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You know the drill…as soon as you can finish your Thanksgiving Day festivities you rush to the department stores for big, bold, better-than-ever Black Friday holiday sales! Stand in line for what seems like an eternity and then shop till you drop wearing out the magnetic strip on your credit card from overuse. You get all the stuff home while being dead tired. You then crash and wake up the next morning with a shopping hangover wondering how you could have spent so much money during Black Friday. This is exactly what retailers want you to do but if you’re smart you’ll have other plans.
There certainly is a lot of hoopla and media attention about Black Friday complete with live news reports from very long lines and people camping out at retail outlets. And these sales have moved earlier and earlier to overlap with Thanksgiving Day. Certainly there may be some people who don’t mind waiting in long lines in cold weather, struggling with big crowds, dealing with parking frustrations, and frantically buying stuff but before you run off to Black Friday sales think about how you might want to spend your Thanksgiving and post-Thanksgiving holiday time.
If you want to avoid getting a Black Friday shopping hangover consider the following 3 strategies.
1. Just say no!
You can avoid the hangover if you don’t participate in the whole Black Friday thing. Rather than shopping, use the day off to get some exercise, enjoy friends and family, volunteer at a soup kitchen or food pantry, or do something that might be more meaningful, interesting, and uplifting. While retailers want you to believe that you really need to participate in the Black Friday madness you likely know that you really don’t and you can find other ways to get your shopping done in a more civilized and still low cost manner.
2. Expands your view of gifts.
Think beyond material objects as holiday gifts. Think of special experiences of time and talent that could be a wonderful gift to others. For example, if you are pretty tech savvy (read: a young person!) you might offer your skills to someone (read: older person!) who is not very tech savvy to help them out with computer, smartphone, or other tech needs. For example, my son is going to take his grandmother out to help her get her first smartphone this holiday season as well as consult with her about computer related questions. Other experiences (e.g., hikes, visits, helping with hard to do tasks) could make great gifts without spending a dime to do so.
3. Structure your shopping experience carefully (with a list)!
If you decide that you do want to participate in Black Friday shopping, you might make it a highly structured event by limiting the number of hours you spend, have a clear list of what you will purchase, and have an exit strategy to be sure you get out of the experience before you get overtired or before you spend too much. Being obsessive and rigid about what you are willing and not willing to do in terms of time, money, and hassles may help you avoid the Black Friday hangover.
So, what do you think? What is your Black Friday game plan?
Check out my website at www.scu.edu/tplante and follow me on Twitter @ThomasPlante
Copyright 2014 Thomas G. Plante, PhD, ABPP
