don t let the black friday spirit poke holes in your pockets for many people this is one of the biggest shopping days of the year it can be a great opportunity if you are looking to score deals get discount prices on big ticket items and save big money to make the most of black friday deals and savings you should try to remain calm and avoid being overwhelmed by all of the advertising in your local supermarkets malls tv screens and on the radio treat black friday as an opportunity to save on essential items and gifts that you were already planning on buying 1 don t buy what you don t need if you plan on participating in black friday madness then you absolutely must make a budget before you hit the first store the moment you read the last word of this article pull out a notepad or hop on your computer and get down to business based on your income and expenses come up with a reasonable amount of money to spend on christmas gifts this year once you reach that dollar mark you are done 2 make a shopping list it s easy to overspend and go overboard keeping a shopping list close to you will minimize the temptations of impulse buying make sure you have a sense of where the best deals are so you don t waste your time standing in line for something that sold out in the early hours of the morning 3 don t spend money you don t have if an item requires you to pull out your credit card that s an item you can t afford and you should put it back this might seem like common sense but a lot of people just don t get it what might seem like a good idea in december becomes an awful idea in january for many people when all the bills start rolling in don t buy stuff you can t afford that s the rule if you play it right you can save some money without getting frustrated by the crowds and without wasting too much time and effort 4 venture out later in the day this may sound like an awful suggestion because all the heavily promoted items will probably be gone but you can still find pretty good deals while avoiding the crazy and massive crowds that pile in when the doors open in the morning we have all seen the mess and uncontrollable crowds on the news pretty much every black friday it can get pretty dangerous when the doors open at some of these large retail chains if you choose to go when the doors open wear a helmet and be ready to throw a few punches