January is coming in the next two or three weeks, and it is usually the most challenging month of the year in terms of finances.
That has been the trend over the years. And the reason for that is because people are accustomed to overspending during the Christmas season.
Despite numerous warnings over the years by financial specialists against overspending during the Christmas season, it seems not to sink into people that they ought to be careful with their expenditure during the Christmas season.
Kenyans are notorious for crying of lack of money in January. January memes all over the internet are about being low on cash and not being able to afford most bills.
You don’t have to overspend during the Christmas season and experience a financial dry spell in January.
There are several precautions like carpooling during travels and budgeting in advance to avoid overspending as you enjoy Christmas.
To avoid a spendthrift Christmas, you can use these guidelines:
Budgeting for your Christmas shopping to avoid overspending
When shopping for Christmas, you have to budget properly, bearing in mind that you still have expenses come in January.
Most employers in Kenya pay early in December, and you can easily overspend without realizing. The best way to shop in December is to combine both your January and December shopping together.
You will realize that most supermarkets and shopping spots are selling things on offer during the December period, which means items are flying off the shelf at discount prices.
These offers will not be there come January, and I will thus advise you to take advantage of these reasonable prices and buy everything you need for January now.
That is what we call smart shopping.
It will make your expenditure low and avoid unnecessary overspending. And you won’t need to buy things come January.
Avoiding overspending during the Christmas season has something to do with avoiding the financial crisis that comes in January.
It is considered a very long month for some people because of the straining that people experience. And therefore proper budgeting is necessary to avoid overspending during the Christmas season.
Most people overestimate their ability to handle finances in the right way, and they don’t even see the need for budgeting.
However, budgeting is the only thing that will keep you away from overspending.
Without a budget, you will find yourself spending on unnecessary things that you couldn’t have bought if you had a budget.
Even companies budget, so prepare your budget during the December season to avoid overspending.
Cost-share to avoid overspending during the Christmas season
You want to cut down every unnecessary cost to prevent overspending. I know you will be travelling to the village or on the coast by car since all the buses have been booked.
It is difficult getting space in the train by now, the SGR to the coast was fully booked for this year by mid-October.
If you are thinking of going by car, you might want to carpool with your friends to avoid the costs of fuel and possible breakages on the road.
It is not only cost-effective to carpool but also environmentally friendly. When we have many cars on the road, they release a lot of carbon wastes that lead to air pollution.
That is an article for another day, for now, just know that carpooling with your friends can help in reducing expenditure.
It is also fun when you ride with your friends to the village or the coast or Nakuru as opposed to when you ride solo.
There are many ways to share the cost to avoid overspending when celebrating with friends and family.
If you are planning to throw a party, you can ask your friends to chip in for the party instead of taking care of all the expenses by yourself.
The party will be for all of you, after all.
Work to avoid overspending during the Christmas season
If you sell clothes or shoes or vegetables, then this is the time for you to make money.
There is a high demand for foodstuffs and clothes during this period. You can also offer transport services and bakery services to people during this Christmas season considering the high demand for such services.
Most business people make the most money during this season. Anybody selling is definitely on a roll as people are willing to buy.
Phones and electronics are flying off the shelf at high speed as people buy Christmas gifts.
A business person can overlook the celebrations and instead make the most sales during this season.
If you are in business, you ought to be overspending on your stock to make double profits during this festive season.
You are likely to experience low sales in January since people will be less willing to spend then.
The economy has been rough this year, and you can take advantage of this season to sell more of your products. And so why should be spending when people are buying? Be the seller I know you are.
Go for shorter holidays to avoid overspending
The longer you spend celebrating the Christmas holiday, the more you are likely to overspend.
You can just take two or three days to celebrate with your friends, and then you will be back to the regular schedule.
You don’t need ten days at Diani Beach if you have a tight budget. There will be more holidays to celebrate in the future.
If you must travel out of town for a holiday, you can consider cost-effective holiday packages to avoid overspending. Akothee Safaris has reasonable offers for family holidays.
Take better offers to prevent overspending and ignore the overpriced ones.
Conclusion
You don’t have to overspend during the Christmas season for you to have a full celebration, there are simple, cost-effective things you can do for you to avoid unnecessary expenditure.
You can simply budget, carpool, cost-share and get cheaper holiday packages to avoid overspending.
However, in case you go overboard and slightly overspend during Christmas, you can always take a loan.
But first, mitigate the risk of overspending. Stay forearmed with those simple tips.
(2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)
Loading...
