How Not to Go Crazy with Your Wallet This Christmas

Until the global financial crisis hit the world back in 2008, we  were a greedy consumer driver society. When I say “we” I am  referring to the Western world, we have food, shelter and warmth but  we started buying lots of other stuff we simply did not need: the  latest gadgets, electronic toys, upgrading to the latest mobile  phone, buying ebook readers when for so many centuries “reading a  book” was enough!

Of course, ebook readers have their place but we really bought a lot  of stuff we did not need and often, when we didn’t have the money to  afford these items in the first place.

We bought goods we did not need with money we did not have.

And it is no wonder we are in such a mess.

Three years later and we are still in the middle of our recession  with signs that it might be getting worse instead of leveling out.

We approach 2012 in a bad shape financially.

And the most dangerous time of the year, the last few months – is  here.

We’ll be having Halloween in almost four weeks time.
Followed by Thanksgiving a month after that.

Both of which nicely lead up to the biggest and gluttonous event of  them all: Christmas.

During this time we will eat very very well, laze around for days  and we will have opened numerous presents which our  friends/parents/sibling/family members will have bought with money  they might or might not have had.

Christmas is A Dangerous Time For Your Finances

The retailers and media know only too well how to pull at our purse  strings and to make us buy items we don’t need.

Well it is Christmas after all, how can you not let little Tommy  have his Cars 2 Mater Pillow Pet?

How can you not buy Suzy her Anchor: My Pillow Pets toy or Monster High Frankie Stein doll?

Actually, your children will have been bombarded with images of the  latest, hottest must-have toys on the market. All aimed at children  who will pester their parents endlessly to buy them.