May the spending season commence!
Right after Thanksgiving (in the U.S.), the shopping season really begins. First, there's Black Friday, which is the day after Thanksgiving. #SmallBusinessSaturday is the very next day!
I love #SmallBusinessSaturday. Not just because I own a small business. Instead, I believe in spending my money on what I value...and one of my values is loyalty, trust, and true community, friendships & relationships. Yes, it's all one value because for me, those values are inter-connected. So, by buying from a local store or working with a small business over and over again, I'm really aligning with my values of loyalty, trust, community & relationships. Sometimes, it may even be friendship! I actually love working with my friends and family (my cousin designed my logo!).
As for Black Friday, I'm already seeing ads! What about you?
While it may be tempting to spend a lot of money on all of the amazing deals you see (a 50 inch TV for $199! OMG!), you'll feel sooo much better about yourself if you only spend on what you truly value.
Let me relate this to an old TV show. Remember that episode of Sex and the City where Carrie Bradshaw finds out her building is going co-op and she either needs to find the money to buy her apartment or she's out? To me, spending on what you value is really the lesson of this episode.
Over brunch, Carrie complains to Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda about her predicament and laments that no one in New York City owns! Much to her shock, her friends all do own their homes. She's the only one, and she goes home...where she sees where her money has gone -- towards Christian Louboutins, Manolos, and just a closet filled with designer clothes, shoes and handbags. Adding up what she spent, she could've owned her entire apartment a long time ago.
And this is what I mean by knowing your value and spending towards it. If your values are being stylish, fashionable, trendy, and looking good...then yes, buying clothes, shoes and handbags would work for you. However, if you value a place you can call home, somewhere you feel comfy and rooted, where you can put your own designer touches to it, then it's important to make a choice that aligns with those values, so you can create what gives you the bigger life! It makes those pesky spending regrets disappear!
But first, it's important to even know your Core Values. Once you've figured them out, then see if what you want to buy aligns with your values.
No cheating! Don't try to force it to align if you know it really doesn't.
Finally, I believe in keeping money in balance, like anything in your life. Spending on what you truly value shows the Universe that you know exactly what you want to do with your money, so the Universe will reward you with more.
When we're only in savings mode and hold onto our money too tightly, we are giving a message of...please don't give me anymore money...I don't know what to do with what I already have. If there's a big goal like a house you want to save for, then it's important to really feel into your WHY, and it will make saving up for it that much easier and fun!
So, as we go into this spending season, go ahead and spend on what aligns with your values, and you will see that for maybe the first time, that it actually feels good, while you're spending and even, after you get your credit card statement.
With so much gratitude (Below is the logo I paid my cousin to design for me.)
OMT (One more thing)...Subscribe and comment below if you want to get on the waiting list for a Make More Money in 2020 5-Day Challenge (FYI...the title of this challenge may change but the concept stays the same)! Each day, I'm going to give you both practical and spiritual tools to transform the way you think, feel, and act towards money. You're going to come out of the challenge with more money, more ways to make money, feeling more in control of your finances, worry less about money and other ways to maximize your wealth and abundance! I'd love for you to join me and tell your friends! I may have a special surprise for those who bring in the most friends, but more importantly, with money, sometimes having an accountability partner makes it even easier to achieve your goals, whether it's paying off debts, getting a raise, or booking more jobs!