Tweet

Be Thankful For Holiday Spending?

Written by: Jewels Diver

Article Overview: Most of us have already felt the pain of holiday spending. We are immersed in a society which thrives on the commercialization and merchandising of holidays. Are we expected to feel good about putting ourselves further into debt? Are we to be thankful for spending money on others that we really don't even have to spend on ourselves? How can we find what there IS to be grateful about? Where do we look? The answer is; NOT FAR.

Be Thankful For Holiday Spending?

With the Thanksgiving Feasts over and Black Friday past, we have officially started the holiday season. Most of us have already felt the pain of holiday spending. We are immersed in a society which thrives on the commercialization and merchandising of holidays. Even in times when we are at our greatest financial need, they can count on us to open our pockets in an effort to create that "perfect holiday." We are once again relentlessly searching for "the best" deals, or already began by starting the holiday shopping at 4 AM on Black Friday. This year unlike any other, we are searching for those deals not in the spirit of bargain hunting, but out of the seed of necessity. We want so much to show others that we care about them-especially in the midst of the season! But if we are truly being honest with ourselves, the money spent on those gifts could really better have been spent paying bills.

Take Violet, for example. She is part of a big family, and In her "immediate" gift-giving circle, there are 25 people; 1 significant other, 6 siblings, 5 sibling spouses, 2 parents, 11 nieces and nephews. Even if she only spent $10 on each person, that would mean $250 in gift expenses~the same amount as her monthly car payment. How many of us can come up with an extra car payment in ANY given month of the year? In Violet's example, same as most of us; the holiday spending does not stop there. There is the work, school, or church holiday party which includes some sort of gift exchange, there is the wardrobe bought for holiday parties, the expense of the food and drink at those holiday parties, decorations, greetings cards, postage/shipping to send those cards and gifts...and the list goes on. Violet can consider herself "lucky" she does not have kids to provide a Christmas morning for.

The point is; with the harsh financial reality of our world today, holiday spending is sure to only cause more stress in our lives than the joy and happiness it intends to bring. Most of us would agree, if we only had more dispensable money available, we could truly enjoy ourselves and our holiday season better. Are we expected to feel good about putting ourselves further into debt? Are we to be thankful for spending money on others that we really do not even have to spend on ourselves? It is almost impossible to avoid the commercialized holiday beast and make a commitment to your OWN celebration that is much cheaper and much more down-sized. We worry about being judged, and that we will be seen as selfish. And as parents, we want to provide "the biggest and best holiday ever" every year, but painfully realize we cannot possibly manage that on the financial end. There sets in the feeling of disappointment, frustration, insecurity, self-doubt, and some pretty self-loathing thoughts begin to creep in. We feel stuck in a no-win, "underwater" situation, see no immediate solution, begin to convince ourselves that nothing can change, and thus dig ourselves deeper into a helpless hole.

Yet, here we are at the dawn of this 2009 holiday season. Trying our best to spread the joy and feel the love that SHOULD be the spirit of the holidays. How can we find what there IS to be grateful about? Where do we look? The answer is; NOT FAR. Look inside yourself. Be grateful that you will always have a sense of well-being deep down inside you somewhere. Be grateful that you still have control over your own mind. Be thankful that you still have the power to decide on your own way of thinking. Appreciate the fact that you can choose your own way of living, that you live in a time when you can create any kind of lifestyle you want, doing anything you want to do. Find something to get excited about and look forward to starting in the New Year, and focus on that. Maybe it is starting your own home business, or committing to a whole new attitude. Whatever it is, know that at the end of the day, it does not matter how much you spend on those gifts this holiday season. What matters is your state of Being when you give them. It is up to YOU to find your best Self; to invest the time, effort, and energy it takes to give to yourSelf first. Love and care for yourSelf first-it's o.k.! Instead of feeling stressed out, you will really, truly be thankful for what you have spent. Then, almost without effort, you will give the best of YOU in your gift giving this season.

Related Articles
  Thanksgiving Day is a Jewel
  Inspirational Leaders Lead In Giving Thanks
  The Gravity of Doing
  An Attitude of Gratitude Is Every Day Not Just One Day
  The Winter Blues Are No Match For Your Optimism

Article Tags: black friday, car payment, christmas morning, church holiday, commercialization, financial reality, gift exchange, greetings cards, holiday parties, holiday party, holiday season, holiday shopping, holiday spending, joy and happiness, month of the year, nieces and nephews, perfect holiday, sibling spouses, thanksgiving feasts, world today
Referred by: http://jaykubassek.com



Related Forum Posts
Re: Moderators on vacation - This moderator is not going on Holiday. I am here
Re: Vacation for Evan - Have a Happy Holiday and have fun!
Re: Just a simple comparison & contrast of our truths in crisis. - I I totally agree you have to be extremely grateful. I am extremely grateful because I have all my body parts complete, look all the people that don't. Look at all those soldiers that honoring their country go to war get killed. Believing in their cause not only now but threw out history that never left no children. We all must be Thankful for those that helped our loved ones the old ancestors that were so wise in been abundant and fruitful that left us a body to live in. Man and how blessed are we can you imagine how many people never had children or couldn’t and we are the lucky descendants of the ones that could. Come on now bless be the Lord Almighty King and Lord of heaven. By just existing you should be humbled and eternally meek for such success. A sacred quote from a very wise woman If that is not enough, look at all the sperms that fought for your place and you’re the winner. I wish I could have reached that Billionaire with this or any person thinking that it is a great shame and people should mourn and be sensitive to that evil that won and prevent it from happening again. A person in that position or any alive would have influence allot more people before going. But unfortunately you do not know what you have until you don’t have it. That’s why it is wise to be close to your creator the founder while you can.
Re: Fill in the blank: The biggest thing I waste my time on is: - I thought of online games as a way to relax a bit or to get a break from writing. I used to play RPG too like Ragnarok and I'll admit that sometimes I do like to try the RPGs on facebook whenever i see my nephews and nieces playing them. But I know that once I get started, i would be addicted, so better not even Try. David is right! Spending time on internet marketing is far more productive and can be fun too! [quote="Mal Tindle":14m5rb9v]Hi members, Like Rachel, my biggest waste of time was when I was invited to be a neighbour for a friend on Farmville (or was it Farmtown, not sure). Being quite competitive I found myself spending time on that which I thought was a harmless diversion at the time. I came back to my senses after a while and got back to Internet Marketing. Mal.[/quote:14m5rb9v]
Re: E-Commerce Spending Down? - Spending might be down, but there's still plenty of spending being done. Only a 2% decrease is hardly anything to worry about. As Kevin pointed out, I've noticed eBay sellers offering free shipping, but increasing the starting cost or Buy It Now price. So, in reality you're still paying for the shipping. I'm one who likes to buy online, mainly because it's a lot easier and I don't have to deal with the mad rush at malls and shopping centers. I'll shop around for the best price online, mainly looking at eBay or Amazon. However, if I happen to get into a crunch, then I'll just suck it up and go to the store and pay full price. Sometimes you just have to, but I try to avoid that situation. As Kevin also mentioned about shipping prices on eBay, I, too, have noticed that some sellers really inflate the price, even for US shipping. I avoid those sellers unless I can still get it cheaper through them than someone else, but most of the time you won't. It doesn't make any sense, and I would hate being out of the country and getting completely ripped off.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

How do you keep it together on a daily basis?

10 Steps to Excelling at Franchise Sales

Emotional Energy is Our Engine

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.