Holiday budget tips for you and your family

The holiday season can be tough on children and adults alike. Toy manufacturers and retail outlets start their advertising campaigns early, and kids are increasingly bombarded with dozens of advertisements for the latest and greatest toys or gadgets they “absolutely must have”. Kids then begin their own campaigns with their parents. “Everyone will have this…” or “I’ll die if I don’t have that….” or the tried and tested, “Please, please, please, please.”

While most of us will assess their children’s requests and buy wisely and appropriately, we too can fall prey to the pressures of the season. Did you know, each Canadian spends on average almost $1,200 every holiday season? That’s not a problem if we’ve budgeted for our purchases, but most of us don’t. In fact, 20 percent of Canadians say they are not sure how they will pay for the season.

So, with a little planning, we don’t have to start the New Year in debt. Here are a few tips on how to stay on budget this year.

Make a list.

Write down a list of each person, family member you want to buy gifts for. Beside each name, write the maximum amount you are willing to spend. If your kids are old enough, have them create a similar list of their friends and siblings.

If your list is too long, get in touch with your family and friends and suggest secret Santa or drawing names to give one gift per person. Another way to bring the list down is to suggest to friends and adult family members that each of you just buy for each other’s children or buying a single family gift, rather than individual, gifts.

Set a holiday budget.

Look at how much you can spend this year without having to rely on credit. Include expenses such as gift wrapping, entertaining and charitable donations.

Set expectations for your kids.

Older kids often have unrealistic expectations, communicate with them about your budget. Let them know how much you intend to spend this year and what they can expect. I usually tell my boys, I am spending $XX per person – so, create a list that fits within that budget. I like to tell them the dollar amount less than my actual spending amount, this way there will still be a few surprises.

Give homemade gifts.

This is the time of year that you can channel your inner Martha Stewart and make gifts for teachers, friends, co-workers and neighbours. Bake cookies, knit sweaters, or make them gift baskets. Your children will enjoy helping while learning that you don’t have to spend a lot of money to show your love and appreciation. Pinterest will be your best friend when it comes to DIY gifts.

Use cash whenever possible.

No, not as the gift itself but for your holiday purchases. Only use a credit card if you know you can pay it off right away.

Do not wait until the last minute!

Allow time for comparison shopping. Shop around to get the best price. Take your kids with you and make it a fun learning experience by having them keep notes on what store charges for each item.

Take the “I” out of the holiday season.

Cheesy, I know but think about it! A great way to teach your kids about social responsibility (and the true meaning of the holidays) and allow older kids to explore different causes, is to make a family donation to a charity. Ask the kids what charity they would like the family to “adopt” and why. Then have everybody give a certain amount to the cause.

Plan ahead for next year.

Reduce financial stress next year by planning now! Put a small amount into a savings account every week – even $5 a week will result in a tidy sum of about $250 come next December. Put in $25 a week away and you’ll have $1,300 by the time the holidays roll around again!

Finally, It is a good idea to shop for gifts throughout the year. This way you take advantage of great sales and avoid the holiday rush! These are just a few ways to make the holiday season less stressful and more enjoyable!

Happy Shopping and Merry Christmas!

Wake up Beauty. It’s time to Beast.

Wake up Beauty. It’s time to Beast.
I am a night owl. I have always been more productive and creative after dark. So, late nights became a natural thing for me.

These nights also came with late mornings and what felt like short days with zero time to do much of anything. Then I made the decision to start a second company, not long after that, I was burning the candle at both ends. This is when I came to the conclusion that being a night owl was no longer going to work for me.

Let me tell you that was not an easy conclusion to come too. In my mind, this meant I had to start adulting and adulting is hard. Waking up early was as appealing to me as biting into eggshells while enjoying a soft fluffy egg salad sandwich… Not cool, not cool at all.

But I did it and since I have gotten into the routine, I am happier than ever. My days are more productive, I have more energy and am eager to start my day, every day. I went from not getting out of bed before 9 am, then not even starting my day until almost noon to waking up at the crack of dawn and completing most of my to-do list before lunch.

Nothing worth doing ever comes fast or easy, so I have put together a small list of what it took to get me to this point to help all you other night owls become early birds.

Get up 15 minutes earlier. (each week)

Instead of forcing yourself to get out of bed 2 hours early right away – start in 15-minute intervals. Week one, set the alarm for 6:45 am. Week two set it for 6:30 am. Week 3, 6:15 am finally on week 4 you are finding it no problem to be up at 6:00 am. These small wins of getting up just that much earlier are motivating and within 2 months you will be up at 5 am, without even realizing it was hard in the first place!

Just get up!

The hardest part of starting your day is getting out of bed. Believe me – I get it! My favourite part of the weekends is waking up and staying in bed, chatting with hubs, planning our weekend, and on a GOOD day, I bring my coffee back to bed and just stay there for the entire morning! However; this is not something that we can do every single day. So, when your alarm goes off in the morning, just get out of bed. Do not snooze, it doesn’t help. Getting out of bed and starting your day is the only thing that will make it easier.

Wind down every night.

Whatever you do before bedtime is your body’s trigger for sleeping. This includes brushing your teeth, reading, etc. Try to keep these activities relaxing and stick to them like a routine.

For example, you could take a relaxing lavender bath then read a book for 15 minutes before bedtime. If you stick to this routine long enough, your body will soon recognize that these activities mean the day has ended and it’s time to relax. It’s important as well to do these activities in order and roughly the same time every day.

Bedtime is sleep time.

When my boys were young the rule was no toys in or on the bed – EVER. Even storytime was done on the couch, not in bed. Their bed was for sleeping – this made sure that after all the other bedtime routines we did every night, putting their head down on that pillow meant sleep time. When I implemented the same rule in my bedtime routine it made all the difference in the world.

No matter what, don’t give up and don’t give in to your brain begging for “just five more minutes.” It won’t be easy but it will be worth it. I promise. I have found it has boosted my creativity and productivity – getting projects done while the rest of the house sleeps –with no interruptions or distractions. Magic…

And once you get adjusted to your new schedule, you will be the early bird you used to snarl at in the am and never go back to being “not a morning person.”

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Wake up Beauty. It’s time to Beast.

Hostess Coaching Tips For A Successful Direct Sales Party!

If you have a direct sales or network marketing business, chances are parties are the lifeblood of your business. One of the most important aspects of to having a successful party is to work with your Hostess. Setting your Hostess up for success is just as important to your business as your sales. Effective hostess coaching is how you are able to do this.

It all starts with a plan, who knew “party planner’ was part of the job description of Entrepreneur Goddess?

Basically, when it comes to having a successful party, it will come down to a strong strategic plan, communication and truly partnering with your host or Hostess. You will be able to increase your party sales, and bookings, by working with them on several different levels. Here are a few things to remember when working with your host or Hostess.

Remember, if they have a successful party – you will have a successful party!

1. Appreciate your Hostess!

• Send your Hostess a handwritten thank you and let her know she’s appreciated. Build a solid foundation of trust and confidence by sharing that you’ll be there to guide her along the way. Include a link or email her a “save the date” graphic (easy to create in Canva) that she can easily send to her guests.

• Mail a Hostess packet with a cover letter, catalogue and order forms. Be sure to place post-it tabs in the catalogue on the Hostess program page and special products. Also, put a few extra post-it tabs in the package, so the Hostess can tab her favourite pages and products.

2. Be A Good Listener:

• Call your Hostess and set up a “Wish List, time it so you call soon after her packet arrives. Write down everything on her list and create an action plan to help her get it all. The plan should include pre-party orders and a pre-arranged booking.

• Discuss any concerns that your Hostess might have. Brainstorm ideas on how to get outside orders, create e-vite reminders for friends and family, not on Facebook, and possibly teaming up with a friend to double-host.

3. Set High Expectations:

• We’ve all heard, “Aim for the moon and you’ll fall among the stars.” So, aim high. Add a Hostess tip and tricks checklist in your hostess packet.

• Don’t settle. Challenge your Hostess to beat your highest or last party. Be sure to recognize her efforts on the event page, using fun graphics, emojis and stickers to build her confidence.

4. Create a strategy:

• If it is an online Facebook event, advise your Hostess to only invite FB friends that she knows well enough that she’d invite them to a home party. That will help keep both you and her in a spam-free zone.

• Encourage rules of engagement: Personal phone calls or send hand-written invitations to the party. Encourage social media engagement by having your Hostess comment on all posts on the event page put up by you and to post some herself. She could tag friends who shop and share her own pics of her fave products.

• Make sure your Hostess builds excitement for her own party: review your “day of party” game plan prior to the event, which should include personal reminders to everyone who is attending, a “party crashers welcome” post on her personal page and an “I’m so excited” post on the event page a few hours before party time.

5. Use your phone:

• Remember that your phone was created to be used as a… phone. Personal phone calls with your Hostess could be the most innovative risk you take and encourage her to do the same with her guests.

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