Holiday Shopping Tips

Dear Friends,

Many of us still have some shopping to do. I want to help you with some tips.

Here are 11 FLY Sense Commandments for shopping:

1. Plan your meals before you get into the grocery store! Make your menus, clean out your refrigerator and make a grocery list. Only buy food at the grocery store!

2. A shopping list is your best financial friend. It produces focused shoppers, not mindless wandering and mindless buying with virtual money! Download our Holiday Control Journal for free from our website.

3. If you can't handle malls, catalogs, shopping television, those 800 numbers or internet stores go cold turkey and turn them off or toss them out and stay away from them.

4. To reduce spending stay out of the stores as much as possible. Limit your trips by planning your errands. Every time you walk through the door they have you! Don't fall victim to their marketing traps! You are strong! You can do this!

5. When you do go to the stores, set a timer and only spend a few minutes going in and getting what is on your list. STAY FOCUSED! You can do anything for 15 minutes! Wear a watch and be aware of your spending: Time and money!

6. If you take the children with you shopping bring water bottles from home and fruit snacks. This will keep you from having to stop and buy. Happy children help you. Hungry children whine and want impulse purchases. Retail merchandisers prey on children too. Just look at the cereal aisle! All the sugar filled stuff is on the lowest aisle! Lay down the ground rules before you shop with your children, give them the hope of reward for helping you after the groceries get put away at home. Also tell them the consequences if they whine and nag. There is nothing more satisfying than telling the kids you will leave if they nag for stuff, and then actually leaving! A good reward is time with them playing a game.

7. Sales are not really sales if they go on your credit card! The interest rate eats up your savings. With the price of gas, if you have to drive any distance the bargain is no bargain!

8. While shopping get into the habit of questioning your purchases: Do I need you? Do I love you? Do I have a place for you? Am I going to fling you soon? Do I have another one of you? Are you a clutter Free gift for my friends or family? Am I setting a good example by giving clutter-free gifts.

9. Quit using your debit card; it is too easy and you forget to post your purchases in your check register. Knowledge is power! Credit cards are virtual money you have to pay them with tangible money; when we over spend the stress of the credit card debt keeps us from FLYing!

10. While shopping with a cart; do a 27 fling boogie before you get to the check out lane. Be sure and put back your impulse purchases. Let your children help you by policing your list and what is in your cart! Be aware that there are traps on every aisle. Those traps are set by retailers to take your disposable income. Guess what? Your money is not something to be flushed down the toilet. Your money has a value to you and your family. Let it be a tool, not a flush!

11. To help you curb your purchases with a credit card, debit card, check book or cash: put a FLYLADY image on your plastic card, checks, and your money. This will make it harder to use. Each time you use them this will bring your spending into your awareness. Put all your receipts in your control journal. Scotch tape them on a sheet of paper. Know each day how much you are spending!

I want you to FLY! Financially Loving Yourself. To do this you need to be aware of your spending! Being Financially Aware will open up your wings to FLY! FACE your Finances; Financial Awareness Continually Empowers.

FlyLady

Every Friday we will be looking at our holiday budgets; this will keep us on track with our spending. As one member said:

Dear FlyLady,

I noticed in your letter about the Basic Weekly Plan for Holiday Cruising, that you didn't have a special name for Friday. Now don't blame my perfectionism for this. I just like the little names you give each of the days and it helps me to remember which day is which. Anyway, I named Friday "Budget, Don't Begrudge It" day. If you stick to your holiday budget, you won't have to feel begrudging by going over it. Did that make sense? LOL

Thanks for all you do!!

FlyLady