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Putting YOU First this Holiday Season
By Alan Thomas
There's something about Christmas shopping during the holidays when I watch as helpless consumers are nearly attacked by exuberant cashiers pushing their store's credit card. They seem to be unaware of how careful these poor souls have been all year to watch what they spend, how easy it is to go over budget, and how offering a "credit rebuilder" a new card is like offering a recovering chocoholic a gooey double-fudge brownie supreme.
The holidays bring about mixed feelings among my clients: joy, anxiety, fear, sadness….not any of it relating to the reason for the season. Rebuilding your credit card after bankruptcy is a difficult tightrope balance between moving forward with your life and not ruining the upward progress of your credit score.
Holidays mean gift-giving gatherings with sometimes hundreds of people, if you total them all up. Pressure rises when the office party committee asks every one to pitch in for gifts for the management. Your head starts spinning when you think about how your extended family has grown and how they will all exchange presents Christmas Eve at your house this year. And you finally feel the wind knocked out of your sails when the nice little cashier tells you that you can save up to 25% on your purchase if you apply for their wonderful store credit card.
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As someone who has recently discharged a bankruptcy and is trying to rebuild your credit, should you respond to such a sweet, seductive offer? (Twenty-five percent off my purchases, after all, would give you the extra money to buy Aunt Millie that deluxe food steamer!)
But here's what I teach as a financial counselor from Credit Is Key: though it is much easier said than done, do NOT apply for any credit cards during the holiday crunch. Every financial move should be the result of planning and preparation - not suddenly caving in to pacify the salesclerk - or Aunt Millie. If you say "yes," then the store will make an inquiry on your credit. Did you know that even a couple inquiries can actually hurt your credit? Rebuilding takes an inner strength. A strength which you have been nurturing and growing since your discharge. A strength that is given a boost by having a specific goal in mind and a planned strategy in place.
Help yourself out. Instead of falling into the "get-a-credit-card-and-reduce-your-spending" trap, try these ideas for holiday savings --- without any inquiries or damaging rejections.
Let's get back to sweet Aunt Millie. Do you really think she cares what gift you give her? Remember that your friends and family care more about you and your financial future than any gift you could bring. Aunt Millie would be impressed with any small token of affection and would much rather have just a visit from you than have you depressed or bankrupt again.
Since Christmas cards are expensive, consider sending e-mail greetings or holiday cards.
Believe it or not, even in today's techno-chango world, many people would rather have an old-fashioned, hand-made gift than an expensive gadget. Consider these hand-crafted, thoughtful options:
Frame your favorite photograph of you and the recipient, or group several snapshots in an inexpensive frame.
Instead of buying each other gifts, agree to go out to lunch or dinner together. (Which is really a gift to each other and yourself!)
An alternative to giving every member of your family something is to suggest doing a "Secret Santa" gift. That way, each person has to buy just for one other person instead of a whole family.
Celebrate the winter holidays with a holiday "spending freeze." Set a limit for gift prices and don't go over it. Agree to keep your spending at this level for the next several years…. Part of the joy is in which friend or family member can be the most creative or find the most interesting gift for under $10.00. (Talk about friendly competition! And you'll probably laugh a lot more than if everyone had given fancy, store-bought gifts!)
If you can cook, present a coupon for a delivered dinner or casserole on a certain night. Send cookies in February or a cake on a birthday. (Sometimes people need and appreciate these things more at other times of the year than they do at Christmas.)
If you're creative, call a day with your family to make presents, things like handmade stationery or notecards, hot chocolate or spiced tea mix, painted t-shirts, or inexpensive slippers embellished with buttons, ribbons, or initials, embroidered dishtowels, or create a scrapbook of family stories and quotations.
Instead of buying each other a lot of unnecessary items, buy each person one nice gift. (You'll be surprised how much those tiny little "filler" presents add to the budget!)
A family favorite, even if you aren't trying to stay within a budget, is to create a "Gift Coupon Book." In it you can entitle bearer to a free breakfast in bed, a leisurely Saturday without the kids, and even 'wildcard' coupons that let the bearer fill in the gift themselves. Make sure you know your receiver well if you intend to include the last category!
The offer to get a new credit card after bankruptcy may be appealing, but in the long-run, enjoying the holidays, your family, (especially that sweet Aunt Millie!) your friends, and knowing you stuck to your plan and maintained control over your finances is much more rewarding than a congratulatory smile on that cashier's face.
For those needing their own strategy to rebuild credit after discharging a bankruptcy or enduring a bout of bad credit, join the Credit Is Key membership website. Members enjoy access to many rebuilding resources, including a FREE e-course on strategies to quickly and effectively rebuild your damaged credit.
About the Author
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