Kia: Hey, it's Kia and welcome to A Little Bit Richer's very
Kia: own Christmas special. I know, I know it's still November
Kia: and I'm mentioning the C word, but part of the
Kia: secret to a cost- effective Christmas or Hanukkah or just
Kia: December in general is starting to plan early. It can
Kia: be the most expensive month of the year. So how
Kia: do we have a great December while still getting a
Kia: little bit richer? With me to unpack it all is
Kia: Megan Micklewright. Megan was recently named Financial Influencer of the
Kia: Year 2023, and is the founder of The Savvy Spender,
Kia: a platform dedicated to financial positivity. Megan, traditionally there's been
Kia: a lot of pressure to spend at this time of
Kia: the year, but we are starting to see people approach
Kia: this differently. How's that?
Megan Micklewright: I think a lot of people are approaching it differently,
Megan Micklewright: especially with the cost of living now, being more open
Megan Micklewright: with their boundaries, setting limits, thinking outside the box, getting
Megan Micklewright: creative with presents, making things homemade, doing more Secret Santa.
Megan Micklewright: Instead of buying everybody a gift in the family, they're
Megan Micklewright: passing it forward to charities instead. I was recently just
Megan Micklewright: having, well, say recently, earlier, about an hour ago having
Megan Micklewright: a conversation with someone about how my partner's family is
Megan Micklewright: so big that they don't end up doing presents because
Megan Micklewright: it will cost them an absolute fortune. There's about 30, 40
Megan Micklewright: of them and instead they just do a Secret Santa.
Megan Micklewright: So instead of one person buying 39 presents, it's one
Megan Micklewright: person buying one present and it's just so much easier
Megan Micklewright: on the pocket, isn't it, getting creative with the way
Megan Micklewright: you're doing presents instead of just that generic buy- in
Megan Micklewright: for everybody?
Kia: Absolutely. I think, especially with me and my friends, I
Kia: think for the past five years we do our own
Kia: separate Christmas celebrations, but we also do Secret Santa because
Kia: I think when we were younger we used to think, "
Kia: Okay, got to buy this person, that person." That list just gets longer and longer.
Megan Micklewright: The list goes on.
Kia: And the price just keeps increasing. But now we decide, right, we're
Kia: going to do the Secret Santa and you get whoever you get
Kia: and we have a budget, which is very key because
Kia: you never know who's earning what. So we just all
Kia: agree a budget and we all stick to that budget and I think it makes things
Kia: a lot easier and that way you're almost forced to
Kia: think more about the gift that you're giving. Especially we've
Kia: done it where it's only £ 10 pounds is the budget.
Kia: So now I'm thinking about the person I've got, what
Kia: would they love that I can buy for them that is
Kia: within budget or I can make? My friend made me
Kia: a lovely notebook that I still use to this day.
Kia: So I think it really does get you thinking whilst
Kia: also not breaking the bank, which is really important. So
Kia: I want to ask you then, Megan, do you have
Kia: any advice for those who are having a difficult conversations
Kia: with friends and family and if those people may have
Kia: different approaches to the holiday season?
Megan Micklewright: I think that a conversation doesn't have to be difficult unless
Megan Micklewright: you make it difficult. If you go in and feel
Megan Micklewright: awkward about it, it's automatically going to be awkward. Tell people, "
Megan Micklewright: I've only got this much to spend," or, " I don't
Megan Micklewright: want to spend a lot this Christmas, I've got other
Megan Micklewright: priorities." At the end of the day, nobody can tell
Megan Micklewright: you what your priorities should or shouldn't be. So being
Megan Micklewright: clear about it, make sure everyone is on the same
Megan Micklewright: page and everyone can respect each other's decisions really. I
Megan Micklewright: was speaking to somebody the other day about Christmas and
Megan Micklewright: just saying that even with family members that are very
Megan Micklewright: traditional in setting their ways, this is how we do
Megan Micklewright: things, it's good to open their mind up to new
Megan Micklewright: ways and it's not about saying this is the way
Megan Micklewright: it's done and that's the way we're doing it this
Megan Micklewright: year. Have a discussion, what do you want to do?
Megan Micklewright: What do I want to do? And come into compromises
Megan Micklewright: and that way you're all happy.
Kia: I love that. I think this has been a running
Kia: theme on the podcast about having conversations. I think that's
Kia: the big thing. We don't always talk about money, so
Kia: sometimes it can feel as though it's hard to tell people, "
Kia: You know what? I haven't got the money this year.
Kia: Or actually, can we change what we do this year?"
Kia: But I think, like you said, open, honest conversations and
Kia: it's not as hard as you think it is. It's just as hard as
Kia: you make it.
Megan Micklewright: Absolutely.
Kia: I love that when you said that.
Megan Micklewright: I think with the cost of living as well, the
Megan Micklewright: stigma around money conversations is slowly dying because people that
Megan Micklewright: never thought they'd be struggling are actually struggling and that's
Megan Micklewright: where the stigma's being lost because more and more people
Megan Micklewright: are talking about money, which is brilliant really because there
Megan Micklewright: should never be a stigma around it.
Kia: Exactly. I completely agree with you. Is there a way
Kia: to have the best of both worlds? So when I
Kia: say that, I mean is there a way to have
Kia: a great Christmas while still sticking to your financial goals?
Megan Micklewright: 100%, absolutely. You can always have the best of both
Megan Micklewright: worlds when it comes to spending money and Christmas. Make
Megan Micklewright: sure you've got them budgets in place and stick to
Megan Micklewright: them. Talk to yourself, write down in your notes, your
Megan Micklewright: notebook, wherever. What's important to you this Christmas? What do
Megan Micklewright: you want to tick off? What do you want to
Megan Micklewright: do? Do you really need to go out to eat once
Megan Micklewright: a week? Make sure that you're doing what you want
Megan Micklewright: to do, ticking them off and your money's going to
Megan Micklewright: the important places. That way you are having the best
Megan Micklewright: of both worlds. And you can also make sure you're
Megan Micklewright: saving money when you are doing those things. Make sure
Megan Micklewright: you're using cash back. Make sure you're budgeting for them,
Megan Micklewright: book in advance, schedule what you're doing so you can
Megan Micklewright: get the most for your money.
Kia: I love that. And I especially love when you said reviewing how
Kia: you're spending. So do you need to go out and
Kia: eat every week? Because it's something that my friends and
Kia: I have also been fully aware of because I think you
Kia: find when you go to meet people, quite often you
Kia: meet up with friends and then you're going out and
Kia: before you know it you've spent £ 40 on your bill.
Kia: Whereas if you're more aware of it because you want
Kia: to stick to your financial goals, maybe you say, " You
Kia: know what? I want to meet up with you, but
Kia: let's go for a coffee or let's go for a
Kia: walk instead." And I think that's some of the changes
Kia: that a lot of people are making. So it's like
Kia: you don't have to compromise. You can still have, like
Kia: you said, the good Christmas, but we can also still
Kia: 100% stick to our financial goals. You don't have to compromise anything.
Megan Micklewright: Definitely. And when you're going out, you don't always have to
Megan Micklewright: go to these fancy places. You can go to somewhere
Megan Micklewright: that's cheap, that's cheerful, it's good for everybody. And if
Megan Micklewright: people are drinking and you're not or they want to
Megan Micklewright: have a starter, main, dessert, just open up your separate
Megan Micklewright: tab. You don't have to split the bill. And it
Megan Micklewright: doesn't have to be an awkward conversation about splitting the
Megan Micklewright: bill. Just say, " Look, I'm not drinking today or I'm
Megan Micklewright: only having a small starter so I'm going to open
Megan Micklewright: up my own tab." It doesn't have to be a
Megan Micklewright: big thing at the end of the meal where you're like, "
Megan Micklewright: Oh, someone's getting out the calculator." That bit that everybody
Megan Micklewright: dreads. Say at the beginning of the meal, " Right, I'm
Megan Micklewright: going to open up my own tab because I'm not
Megan Micklewright: drinking tonight." It doesn't have to be an awkward conversation.
Megan Micklewright: It can be really easy, really simple, and that's the
Megan Micklewright: best way to keep it.
Kia: Yep. I'm 100% behind you on that because I'm someone
Kia: very much so sometimes we go out and I'm happy to
Kia: split. Sometimes I'm not hungry and I'll tell my friends
Kia: or whoever I'm with, " Guys, I'm just going to pay
Kia: for my one thing because I'm only getting one thing."
Kia: And I don't feel bad about having that conversation. At least
Kia: people know now, okay, that's how we're going to split
Kia: the bill. Kia's not a part of that. So whatever
Kia: I get now, I split between whoever's agreed upon it and
Kia: it makes things easier.
Megan Micklewright: I went for a meal once and I don't drink and
Megan Micklewright: everybody was ordering cocktails and it was in a really nice
Megan Micklewright: restaurant. They were like £ 12 each. And someone ordered lobster,
Megan Micklewright: which of course is very expensive. And I was thinking,
Megan Micklewright: I'm not drinking. I had a really cheap main. I am not
Megan Micklewright: splitting this bill. And I just said, " I'm going to
Megan Micklewright: open up my own tab because I've had a really
Megan Micklewright: cheap main, I'm not drinking." It was like fine. And
Megan Micklewright: I think as long as you keep it simple, don't
Megan Micklewright: beat around the bush with it. It's absolutely fine, but
Megan Micklewright: it's about the conversations you're having and the people you're around.
Megan Micklewright: You don't need to spend loads to have a good time.
Kia: Exactly. I love Christmas. It brings the spirit. You get
Kia: to be with your loved ones.
Megan Micklewright: That's it.
Kia: My favorite time of the year. Not lying. I love it.
Megan Micklewright: Get out the games, that's what I love.
Kia: Yeah. I love the games and the food.
Megan Micklewright: And the food.
Kia: All of that. I'm getting excited now. See, I'm getting
Kia: ahead of myself. Okay, so let's talk about the environment.
Kia: What is the environmental impact of all of this? How
Kia: does pulling back on consumerism help?
Megan Micklewright: It helps in so many different ways. The sustainability aspect
Megan Micklewright: of it, the amount of things that end up in
Megan Micklewright: landfill, the amount of things that end up just cluttering
Megan Micklewright: your own house without talking about the environmental impact. We
Megan Micklewright: all end up with so much stuff and we say, "
Megan Micklewright: We haven't used that," or, " Why did they buy me
Megan Micklewright: that?" I think we've all got a present where we're like, "
Megan Micklewright: What am I going to do with this?" And it's being
Megan Micklewright: more mindful and thoughtful about the things that you're buying
Megan Micklewright: people as well, like you mentioned. If you've got them
Megan Micklewright: budgets, thinking about what does that person really want? And
Megan Micklewright: if we're more mindful about it, then we end up
Megan Micklewright: buying things that are actually going to be used, which
Megan Micklewright: has an impact on our wallets, on the environment, on
Megan Micklewright: other people's clutter and decluttering. So it has major impacts
Megan Micklewright: in so many different areas.
Kia: Absolutely. I think one thing that I also do is
Kia: I ask people, " What is it that you actually want?" Because
Kia: think of how many times, I'm sure you've had it,
Kia: I definitely have had it, where you've received the gift
Kia: and you're like, " I cannot stand this. What am I
Kia: going to do with this?" The person didn't even think about
Kia: what this gift is, and now you're probably thinking about
Kia: regifting it or you never use it and it does
Kia: just kind of clutter up. But I think when you
Kia: do have that conversation with someone, I mean it's not
Kia: spoiling it. You can get people to write on a list. You
Kia: can pick from that list, so it's still got an
Kia: air of surprise to it, but then at least you're
Kia: buying something that that person's going to use or value. Let's
Kia: talk about gifting then. Does expensive always mean better or
Kia: are there other approaches that people can take when it
Kia: comes to gift giving?
Megan Micklewright: Expensive doesn't always mean better. I guess it depends what
Megan Micklewright: you're buying, but there's so many alternatives out there now.
Megan Micklewright: There's never just one of one product. There's so many
Megan Micklewright: different jewelry brands, phone brands, that sort of thing. And
Megan Micklewright: there's dupes as well out there now. You can always
Megan Micklewright: get a cheaper alternative. So expensive doesn't always mean better.
Megan Micklewright: It's different if someone's asked for a specific brand or
Megan Micklewright: something like that. But always make sure you're shopping around,
Megan Micklewright: never just take the first price you see because nine
Megan Micklewright: times out of 10 it's not the best. And making
Megan Micklewright: sure you're looking for discount codes and that sort of
Megan Micklewright: stuff, using cashback where possible because if you are making
Megan Micklewright: an expensive purchase, you can still get some money back
Megan Micklewright: that way.
Kia: I love that. Cashback, discount codes, all of those things.
Kia: So, Megan, it's Black Friday this week and that's a
Kia: time where some people may be thinking, " I'm going to
Kia: get all of my Christmas presents on that day because
Kia: so many deals coming out." So I want to ask
Kia: you, is it actually a good deal? Should people spend
Kia: their money and use Black Friday as an opportunity or
Kia: should people maybe hold back a bit?
Megan Micklewright: I don't think you should hold back, but I also
Megan Micklewright: don't think you should rely on it. You've got to
Megan Micklewright: remember that these days are put out there for people
Megan Micklewright: to spend. They're not there for people to save. They're
Megan Micklewright: there for people to spend and it is a good
Megan Micklewright: day to check deals, but purely to check deals and
Megan Micklewright: make sure you actually are getting a good deal because
Megan Micklewright: sometimes the prices are hiked up in the weeks upcoming
Megan Micklewright: so they can be pulled down on that day and
Megan Micklewright: actually everyone thinks they're getting a good deal, but it's
Megan Micklewright: not a good deal. So make sure you are shopping
Megan Micklewright: around, look and see if you are actually getting a
Megan Micklewright: good deal. And also remember it's not a saving if
Megan Micklewright: you didn't need it anyway. You're actually just spending. So
Megan Micklewright: make sure you stick to your list. Don't just get
Megan Micklewright: pulled in to all of these good deals and offers
Megan Micklewright: that you're seeing. Get rid of the triggers if you
Megan Micklewright: need to, unsubscribe from them emails, unfollow people on Instagram if you need
Megan Micklewright: to. If you're struggling for money especially and you know
Megan Micklewright: that you're going to be triggered by Black Friday, get
Megan Micklewright: rid of any triggers. You don't need to spend if
Megan Micklewright: there's something that you don't need.
Kia: I absolutely agree with you. When it comes to Black
Kia: Friday, I mean, I very rarely shop on those days
Kia: anyway. Cyber Monday, those kind of days. But when it
Kia: comes to Black Friday or the lead- up to it,
Kia: I use price trackers. So certain websites will have a
Kia: tracker, the big websites, and you can actually say, right,
Kia: I'm looking at this product and it will track the
Kia: price of it. And you can also look at historical
Kia: prices so you can see was it hiked up like
Kia: you said the week before and now it's just come
Kia: back to the original price or is there actually a
Kia: saving if I wanted to buy it? If you get
Kia: into that habit, you can definitely make sure you're getting
Kia: the best price for anything you're buying, 100%. Finally, Megan,
Kia: what three tips do you have for our listeners as
Kia: they look ahead to Christmas to help them get a
Kia: little bit richer.
Megan Micklewright: I've mentioned it so many times, but the first one
Megan Micklewright: is definitely being open and honest. Having them conversations with
Megan Micklewright: people around you. Nobody's going to know unless you tell
Megan Micklewright: them. You've got to be open and honest. The second
Megan Micklewright: one will be never take that first price you see,
Megan Micklewright: shop around, make it a habit. Get into the habit
Megan Micklewright: of looking for cashback, looking for discount codes, having a
Megan Micklewright: look on even Facebook groups and things like that. And
Megan Micklewright: the third one is get a little bit creative. Mine
Megan Micklewright: Nan, for example, she's got everything that she needs, absolutely
Megan Micklewright: everything that she needs. And I know that whatever I
Megan Micklewright: buy her, she's not going to use. So I get creative.
Megan Micklewright: I make her hampers. I buy her experiences instead. And
Megan Micklewright: that can be a lot more thoughtful for the person
Megan Micklewright: that you're buying for, but also be a bit easier
Megan Micklewright: on your pocket as well.
Kia: I love that. That is so thoughtful. Yeah, it makes you really
Kia: think about what the person would value. Megan, thank you
Kia: so much. This has been a great episode and really
Kia: gotten us into the Christmas spirit.
Megan Micklewright: I'm feeling Christmassy.
Kia: I'm feeling Christmassy. I'm ready. I'm ready for Christmas.
Megan Micklewright: I'm ready to go Christmas shopping now.
Kia: I'm ready for everything. I'm ready to look at the
Kia: food, everything.
Megan Micklewright: I'm ready for the food.
Kia: We're getting too excited. We're getting too excited.
Megan Micklewright: Let's not buy presents and let's just buy food.
Kia: Buy food. I'm with you on that, honestly. Thank you
Kia: so much.
Megan Micklewright: Thank you.
Kia: This has been a great episode. Next week I'm returning to a
Kia: topic we looked at earlier in the series, house buying.
Kia: I want to focus specifically on the cost of buying
Kia: your first home and how to save. And don't worry,
Kia: the words avocado on toast are officially banned. I promise.
Kia: But while you wait, you know the drill, hit follow
Kia: and leave a review. Happy Christmas.