A Skeptics Tips for Navigating Black Friday

Nov 21

A Skeptics Tips for Navigating Black Friday

I've never been one to join in on the whole black Friday fiasco. There are too many people and too much pressure to buy buy buy!

Even just thinking about it gives me anxiety. Having to get up early, get in line and literally run into the store to get what I want before they're sold out is not my cup of tea. Not to mention you have to preplan everything you want and what stores to hit in what order to maximize your savings. I'm sure many of you wait all year for Black Friday and boxing day, but I am not one of those people. I'm not even one to do the online shopping on those days. There's just too much going on and too much stress.

So, with Black Friday only a few days away here's a few tips on how I navigate the sales.

Tip 1: Just don’t do it.

Were you really going to buy all that crap in the first place or is black Friday just an excuse to make people spend money?

If you live in the states black Friday piggy backs Thanksgiving, a time where we should be thankful for what we have. Then hypocritically the very next day we go out and buy a ton of stuff that we probably didn’t even need in the first place. How about you remain thankful for what you do have and skip the lines and sales and enjoy time with your family.

Tip 2: If you must buy something do it before Black Friday.

Businesses are fully stocked the week leading up to Black Friday. If you've been meaning to purchase something but are having trouble finding it in stock chances are they will be stocked in preparation.

This week I actually purchased a brand-new blogging camera. The sales person was surprised I wasn’t waiting until Black Friday to get it. He checked if the camera I was purchasing was going on sale on Friday. He came back saying it's going to be $50 dollars cheaper and wanted to know if I was going to come back and get it on sale. Yes, I will save me $50 dollars, but is it seriously worth it the hassle and stress? In which I may not get it anyway? They had three in stock and no idea when they would be restocked. So, I bought the camera full price. I was going to buy it anyway why would I stress myself out and possibly not even get it in.

Tip 3: If you want to get in on those sales go online.

Save yourself the stress and anxiety and shop the sale online. Most businesses start their sales the week leading up to Black Friday. They will have discount codes and special offers all week. Then, of course, starting Friday morning, they release their bigger discounts and sales. It's much easier then elbowing your way through the clouds of people only to realize what you went for is already gone.

So that's my little rant on Black Friday. I'm not a total hater I'm just not a fan of consumerism taking over holidays and consuming peoples lives. But that's a rant for some other time.

Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends!