Just in case you haven’t darkened the doors of the mall, patronized a retail store, turned on the radio, or browsed your inbox as of late, let me gently bring you up to speed- it’s nearly that time of year when everyone on Earth wants your hard earned money!
Even as a blogger, who admittedly make a partial living off of affiliate deals and sponsored posts, I still feel the stress of simply uttering the phrase, holiday. I mean just in case, others may not know, posting deals for others online can be stressful too!
My personal remedy? This month I’m giving myself the permission and grace to take a financial break by way of a No-Spend November.
While many folks are already planning their entry and exit plan strategies for Black Friday shopping chaos, I have decided to take a break from the traditional madness that November entails and take an intentional spending break.
And I feel I may not be alone. For most, the holiday season can be a killer for most people’s budgets. However, November is also the month that many people celebrate a holiday centered around appreciating what you already have. That makes November perfect for a spending freeze.
Why a holiday? Holiday season’s in years past have been a killer for most people’s budgets, mine included. Even years where I have been very careful with our family holiday budget things have always seemed to go awry. And where does the madness generally begin, you may ask? You guessed it, November.
In my opinion, from overspending on Black Friday, to having to purchase the biggest gobbler of them all, far too much money is spent in November. November spending starts the spiraling of conspicuous consumption that leads many people to tons and tons of crazy, unnecessary credit card bills come the new year.
Luckily, there is a saving grace to this narrative. While November can be one of the most expensive months of the year, it is also the month that many people celebrate a holiday centered around appreciating what you already have. A time for gratitude. A period of rest and reflection. A season where minimal living is frankly, en vogue. Which is what makes November perfect for a spending freeze.
This No-Spend November, like with any personal budget challenge, is super simple in that you can design the rules for yourself, deciding what you want to accomplish during your personal spending hiatus. Want to wait until December to start shopping for gifts? That’s great. Maybe you want to simply ban all impulse Amazon purchases for the next few weeks in preparation for Cyber Monday. That’s totally doable too! Generally, any spending freeze will give you time to take to pen and paper and drastically narrow down which sales and “deals” will be truly worth your time, energy, and income.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with spending money during this time of the year. I am in no way trying to guilt others into shying away from purchasing awesome things for their friends and family. I am however suggesting that if you want to proactively protect your holiday budget at a time when it’s most vulnerable, scheduling a period of downtime while you create holiday spending ground rules for what you’ll actually be spending is key.
Each day in November I will be posting ways to fine tune your holiday budgets, create affordable DIY projects, simple, natural spa products you can make at home, free date night ideas, ways to have a more minimal holiday at this season, and ways to better cultivate an attitude of gratitude at home. I’ll also be posting to my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter feeds with additional tips, recipes, and resources as well, and if you are following along, I’d love for you to use the hashtag #nospendnovember16 so I see your posts and help encourage you on this month as well!
So whether you are seeing this post on November 1st or later in the month, please note you can create a spending freeze at any time. It’s Never Too Late to Participate in “No Spend November.”
There’s always time to save a few extra dollars!
Here’s to November,
