out on the lake, you know
she can still charge her phoneand be able to take pictures and
do all the fun things.
When she got that gift, she wasjust over the moon, because you
know, her phone always dies andso you know.
It's things like that where youkind of think about what is
important to the person and thenyou can get creative and find
(14:39):
things that they would havenever even thought about
themselves.
Another way to really cut backand scale back on the amount
that you're allocating towardsthe holidays is to really do DIY
things right.
There is so much I meanPinterest alone can give you so
many ideas.
There's YouTube, social mediaoh my goodness.
(15:01):
People have definitely doneevery idea that you could
possibly think of.
So if you're really into savingmoney and you're had a little
bit of a creative gene in you,then go to the internet.
They'll tell you all thedifferent ideas that you can do
so you can do a DIY fordecorations, for gifts, for
(15:23):
teacher presence, like there'sjust so many things that you can
do that can help you to scaleback on the amount that you're
spending.
Okay, so we did talk a lotabout the budget and, like I
said, I don't want to scare youguys with that.
I just want to make sure thatyou have planned appropriately
so when you go out there, youknow exactly how much money you
have to spend on each area.
(15:45):
So, remember, today is mybirthday, so I have a special
gift for all of you.
A lot of people have showninterest in having some coaching
, which is, you know what?
Just a little bit of help whenit comes to this many management
thing, right.
And now that I have been doingit for a little while, I have
noticed that when it comes to,you know, setting up the budget,
(16:07):
examining the expenses, youknow, doing the work, a lot of
people kind of like, oh, do Ihave to?
This is uncomfortable, like Idon't like using spreadsheets.
You know there's so muchresistance there, right?
So I thought, okay, what can Ido to give you guys a special
gift that's going to set you upfor 2024?
So with my current coachingpackage, it comes with six
(16:31):
sessions, and normally we dothree sessions once a week.
I give you a little bit of abreak to do some work and then
we do three more sessions.
So, within all of this, we talkabout goal setting, we analyze
your current state that'sincluding your debt.
We create a budget, we reallyanalyze your cash flow, create a
(16:51):
cash flow statement, reviewyour current income and expenses
, we plan for the unexpected andso much more.
To be honest with you withinthis time period, so, as a bonus
, if you reach out to me withinthe next 48 hours, I am going to
include a personal audit andbudget done for you.
(17:13):
What that means is I'm going todo the work that you guys hate
doing and comb through yourexpenses and really set you up
with a custom budget.
Now, honestly, this ispriceless, because I don't
normally do this at all.
I work with you to develop abudget, but I thought you know
(17:34):
why not be generous it's mybirthday and give you guys as
much help as you possibly need.
So if you want to partake inthis program, the cost for my
coaching services will go up in2024.
So you'll be getting the 2023pricing and, on top of it, I'm
going to do this free audit andbudget for you.
(17:57):
Managing your money does nothave to be complicated.
I know a lot of you feeloverwhelmed.
Perhaps things that havehappened within 2023 have had a
negative impact on your financesand you really don't know where
to start to fix it.
Really, take some time at theend of this year to reflect on
your situation and determinewhat it is you're going to do
(18:21):
about it, and if you don't knowhow to come up with a plan, then
definitely reach out.
There are so many differentways that I can assist and help
you, and I want 2024 to be yourbest year ever.
So I hope you guys have awonderful week and make sure to
(18:42):
tune in next week, because we'regoing to keep going with our
debt-free holiday tips and shareit with a friend.
What better gift can you givesomeone than a debt-free holiday
?
So have a great week and I willsee you guys same place in same
time.
Thanks for listening to theElevate your Paycheck podcast.
(19:03):
If you love this episode andneed deeper support, head to
thefinancialmomentcom backslashsupport to see how we can
support you, no matter where youare at today.
We help our clients organizetheir finances, create savings,
eliminate debt and create aroadmap to their financial goals
(19:23):
which makes them more incontrol than they've ever
dreamed possible.
So head tothefinancialmomentcom.
Backslash, support and makethis the next step in your
financial journey.
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