It seems weird (read: terrifying!) to say it, but we are officially SIX MONTHS away from Christmas and less than that to the holiday season. And with the holidays can come stress. A survey by the American Psychological Association, 38 percent of people said their stress level increases during the holidays. Another survey, by Principal Financial Group, revealed that 53 percent of people feel financially stressed by holiday spending.
But financial stressors aren’t the only ones that happen around the holidays. Pressures on you to be happy, to be everywhere, to find just the right thing…the list goes on and on. What can be done to try to alleviate this year’s stressors when buying gifts for family and friends?
- Plan ahead. Start thinking now about who you have to buy gifts for, make a list in your phone’s notes or other list app, and when you are out and about, look for gifts and BUY NOW!
- Talk to your family. Do you HAVE to buy gifts this year or can something else be done instead? A trip later in the year? The whole family gives to a charity close to your heart?
- Create a reasonable budget…and stick to it. You know where your finances are. Figure out a reasonable budget, whether by person or overall, and stay within it.
And don’t forget your clients, employees, and customers either. Although I would suggest giving gifts at a different time of the year than the holidays if you feel it is best to recognize and thank these people during the holidays, a very similar 3-step process can be followed.
- Plan Ahead. Will you get gifts for all your clients or segments? Will it be one gift for all or a selection of gifts to choose from?
- Create a budget. What makes sense as a per-person dollar amount to spend? Is there a limit in your business on what you can spend per client? And back to #1, how many gifts are you buying?
- Start ordering early. Don’t let what happened last year affect you this year. Order early to get the best option for gifts and shipping costs.
The best way to avoid the stress of holiday gift-giving for everyone, client, family, or friend? Hire Favorable early and all the gifts are done for you and within that budget! Fill out the contact us form and we can meet to talk about who you need to buy gifts for and the budget for each of them. Then I take ALL THE STRESS away from you. 😊
Until Next Time,
I keep these gifts in a giant plastic box. They come out when a birthday, Christmas, Hanukkah, graduation, etc. happens. Yes, I have forgotten that I have these items at times. But that just means it goes to the next occasion.