THE DOLLAR STRETCHER

"Living Better...For Less"

November 22, 1999
Volume 4, Number 47

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In this issue:

Introduction

Christmas Gift Challenge
by Gary Foreman

Easing E-Mail
by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

Party Planning on a Budget
by Patty Sachs

Tips, Quips, Quotes & Questions

New on The Website This Week

Hello to all my Frugal Friends!

I'd like to wish all of our friends in the U.S. a Happy Thanksgiving. It's one of my favorite holidays. Not only because of the wonderful food, but because it reminds me of the many blessings that fill my life. And just thinking about them makes me happy. I understand that it's hard for many of you. You've lost a loved one or bills press in on you. There's no denying that life can be hard. But even in the darkest time just about everyone has something to be thankful for. And by being thankful for that one good thing in your life, you'll find that the mountain of problems just might be a little smaller than you thought. You just might be able to conquer that hill. So don't give up. Keep trying to find answers and people that can help. Each week we hear from people who have started to win the battle. You, too, can be one of them!

All the Best!
Gary

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"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas..." You can tell because everywhere you go someone is trying to sell you something! Stores began decorating weeks ago and the TV commercials are starting to have that Christmas flavor, too. So what's a person to do? Well, you could go 'bah humbug' and hide until January or you could try taking the "Christmas Gift Challenge". What's that? It's a challenge to see if you can spend less than you did last year.

We'll begin with a little motivation. The National Retail Federation (read "the store owners") expect each consumer to spend an average of $849 on 24 presents this year. That's about a 6% increase from last year and could total as much as $185 Billion. Seventy nine percent of consumers expect to spend the same or more than they did last year. Only 21% expect to spend less.

And although people think that they'll have the extra credit card bills paid off by the end of February, it actually takes them about six months according to the American Bankers Association.

OK, now that we've got your attention let's see what we can do to help create a happy, yet realistic, Christmas and Chanukah. The first thing to recognize is that there's more to holiday spending than presents. There's decorations, clothes, parties and travel. Oh, and don't forget about cards, shipping costs for presents and phone calls.

Your first step is to figure out how much you spent last year. Go back and look at credit card bills and your check register to get the answer. Once you've found your credit card bills and check register it shouldn't take you more than 30 minutes to total up the expenses

Next, you'll want to put together a plan that will help control this year's spending. Begin by listing the items that aren't related to gifts. Everyone will have different priorities. Some folks spend a lot on holiday phone calls. Others throw big parties. Take a look at where your big expenses are and think creatively about cost reductions. Perhaps this year when people ask what they can bring to your party you suggest an item of food or drink instead of telling them 'nothing'. Try to keep yourself from being limited by what you did in the past. Just because you always do things a certain way doesn't mean that you can't try something new this year.

Once that's complete we'll move on to gifts. Begin by recognizing that you shouldn't spend $800 without a plan. Buying gifts on impulse is foolish. And you're more likely to by gifts that aren't appreciated by the person receiving them.

Start by imitating Santa Claus. Make a list of everyone you'll be buying a gift for. Include that uncle that you'd like to forget, the office grab bag and even that gift that you keep under the tree just in case someone unexpected shows up and you don't have a present for them.

Then consider how much you think you can afford to spend on each person. Write it down next to their name. Total that amount. How does it compare to what you can afford? If it's too much you'll need to reduce some entries. That's the hard part. But it's easier to make a decision now. Once you've overspent on Aunt Edna it's going to be very hard to shortchange your sweetheart.

Once you have your spending targets in place it's time to get out the catalogues and do some window shopping. Consider everyone on the list and try to think of a couple of gifts that would fit within your spending target. When you come up with a good idea put it on the list. You might want to return to the list more than once over a few days.

Don't forget homemade or personal gifts. And craft skills are often not required. For instance a gift of babysitting coupons for a young mother would certainly be welcome and wouldn't cost you anything but a little time. Recipe collections and framed reprints of old family photos can be nice.

When the list is complete then it's time to start shopping. Just having a complete list should save you some time. A quick glance can tell you whether there's another gift that you might get while you're in a particular store.

And by comparing your actual purchases to your plan you'll avoid a surprise come January. And if smart shopping means that you spent less than you planned you know that you can go over on another gift without blowing the plan.

No matter what you're buying there are a number of things that you can do to reduce costs. The first thing is don't wait until the last minute. When you wait until the end you'll be forced to buy something, anything, no matter what the cost. By starting early you'll have the luxury of doing some price comparisons between stores.

Avoid using store credit cards. They have the highest interest rates. Even if you'll be paying the bills off by February you might as keep your interest expenses down. If you're still carrying a balance this summer it's vital.

If you have access to the internet you'll want to do some comparison shopping online. Even if you don't purchase anything that way it will give you a good idea of what reasonable prices are.

Finally, when you've bought the last gift on your list quit shopping! "Just a little something extra" can quickly ruin a your plan.

There you have it. An organized approach to this year's holiday spending that won't leave you with a credit card hangover in January. Now it's your choice. Are you up to the challenge?

Easing E-Mail
by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

It's interesting. Technology is often heralded as a servant for us yet frequently we become a servant to it. E-mail was trumpeted as the new communications tool that would surely put first class "snail mail" out of business. Last year, the U. S. Post Office delivered more pieces of first class mail than ever and e-mails exceeded the volume of first class mailings. We have created another layer of communicating with one another and an additional responsibility to monitor and manage.

E-mail is a useful tool but many feel controlled by this new vehicle. The average businessperson is getting around 80 e-mails per day and many feel that about 80% of the messages in their "In Box" are of little or no value.

So, as always, rising to the occasion, I have four suggestions to help you to become better at "Easing E-mail".

Get off the lists. The best way to deal with a problem is to never have it. If you are receiving a lot of unwanted e-mails, ask to be removed from the various lists. This would include your inclusion in unwanted "cc" lists or unappreciated solicitations from those promising "unlimited wealth without risk or effort".

"Unlisted address". Just like getting an "unlisted" telephone number that you share only with those whom you want to give direct access, you might want to get a separate e-mail address that you use only for the important communications you wish to receive.

Check it once or twice per day. Many I speak with are becoming chained to their email server, monitoring incoming email on a continuous basis. Maybe this is because e-mail creates its own sense of urgency, but most of the communications are not all that urgent. I let my "incoming" batch up and I respond to them a couple of times per day.

Deal with it. Like handling paper, you don't want to get into the "shuffling blues" where you read e-mail, postpone action, save it, re-read it later, and allow things to slip through the cracks. As you open each e-mail do one of the following: If it requires a quick response, (it will only take a minute or two), respond to it and delete it.

If it requires a response but is not the best use of your time, try to think of a way of delegating it. There's a lot of difference between "I do it" and "It gets done".

If it is going to take any serious amount of time to respond beyond a minute or two), schedule it for action in your Day Planner and then download the message, save it, or print it out for future action.

I personally receive approximately 250 e-mails per day and by practicing the suggestions above, I can handle that volume in about an hour, taking advantage of this fantastic tool but not being controlled by it to the distraction of more important tasks in my day.

Dr. Donald E. Wetmore is a time management professional and speaker. If you'd like to read more on this subject you can get a copy of his article "The Big Hole in Your Day" by sending an email to ctsem@msn.com with "hole" as the subject

If you'd like to receive free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal productivity and get more out of every day? just go to: www.topica.com/lists/timemanagement and select "subscribe".

We are entering one of the biggest, of not the biggest party season of our lifetimes...going into the Year 2000. Parties of all sizes and description will be planned. The budget will be the most vital part of the plan.

The challenge with budgets is to distribute your precious dollars in ways that will create the most meaningful and lasting impact upon your guests. Start by making a list of all the items that you would like to have for your event and make an estimated guess (after a research call or two) of the major costs involved.

Here is where your brains, creativity, contacts, persuasive powers and talents can pay off. If you can save in one place and use it in another, you will most likely end up having everything on your wish list... and then some.

Basic money saving ideas: