• Sometimes you just need to find humor in the situation.

• Feature Article: Exploring the Holiday and 21 Shopping Tips.

• Elisabeth Recommends: More Mind Movies and Great Money Books for Kids!

Holiday Shopping Tips

Yesterday, Jan and I (Jan, for those of you who haven't had the immense pleasure of speaking to her on the phone yet, is my partner in crime here at the office) had a great Wealthy Wednesdays for Women call with a group of fair maidens who have attended one of our Creative Wealth for Women courses or one of our other programs. We focused the informal call on holiday gift buying and traditions and as well as the stress involved for some people.

One of the amazing things that came out of our conversation was the common theme of women wanting a simpler solution to an otherwise traditionally busy and 'to-do' filled time. We talked about how to shift traditions so that they serve you and you don't end up feeling like you need a two week vacation starting January 1st! Any of you relate? We thought so.

I've put the short call on the website if you'd like to listen in - it's about 26 minutes and very informal but fun to listen to!

And for your reading pleasure, here's some information brought to you courtesy of the Institute of Consumer Financial Education (ICFE) and Paul Richard, Executive Director. It's a bit long but just skip down to the tips that work for you and see if they help you with your holiday season. What's the point if you don't enjoy it? Do what you need to do for YOU and you'll set an example (you know how I feel about each of us setting the best example we can!) for everyone around you.

21 Tips for Wiser Christmas Holiday Spending

1. Create a written plan for holiday spending and gift giving. Include possible gifts, dollar amounts and alternative choices.
2. Establish spending limits for gifts for each person on your list and start looking for bargains early.
3. If it has been a challenging year financially, then shrink your holiday gift list. Begin by talking with those you exchange gifts with and perhaps suggesting not exchanging gifts or mutually observing much lower dollar-limits on gifts.
4. Separate shopping trips (when going to compare prices, quality, value, etc.) from spending trips (when going to make a purchase), and resist taking cash, credit cards or a checkbook on the shopping trips.
5. Wait for those sales! Ever increasing food and energy costs could bite into holiday sales, so sales and clearances might come earlier than usual in 2008.
6. Watch the sale flyers in the mailbox for items you intend to purchase.
7. Ask retailers when the items you are interested in buying are coming on sale. Most retailers will reveal sale dates because they don't want you to shop their competition.
8. Sometimes shopping later in the season (for smaller gifts wrapping and accessories, etc.) will allow you to take advantage of clearance sales. It will often yield lower prices overall. If holiday sales are sluggish, discounts and clearance sales will appear earlier this season.
9. Liquidators, buying clubs and factory outlet stores usually offer lower prices.
10. Bulk buying with other family members or friends can also yield savings.
11. Spend cash and avoid using credit cards. Charge cards tend to promote indiscriminate spending. Credit card users often say they had no idea how much they spent on the holidays until the credit card bills arrive in January or February of the next year.
12. WARNING, credit cards have a message: SPEND!
13. Sometimes writing checks or using EFT/ATMs can get out of hand especially when you fail to record each check or calculate the balance after making an EFT purchase or write a check. It often results in overspending, playing the cash float game and NSF check charges.
14. Giving gifts to adults on New Year's Day is also very special. Then you can really take advantage of all those after Christmas sales.
15. Consider gifts that don't cost a lot of out-of-pocket money. Giving a card to a young family which entitles them to emergency baby-sitting time, for example, will result in savings for both families. Laundry or shirt-ironing for a bachelor, a bimonthly sight-seeing outing for senior citizens or gardening, housecleaning and car washes for grandparents are useful and often much needed gifts.
16. If considering a part-time job over the holidays, perhaps working for a department store or other major retailer because you could then economize with an employee discount in addition to getting notices about upcoming sales.
17. At office parties and other holiday functions where you might be asked to provide a gift, suggest that instead of gifts, people bring canned food for the home less or disadvantaged families and individuals.
18. Save more on holiday greeting cards and postage by sending only to those in your life you won't see over the holiday.
19. Make more of your gifts at home. A freshly baked loaf of bread, cookies, desserts, etc. are always appreciated. Also art, crafts, needle work or a collage of photographs.
20. Instead of giving money younger children, give them some U. S. Savings bonds. They cost one half of the face value, will not be immediately spent, they encourage savings, and because they are interest bearing and tax free until redemption, the gift keeps on giving.
21. Gift wrapping and incidentals can become costly. It is easy to economize; give a card with a photo of the gift and the unwrapped gift, use newspapers, magazines, grocery and shopping bags as gift wrap or reusable gift boxes etc.

Thanks, Paul, for the great tips!

I simply want to end by giving you permission to completely alter your holiday traditions, if you wish. If spending money you may not have and buying gifts you don't necessarily feel inclined to buy put you in a stressful place so that you can't enjoy the actual holiday, just change it! And don't be afraid of what others may think.

When I tell people that I haven't 'done Christmas' for years, the look I get is most often one of envy. I have to tell you, the gift I give myself is time to reflect, spend time with friends and family and spend quality time with myself both evaluating this year and planning for the coming year. Quite honestly,it's a much better use of my time and energy than running out and buying a bunch of gifts for people who don't want or need anything anyway. And if I do buy a gift, I ALWAYS make it edible or drinkable. Just a thought...

Your Wealth Work for this week: Answer this question: How can I alter the holidays so that I look forward to them with joy and so that they feed, inspire and motivate me toward greatness?

You may be very surprised by how you answer!

Elisabeth Donati (aka Miss E) is CEO of Creative Wealth Intl., LLC, a company devoted to empowering individuals of all ages with the tools and information they need to be responsible for themselves and the world.

Creative Wealth International began as a nonprofit called The Money Camp (which still exists because for some reason most people need money to learn about money) but in 2009 will set out to practice what it preaches...create a business that helps its owners be financially successful while helping others do the same! We're so excited!

Elisabeth is the creator of Camp Millionaire (formerly The Money Camp) and author of the Financial Parenting Book, The Ultimate Allowance, which help parents and guardians raise children who don't just survive financially, but THRIVE financially when they leave home.

Elisabeth is best known for her expertise in teaching kids, teens and adults about money in a fun, entertaining manner. Her passions include creating the best financial literacy curriculum on the face of the planet and preparing others to teach these programs around the globe. Attendees leave her programs empowered with a new philosophy about what it takes to be financially happy and successful in life, and it's not always money.

Learn more about Elisabeth and her unique programs, products and services by visiting CreativeWealthIntl.org and UltimateAllowanceBook.com.

Creative Wealth Intl., LLC
135 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Toll-free Info and Customer Service: 800-928-1932; Fax: 805-957-0125
elisabeth@UltimateAllowanceBook.com

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