Black Friday & Cyber Monday - bargain or binge? Plus when NOT to book a hair appointment.

Kia ora (hello in Kiwi)

I've been a bit culturally clueless lately. 

Like booking a hair appointment in a popular mall with limited parking on the 25th of November.

What the hell was I thinking? 

Black Friday.

Being a Kiwi, I miss a lot of the Thanksgiving fervor. The travel to see family (mine is 18 hours away), the thawing of the turkey (there is just my husband and me here in the states), the preparation for guests, elaborate menus, and the emotional impact. We're lucky, we often get invited to Friendsgivings, or included with other families, but if it's just the two of us at home with Wholefoods takeaways and the dog, that works too. 

Randomly, I've had people ask if we celebrate Thanksgiving in NZ.

Ah, no. That's your thing, people. We have Waitangi Day, but it's a whole different vibe. 

Anyhoo, I booked my hair appt six weeks ago (so organized) and didn't register the date. 

Bollocks. 

Bellevue Square Mall was wall-to-wall people. The last time I saw it that crowded was before COVID. I was glad for the retailers, but I won't make that mistake again. I was dodging people with the skill of an All-Black avoiding getting tackled. 

What has this got to do with you?

Aside from suggesting you plan better than I did, I wondered if Black Friday and Cyber Monday got you bargains or triggered a binge. 

I bought two things.

One was something I had planned to buy that was on sale. Yay! Thank you, Benefit Brow Bar. 

One was a total impulse triggered by an email campaign from an entrepreneur I follow. 

I feel OK about it. I have categories in my spending plan for just about everything. This came under personal development, and there was money accrued in that account to cover it. 

It was still an impulse buy, though. Fueled by coffee and optimism. 

Do Black Friday and Cyber Monday matter to you? 

Do you:

a) track down items you already have on a wish list, and buy them on sale with money you set aside 

b) get caught up in the hype and superb sales strategies, and binge

c) pay no attention to them

If you've got purchase regret, consider returning items if you can. Don't beat yourself up; what with it being close to a holiday, a few weeks away from Christmas, and so many sales campaigns, it's a tough time for impulse spending. 

If you want to talk about it, I get it. Book a time here.

Here's to conscious consumerism, and every dollar spent aligning with our values and dreams. 

Aroha, Erin

ps. my hair looks awesome.