It’s the most wonderful time of the year and it’s not because of Thanksgiving, a five day weekend or even Chanukah. In only three days, the shopaholics favorite holiday will finally be here: Black Friday. That’s right, the national shopping holiday is right around the corner and I hope you’ve started preparing. If not, here are a few tips for you noobs out there that need a little extra help in crafting those strategies to get those 40 inch televisions and whatever else you really don’t need.

1. Strategize. Make a list of all the stores you want to rummage through and the times they open. Sometimes, you’re going to hit a dilemma where one store opens at the same time as the other, and you need to figure out all of this ahead of time. The stores that are going to be the busiest are going to be Best Buy, Target, Walmart, and mostly any appliance stores. Plan ahead.
2. Make a list of what you need. You don’t necessarily have to follow this list, but you can use it as a guideline. Write down a list of names you need to buy gifts for and some generic item next to their names. Remember, you’re most likely going to be shopping at two, three in the morning, and you don’t have the clearest mindset at the time. Help yourself out by creating as many lists as possible.
3. Clip coupons. The night before Black Friday, run to all the stores you’re planning to go to and grab as many magazines and coupons as possible. And whenever you’re done eating dinner and pumpkin pie, flip through all the magazines to see what deals are going on so you can get a certain idea of what you’re going to be fighting for.
4. Set your alarms. This may be the most important step. If you don’t wake up on time, you’re probably screwed. One minute can make all the difference in getting your $20 crockpot and not getting it. Remember, you’re fighting the public for these deals, you want to be first in line.
5. Dress warm. Because it’s so early in the morning, it’s going to feel like death outside. Sweaters, jackets, scarves, gloves, ski masks, three pairs of fuzzy socks and two pairs of pants should be sufficient enough to keep you warm. Just make sure that you can easily rip off all your layers once you get inside. You don’t want to be slowed down by all the clothes you have on, the less clothes, the better.
6. Prepare to charge. That’s right, I said charge as in run as fast as you can to get to the front of the crowd. The most joyful moment of Black Friday is when the store employee walks towards the door with a key and swiftly unlocks it, and the two sliding doors split apart to reveal a store full of heavenly deals. Now, like I said before, you’re battling with all of the public to get these amazing deals, so you need to charge. Run as fast as you can to the back of the store, since that’s usually where the store puts their best deals.
7. That brings me to my next point, grab everything. While you’re sprinting to the back of the store, through aisles, stick out your arms and grab everything along the way. It doesn’t matter what it is, you can worry about that later. All that matters is that you’re getting your hands on every deal possible. You don’t want to miss out on anything. Quick tip: While running through the aisles and grabbing as much as possible, scream at the top of your lungs. It’ll scare away most of your competition and then you’re sure to get the best deals. 
   
8. Buy now, worry later. As you’re waiting in an hour long line with three cartfulls full of whatever you grabbed, don’t start to doubt your purchases. Worry about the debt later, and buy now. Remember, this holiday only comes once a year so you need to stock up! You can always find some use for all 10 of the Dart Boards you grabbed and the 20 pairs of reindeer pajama pants.

Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and most importantly, Black Friday. If you follow my advice, your Black Friday will surely be full of great deals, dirty looks and a pile of bills. Happy hunting! Er… I mean shopping.