Emotions: One Famous Budget Buster

We are now in the holiday season and of merry gift giving. It’s called Christmas. Here in the Philippines, we take this season seriously since we are a Christian nation, in fact the only Christian nation in the Far East.

So what has this season got to do with our money and with our budget? Everything. Let me explain.

As I write this article, we’re now about 20 days before Christmas. If you are observant, you’ll here Christmas carols being played on the radio, TV and especially in the Malls almost every hour if not minutes. Newspapers are full of ads about Christmas gifts and they proliferate in the all media too. I know that we need to celebrate the love of God. This love is expressed by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to save mankind from sin. This is the essence of Christmas, Jesus being born as a man in a manger. But, we all know that this is also the season for merry making, thus we call it Merry Christmas.

For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16)

This is where emotions come in. Advertisers, manufacturers, store and mall owners know this well. They hype this to the max. Advertising appeals to our joy, expectations and even fears hoping to stir us emotionally so we buy their products or services being peddled. This is the power of emotions.

Homeworld's ad: very enticing!

My wife and went to the hospital this morning to see her doctor and for me to have my laboratory test. While waiting for our names to be called, I picked up the newspaper and happen to read Francis Kong’s column called Business Matters. In his article, entitled: What is a business plan, he said this: “Most people make emotional decisions and come up with the weirdest reasons to justify those. Take shopping for instance. Most equate shopping with an experience, which deals more with the emotional side of things rather than the rational. And watch how people mob stores just because they’re selling stuff at 70 percent off. And sometimes, even when you know your budget is limited, or that you don’t have the resources to make that expensive purchase, you go ahead and make it anyway. These instances have little, if any, to do with logic. But they have everything to do with emotions.” I like what he said. Emotions are very important, but I need to conquer and master it. I’ve learned my lesson last year.

Watch your emotions

This Christmas season, my wife and I have made a decision to control and master our emotions so that this will not affect our budget and end in debt. Yes, it is Christmas. We will buy gifts but not to the extent of going beyond our means. Be safe, be in control of your emotion and enter 2012 a debt-free person.

Merry Christmas!

To your debt-free life,

Jimmy

Photo credits:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25509772@N00/5248229695

http://www.smdeptstore.com/smdept/?p=1524

http://farm3.http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4070/4260460351_be16ebb713.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28705377@N04/4260460351/sizes/m/in/photostream/