Did you know that June 25th is Leon Day in the U.S.? Leon Day (Leon is Noel spelled backward), is the halfway mark to Christmas. That means you now have six months to prepare, financially, mentally, and spiritually, for the main event.

We are committed to helping you stay on track to meet your financial goals. With that in mind, our mission is to help you prepare, now, so that Christmas doesn’t take a bite out of all your hard-earned financial progress during the rest of the year. These tips should help.

Start Saving Now

Even if you already have a Christmas Club membership with your bank, it’s a good idea to remember that Christmas involves more expense than simply gift-giving. It’s never a bad idea to supplement those savings now. Plus, if you come across a perfect gift idea at an incredible price, you have the cash on hand to purchase the gift. Especially if you stash your monthly savings in an envelope or automatically transfer them into a separate savings account each month.

The SMART method is a great way to set goals for holiday savings. In order for goals to be SMART savings goals they must be:

• Specific. Be specific about your financial needs. For instance, if you’d like an additional $600 beyond your Christmas Club money, that should be your goal.
• Measurable. With only six months till Christmas, you know exactly how many checks you can expect between now and then. You need to make progress each month toward the final goal. If you are paid twice a month, then you can expect 12 paychecks between now and Christmas. You’ll need to set aside $50 from each check toward your goal.
• Achievable. You don’t want to set a goal that is too ambitious. Keep it something you can achieve and live with for the next six months. Otherwise, you’ll blow it all about month three and go on a giant spending spree. It defeats the purpose.
• Results-Driven. If you have a specific goal in mind, this is even easier. You can focus on the results and stay motivated along the way.
• Time-Sensitive. Finally, you need a deadline. December 25th is the big day. That’s your deadline for saving your additional Christmas money.

While saving additional money to help reach your holiday spending goals is certainly wise, there are other ways you can make more of your money for the holidays as well.

Buy and Store Gifts Throughout the Year

For some reason, many people put off the gift buying process until it’s crunch time. That leaves you making questionable financial choices. It’s true that there are a lot of great sales around the holidays. However, there are also amazing sales at other times of the year when you may even be able to find better bargains. Keep an eye out for perfect gifts throughout the year, and it won’t be quite the same strain during the holidays.

Stick to Your Budget

One of the most important things to remember is that you should not derail your budget to spend on holidays. In fact, you may wish to look for ways to trim a little additional fat from the budget so you can stay on track for paying your bills and avoid increasing your debt in the process.

Try this easy tip... Stay on track by TRACKING your holiday budget and purchases. Setup a spreadsheet or notebook (whichever is your preference) and begin with your allotted budget. As you purchase items throughout the year, list them out with what you spent and who they are for. It is too easy to forget about a sweater you bought for Aunt Jane in July and that could cause you to outspend your budget as the holidays approach.

We understand that it can be tempting to overspend and go off-course as you prepare for the holidays. The earlier you begin the planning process, the better job you can do sticking to your guns and paying all your bills on time.