Why would we want to do this? One reason is to increase
shopping control. The second reason is to decrease holiday debt and the
negative financial struggles faced afterward.
For many, holiday shopping has begun and the financially
endowed have already finished. While the
majority are anxiously awaiting for Black Friday. The marathon of retail racing
to get the best deals for their budgets. This American retail experience has
customers competing while shopping and impulsively buying to get the best deals
of the holidays. How does this produce responsible, mature, and logical
financial control?
Give a gambler a
dollar. They will spend their dollar and want yours. Give an alcoholic a drink. They
will drink theirs and wants yours. Give a toddler some candy and they will want
your candy too.
Emotionally impulsive
and competitive behaviors do not belong in the retail arena together. There
is nothing positive that will ever come from these high stressed and high
traffic atmospheres of kindred types who do not manage money wisely nor maturely and safely shop.
It there anything
positive that can come from shopping in a marathon as Black Friday has become?
How many injuries will occur? How many preventable accidents or deaths occur?
How many will enjoy the highs of this fast shopping day and suffer with regret when
viewing credit card statements or will hate the deep lows produced by the fast highs?
The psychology of
money is a valid awareness topic. Why? Our emotions can burn through our money
like gasoline used as an accelerator in a fire. It does feel good when shopping
without making a conscience decision financially. But our consequence of money
details our emotional state, psychological state, and physical ability to
control money. Our emotions reveal the lack of self-control we honestly have.
We like to feel the intense warmth of happiness produced by
a good time. We enjoy seeing the happiness in the eyes we gift too,
even if; we cannot afford it. We enjoy giving happy reactions. We enjoy
receiving happiness. But how much of the financial stress is good for receiver
or giver, in the end results? What does competitive holiday spending and impulsive
gift giving really produce in consequence?
Our emotions tell
us that we want the best of material possessions for self and to gift to
others. We want to
produce happiness and contentment that comes from owning
nice things. However, rationally and logically; we tend to frown on the mature and responsible things that we need
to do with our money that limits our spending abilities. In reality, our emotional relationship with money should be
reversed. To teach and give emotional fulfillment that is not obtainable
through careless acts of spending money.
It is the receiver who must decide to spend rationally
and logically by giving gifts they can afford. It is the giver who must have
empathy and forgiveness to a logical and rational financial spender who does not
gift to them what they cannot afford.
A giver must teach values of money through example. A
receiver must give without feeling bad for not affording more.
This is why
money is complex. Our psychological and emotional affiliation with money will
affect us personally and this does affect others.
Valid and reality
based emotional values are truths of our money. This real gifts will not monetary tainted or discarded as last year’s
gifts. These are the truest of building blocks of enjoying and sharing the
holidays. This is what we need to learn,achieve, and give in the holidays.
- Seeking immediate gratification.
- Justifying purchase with “I deserve it!”
- Spending because of financial woes.
- Shopping to decompress from stress.
- Competing with family, friends, or co-workers.
- Buying and returning more items than you keep.
Money US News gives us a hard dose of awareness of
emotional shopping. Perhaps, holiday shopping is as much for our pleasure, as
it is about giving anything to anyone else. Consider the facts. Is the holiday
shopping experience about you?
Will this holiday shopping experience create a positive
consequence or a negative consequence? Only each can decide.
The five senses in
our human bodies react differently in each of us.
Some can see with their eyes and never lust in their
heart nor become depressed because they cannot have it. Some will see with
their eyes and resort to crime to fulfill what their heart wants.
Some can smell with their nose and the aroma is pleasant
for some or produce nausea in others.
Ears can hear the same song. One will laugh.
One will cry.
Our emotions react differently by the stimuli around us. Our
emotions are influenced by others around us.
For some, being with others is a blessing and for others,
it is a saddening or traumatic experience. The human touch can make us cringe
at what we physically feel or it can propel us to enjoy the material items we
touch.
Our senses do play
a key role in how we get caught up in the emotional and psychological elements
of the holiday season. These things contribute to how we shop and how we spend
our money.
How many are still
paying for items purchased from last year’s holiday season? How many will be in
debt from this holiday season? When does the debt end? When will we seek to
give and teach gifts that are greater than the value of a dollar or a penny?
Emotions change
every second. Material items we value this year will not hold the same
emotional value next year. It takes analyzing, problem solving, and being a
rational active person to stay in control of holiday spending. To increase
our holiday budgets and control our finances is to look for ways to spend
wisely and maturely. To give gifts that are not of the latest trends will
always be the hardest obstacle to overcome in holiday spending by decreasing temporary
temptations to increase permanent positive results. Create and give gifts that
will hold value this holiday season and provide purpose for many more years to
come.
We seek to gift
from a sale ad. When in reality, most want more than money cannot buy. Try
giving more emotional heart of the holidays by spending less money. Focus on
being in financial control to give from the heart. Lead the responsible example of
financial budget control. These gifts will last a lifetime.
Temporary gifts never will.
