An Economical Christmas

Let me take you to December 1992. It was cold, frosty and everywhere was decorated for Christmas.

It was also a hard time; there was a recession on and money was tight. So you could say that things were a lot like today.

I remember wondering whether to save my last bit of spare money or go out and spend it on Christmas decorations and a tree.

I decided on the decorations and went shopping finally lending up with £2.50 left in my bank account. I remember being very happy with my 20 of purchases which included a cheap artificial tree and lots of tinsel.

I had a good Christmas that year and I don’t tell the story for sympathy. Rather I tell it because I know that a lot of people this year, in this recession, will be faced with the same choice.

Whether through redundancy or simply a drop in income due to the current economic climate, I know many people are having the realisation that the fairy tale Christmas presented in television programmes and adverts is far removed from their current reality.

Back in 1992 I didn’t have children so it was easier; I only had to consider my own disappointments.  For those of you who find yourself in the above situation with children I’d like to offer some thoughts.

The first is to speak to your children about it and explain the situation simply and clearly.

Explain that you are unable to buy presents or the type of presents that you would like to purchase for them.

You don’t have to discuss specific sums rather describe certain items as ‘expensive’ or ‘luxury’ and currently ‘out of reach’ or ‘not sensible’.

If it follows from a redundancy then speak to them about that. Explain very simply that it means that the money that was coming in to pay for things is not coming in at the moment.

Be positive and explain that the money will come back and things will get easier but right now you all have to be sensible and save money.

Children are very flexible, once they have an explanation they can understand.

When you tell them that you are having a different type of Christmas – which I think is a positive way of putting it – point out the benefits:

“This year we are all going to do activities together as a family. It will be really fun.”

“How would you like to help make some Christmas decorations?”

“How nice will it be to spend time together as a family?”

“We can play x (a game you already own); we haven’t played that in ages.”

Now let us be realistic, no matter how you present it, I would expect your children to be a little upset and disappointed, just as you are.

Let them express themselves. Let them be sad or angry. It is important and respectful to allow children to have space to express their feelings.

Children tend to have quite materialistic expectations these days so this is going to be a culture shock for them.

Another way of making things easier is to  have a good plan of what you will and can do before you break the news to the children.

And  remember this: you don’t buy your children. You love your children. And their love for you does not spring from their possessions but their hearts.

Maybe the difficulties you are facing will enable you to reconnect in ways you might have missed otherwise.

Until next time;

Stephen

Stephen Hart

Picture by kind permission of Max Mikulecky

Desire is Infinite

“Desire is infinite; income is finite.”

I’m sorry to say dear reader that the above is more than a quote it’s a universal law.

There are more things in the world for sale than anyone can purchase. And the trouble with that statement is that it is a cold, hard logical statement and it gets trumped by the emotional rush triggered by the latest desired item!

Control of your finances, that state of nirvana where you control how much money you have and how much you keep (i.e. save), can be gained in a number of ways but perhaps the quickest and most direct is by controlling your desires.

It isn’t easy. Not only do you have to fight against human nature which drives us to explore and seek new experiences but also there is an army of highly educated and talented people employed directly to inflame your desire – marketing people!

Now this isn’t going to be a rant against marketing people. Indeed there is nothing wrong with marketing people at all. However you need to be aware of the purpose of their job, and it’s two fold – first it is to directly stimulate your desire and interest in their products and secondly it is to make you dissatisfied with what you currently own.

Consider this – have you ever bought something you already owned? If you’re shaking your head and muttering ‘of course not’ then let me ask you another question – have you ever purchased a mobile phone or a piece of jewellery? And the follow up question is. . .did you purchase either one of those items at a time when you already had either a phone or a piece of jewellery? (yes I’m trying to cover all readers here!)

Now I suspect the answer will be ‘yes’ from all of you over the age of fifteen.

Let me offer you a personal example here. I recently purchased a new pair of cuff links for $10 from ebay. Not a lot of money but it is now $10 that I don’t have. Instead what I have is a new pair of cuff links, which coincidently I am wearing as I type this.

Now when I’m not wearing them the cufflinks live in a box with my other cufflinks. Yes, my other cufflinks. I have about ten pairs of cufflinks so did I need another pair?

This is my first pair of red cuff links, they colour co-ordinate with my red ties, one of which I am wearing as I type this, so I can justify the purchase for that reason but let’s be honest…I bought them because I liked them.

And did I really need them? No. It was a desire, a small one to be sure, but still an unnecessary expense.

I have the option currently to purchase $10 cufflinks and it was a concious choice to purchase. And that’s really the key. I’m not saying don’t have desires and don’t buy things. I’m saying recognise your desires for what they are and make a concious descision based on both emotion and logic!

Doing this can fast track you to financial control which ultimately will lead you to financial freedom.

Until next time;

Stephen

Stephen Hart

Picture by Darius with thanks - and check out his comment on his picture…great minds think alike!