I hope all of you had a great holiday season and New Years.

I hope you were able to spend time with people you love. That is what matters. Especially this time of year.

But the holidays are also…expensive.

And if you’re anything like me, you can do everything “right” and still feel a little uneasy when the credit card bill hits or when you look at the budget at the end of the month.

Not because you were irresponsible. But because holiday spending has a way of sneaking up on you.

In today's post – We’ll unpack why you can spend intentionally during the holidays and still feel sticker shock afterward—and what to do about it. I’ll also share how I use “micro income,” including options like InCrowd, to feel back on track without extra call, extra clinic, or January guilt.

Consumerism is at an all time high. There are a million little “last minute” things. And even the stuff you fully intended to spend money on can still create sticker shock when you see the total.

Which leads to two types of pain:

1. The tangible impact: there is simply less money in your bank account.
2. The intangible impact: you feel guilty. Even if you spent it intentionally.

And I think that second one is actually worse.

Because guilt is not a good financial strategy. And this is what I struggle with the most at my current financial stage.

Can money buy happiness?

I’ve written before that I think the answer is yes. But only if you use money the right way. For me, the right way is pretty simple:

If something brings you an amount of joy equal to or greater than its price AND still allows you to stay on track toward your financial goals, buy it.

That’s intentional spending.

Before I understood personal finance, December was stressful. I knew we had a lot of debt. I knew we weren’t saving well. I didn’t really understand investing. And I had no plan to improve any of it. I was finishing training and about to see a big jump in income, and instead of enjoying that, I was anxious about mismanaging it.

My wife and I eventually sat down and created a financial plan. At the time, nothing materially changed. I was still a fellow. She was still a PhD candidate. We didn’t make a cent more money. But almost immediately, something priceless happened.

The stress went away.

Because if you have a goal and a plan to reach it, all you really need to do is follow the plan. And if you’re following the plan, you can relax—even during the holidays.

That plan also changed how I spend. I drive a very inexpensive car because I’m not a car guy. But we prioritized a comfortable home because we’re homebodies—and that brings us real joy. Both choices fit our plan.

Even if you had a plan you can still look back and think: “Alright. That was a lot.” So what do we do with that? We don’t shame ourselves. We don't overcorrect and become miserly in January. We simply just…clean it up!

The easiest way I’ve found to clean up holiday overspending

There are two obvious ways to recoup money after the holidays:

1. Spend less in January
2. Earn more in January

The problem is that most earning-more strategies are annoying.

Picking up extra call. Extra clinic. Extra shifts. That’s a real cost, especially when you’re already exhausted.

I have talked about micro income extensively on the blog before and this is one of the times of year that I fall back on my “micro income” strategy.

What is micro income? (a super quick refresher)

I am making this term up. But the beauty there is that I get to make up the definition…

Micro income is income that will not now or ever replace your clinical income, but will improve your financial well-being in small, “stackable” ways.

The reason I think this distinction is important is that too often I see doctors completely reject potential side gig opportunities because the reward or return is less than what they would deem significant enough to “change their lives.” This is a mistake for a few reasons.

First, these micro opportunities often lead to bigger, more substantive side gigs with more substantive side income – but this refresher is not touching on that.

Second, every doctor should have a very clear understanding of what their time is worth. And expending extra energy for some very small reward is not worth it now or ever. But that is not what micro income is about. It's about spending a very minimal effort for a reward that, while still micro by definition, is way greater than the effort expended.

Why this works especially well around the holidays

Even when spending is intentional, holiday spending often creates that tangible + intangible double whammy: less money in the account, plus guilt.

Micro income can help combat both. It can help rebuild the account, and it neutralizes that “I shouldn’t have spent that much” feeling by offsetting the holiday spending vs. overcorrecting for it.

Most doctors have a slowdown around the holidays and in and around January. Fewer patients. Less clinic. And for me, usually fewer surgeries scheduled. That means more “in between” time. More waiting. More dead time.

And that’s the window micro income is built for.

Using myself as a case study (and a very important purchase)

I’ll give you a very real example from this year.

A few days after Christmas, I looked at our spending and had the classic thought:

Ok…we definitely spent more than I realized. Again—intentional. Worth it. Great memories. But still…a little sticker shock.

Later that week, during the typical holiday slowdown, I had some downtime. Fewer cases. More waiting around.

A few surveys came in from InCrowd. I knocked a couple out quickly.

This is where micro income tends to work best for doctors. The surveys are based on medical expertise we already have, so there’s no ramp-up or prep involved. They’re short, you usually know right away if you qualify, and when they do come through, they fit easily into those small pockets of downtime we all have—especially around the holidays. When I’m done, the money just shows up via PayPal or a gift card.

I used the money from that survey to justify buying a last minute Nintendo Switch 2 video game for my sons—Madden ’26. Maybe it was for them. Maybe it was for me too.

But here’s the important part: it made it incredibly easy to buy something last minute and not think about it. No guilt. No worry. No internal debate about whether we should spend “even more.” Because I knew I would have extra income coming in to cover it.

The “free money” exception (and what you should do with it)

I’ve written before about 25 things doctors never ever need to buy. And I stand by it.

But I do think there’s one exception.

If you’re going to buy something you don’t need…there’s a much better way to do it:

Buy it with “free money.” Money you didn’t have yesterday. Money you earned in a way that didn’t meaningfully cost you time, stress, or extra work. Micro income is perfect for that. It can be “cleanup money” after the holidays. Or it can be guilt-free fun money. Or both. And honestly, sometimes both is exactly what we need.

Holidays, Plans & Micro Income 

In the end, this isn’t about finding a loophole to spend more or trying to undo the holidays after the fact. The holidays are meant to be enjoyed, and if you spent intentionally and stayed aligned with your values, there’s no reason to beat yourself up when December does what December always does. Having a plan can be the single best thing you can do for yourself in that regard.

When it comes to micro income, for me, micro income is simply a tool to protect my peace. It helps smooth out the financial hangover without picking up extra shifts, without making January miserable, and without turning guilt into a long-term habit. It’s not life-changing money. But it is meaningful in the moments that matter. If you can clean things up efficiently, using expertise you already have, during downtime that would otherwise be wasted, that feels like a pretty reasonable trade.

Here’s to enjoying the Holidays and feeling great about them in January and beyond!