How much money do you spend on gifts each year?

This is a question I ask each of my clients. Nearly every time they underestimate, by as much as 50%!

Try it out. Take a guess at how much you spend on gifts. Got a figure in mind?

Now grab a calculator. Do you normally spend $20, $50 [...]

I’ve discovered that even ‘pretend’ money on Farmville is easy for me to spend. There never seems to be much in my virtual bank account because I’m always planting new crops or buying additional equipment.

The frustrating thing is waiting for my crops to mature, so that I can harvest them and earn more coins. I [...]

Spending money does not come easily to me, even when it’s virtual cash on Farmville.

When faced with the choice between watching my farm’s bank balance grow and forking out to plough my plot and plant another crop, I felt torn between the two choices. Would my decision be worth it in the long run?

I need [...]

I really like this time of year. Christmas comes as no surprise, so it’s easy to plan for.

I’ve been setting money aside for the extra spending during November and December. I won’t have to stress over maxed-out credit cards in the new year and I’ll even have some money spare to take advantage of the [...]

Ah yes… Christmas. The time of trying your best to please everyone and not really succeeding.

I’m always torn between buying the things my friends and family will really like and actually spending what I can afford. But then if I spend less than everyone else, what will they think of me?

My hot tip for this [...]

Christmas rocks! I just love spending time in the mall, browsing the displays, trying to decide what to buy everyone.

It’s true I do tend to spend a bit much overall, but seeing the smile when I give the gift makes it all worthwhile. I’ll worry about the bank balance in the new year…

My hot tip [...]

Wow! Just six weeks to Christmas…

This time of year can be frustrating. I’ve worked hard since last December to build up my bank account and now I’m expected to spend great chunks of it on other people!

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy giving gifts. It’s just the whole ‘expectation’ of who should receive presents and [...]

I admit there are times when I’m smitten by a new product, or see something in a store I ‘must’ have. As a splurger, I more often than not succumb to the desire and drag out my wallet (or credit card) and make the purchase.

Leo Babauta over at