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It is very easy to be carried away during this season. This usually results in spending more than one is supposed to do. We have people all over the town presently observing what is popularly coined detty December.
From attending clubs to visiting choice places, there are many channels through which one can spend money during this period. Many people want to measure up to their peers even when they are not as rich as their peers. The competition starts from dressings, extending to the kind of party to attend or the display of wealth for public validation. When this is done without caution, it makes the person struggle financially through January.
I have seen an instance where a young man traveled to my hometown from Lagos for a Christmas celebration. He celebrated it to the fullest. He was so reckless in spending that by the time he could realize the impact, he had already spent his transportation fare that was to be used to return to Lagos. He had to sell his phone to fund his fare. This is a typical example of not being in charge of one's financial plans in the name of celebration.
To avoid this kind of experience, I make use of a few number of strategies. If I don't travel home during this period, I don't really see any difference between the Christmas period and any other period of the year. This is because all I do during Christmas is visit my colleagues and friends that are Christians. Mine is to pay you a visit and have a good time eating whatever you offer. During Muslim celebrations popularly called Sallah, I would be hosting visitors and spending for the season. However, if I travel to my hometown during Christmas, it becomes necessary for me to join my extended family to partake in the celebration. The population of my family is evenly shared between the two dominant religions. As a result, we join hands to celebrate every festivity in the two faiths.
In any case, I make sure I caution myself in spending. The first strategy that I apply is to plan out my finances and execute my plans without compromise. I draw my budget diligently, mapping out the cost of wares, food, and any fun activity that requires money. I see myself as a unique being who has a unique goal to achieve. For this reason, I don't compare myself with any other person to the point of competing with the person in any way. If you put on a designer and I wear a locally made fabric, I don't feel inferior in any way. This has saved me the energy of forcing myself to buy whatever is beyond my pocket just because my friend has it. My guiding statement is that if you don't earn like them, don't spend like them.
The other thing is that if I go out to attend a function like a wedding during this period, I make sure I have whatever amount of money I am ready to part ways with that day in my pocket. Even if you appoint me the chairman of the occasion, once I exhaust the money, I am taking my leave. I always remember Newton's third law of motion that states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Whether immediately or later, willingly or unwillingly, I will have to account for every penny that I spent.
I hate to be financially stranded, and I do everything possible to guide my little resources so that January does not become an endless month for me after observing a detty December.
