Another January means another Blue Monday. The third Monday in January is considered “Blue Monday,” it is regarded as the most depressing day of the year. While the cold and short days are certainly contributing causes, one of the main reasons is that this is also the period when individuals start receiving their credit card bills from the holiday season. The beginning of the year brings optimism, and for many, having money and having financial stability are top priorities. However, when there is financial distress, it can dampen one’s morale.

How Did Blue Monday Come About?

There is no scientific reason why the third Monday in January is known as “Blue Monday.” It was actually invented as a marketing ploy by a travel agency ten years ago. They sought assistance from psychologist Cliff Arnall. Dr. Arnall developed an algorithm that took into consideration factors such as the time since Christmas, motivation levels, debt levels, and broken New Year’s resolutions. With this, the blue third Monday of the year was tagged the most depressing day of the year. Daylight is limited, nights are dark and cold, holiday bills have arrived, and most people just feel a bit pessimistic or down. All of those pleasant holiday memories are now gone. New Year’s resolutions that were established with a strong sense of purpose get violated.

How to Beat Blue Monday and Get Your Finances Back on Track

Do not let Blue Monday, or any other day, control you or sap your happiness. We understand that financial distress can drive you to your knees, follow these tips to get some debt relief.

Budgeting

You can’t change what has already happened, but you can better control what will happen in the future, especially with your finances. It’s possible that you went over your budget during the holidays; now is the time to get things back under control. Do today, blue or not; this can help you get a feeling of hope. Budgeting helps you to prioritize and keep your finances in good shape.

Embrace simple spending

Being frugal with your spending is not the same as being cheap. A simple and cautious lifestyle in spending is all about being resourceful, such as, by bringing your lunch to work, saving, and limiting social activities and unnecessary expensive purchases. Being cheap typically means compromising value, quality, and time for short-term savings. You can be frugal and still live your best life.

Think about your repayment options

Thinking about how you will pay off your debt is important. It’s possible that you have multiple bad debts and you’re already overwhelmed with them, but do not worry! There are debt relief options that can help you tackle your debt; they include debt consolidation, consumer proposal, bankruptcy, etc. To find out more and know which debt relief option that may work best for you, you should speak with one of our debt experts at EmpireOne Credit.

Be determined and set goals

After you have spoken with a debt relief expert, the next thing is to set goals. Your first goal should be to get rid of your debts, and the next important goal is to stay out of debt. Setting such a goal means you have to study what the issue might be. Are you over spending on Wants rather than Needs? Should you take budgeting more seriously? What type of debt relief option would work for me? These are things you should think about. Having an emergency fund is also important. These and other financial goals are required, and you should try to keep at them.

Plan logically for the next holiday

Before Christmas rolls around once more, you have approximately 342 days to prepare and set a budget. This way, Blue Monday will feel normal for you, no anxiety, and no bad debt!

Conclusion

One of the main causes of people feeling down or blue is debt. Most likely, you’ve avoided looking at the bills out of fear, and now you’re feeling overwhelmed. You can find a solution if debt is keeping you from living life to the fullest.

Everything will be put into perspective and a route to debt freedom will be revealed during a free consultation with one of our debt experts. You can contact us on (416) 900-2324 or by completing our form. The moment you do, you’ll feel better, and everything else will start to appear much brighter too.

Stop letting Blue Monday win! Make the so-called “depressing day of the year” your own “happiest day of the year,” the day you take charge of your financial destiny!  Debt-free… Feels Good!