December 16, 2019
Pricey gifts not needed for Christmas cheer
It’s not too late to take the pressure out of Christmas – and that means a focus on whanau, not on what to give them.
That’s the word from the Financial Responsibility Commission, which has looked at what people like and don’t like about the festive season.
Action commissioner Peter Cordtz says the top three on Santa’s bad list are money woes – commercialism, materialism and the pressure of shopping.
On the nice side are time with whānau, the summer weather, and time off work – and receiving gifts is well down the list.
In fact 40 percent of people say they are set gift spending limits within the whānau.
"Which goes to the key strategy for managing some of that anxiety and that's talking to the whānau not just about what your expectations are for Christmas but for the coming year. New Years is too late for resolutions. Talking about what you want to achieve as a whānau in 2020, that should start now and you shouldn't find yourself still paying for Christmas whey you are into the back to school grind," Mr Cordtz says.
Copyright © 2019, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com