Employee Health & Wellness: Financial Wellness During the Holidays

The fall and winter months can be full of joy and gratitude, but can also be stressful and place a strain on personal finances. Dealing with the financial pressures of holiday shopping, travel, and other seasonal related activities can impact one’s mental and physical wellness. Developing a solid and feasible personal budget plan can help to ease the financial strain sometimes experienced during the upcoming months.

Budgeting is an essential key to financial and overall wellness. Experts recommend having a firm understanding of your priorities and setting a budget specifically for holiday spending. They say that setting financial boundaries can help ensure you keep within your limits and is the best way to avoid overspending.

Once you have a budget in place, one approach that can help is to take advantage of sales that occur during this time of year. Department, grocery and online stores have deals beginning in early November; taking advantage of those discounts can help families save and stay within their budgets.

For those who host family gatherings or large dinners, organizing a pot-luck style meal may be something to consider. Having each guest sign up to cook and bring a dish to contribute to the meal is also a cost-efficient way to enjoy delicious meals with family and friends. Whatever you do, it can help reduce stress to keep a focus on the message of joy and gratitude as you navigate your financial well-being.