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The holiday season is right around the corner, so it's time to get ready. The less time you have, the more you're going to spend and potentially go into debt. To avoid making one of your New Year resolutions about paying off your holiday debt, here are tips to get you prepared:

Make A Budget
Create a budget based on what you've spent in the past, as it will probably be similar this year. If you're not sure what you spent last year, review your current budget and determine how much you can allocate to your holiday budget. Then create a spreadsheet and have a column tracking every purchase based on the following questions:

• Who is receiving the gift? 
• What was the reason for the purchase? 
• Where was the gift purchased? 
• How did you pay for the gift?
• When did you purchase the gift?

Knowing this next year will help you create a budget and identify ways that could help you save money, such as looking for coupons or watching for sales.

Make A List
Make a gift list early. Knowing what you're going to purchase will help determine if your budget needs to be adjusted and also removes deadline pressures. You'll be better able to monitor for sales more effectively if you know what you're looking for. However, you'll really need to be thoughtful about the gifts you're buying to make sure the recipient still wants it in December.

Save, Save, Save
If you haven't started already, it's time to start setting aside money for holiday shopping. Everything that you put on credit cards and finance costs you more due to interest rates. Depending on your current rates and how long it takes you to pay it off, it could be much more costly of a gift that you anticipated. One way to start setting aside money is by bringing your lunch to work. If you started bringing your lunch to work today and put $6 a day in a Holiday Gift Supplemental Savings account, you'd save $330 for holiday shopping. That's a nice chunk of change to get friends and family members nice gifts and holiday needs. If you reduced your $5 latte intake to only one day a week, instead of daily, you'd save approximately $330 more by December. Give up that one latte per week and you'd bring the total to $385.

For more ideas on cutting costs during the work week, read Saving Money During The Work Week.

Get Shopping
If you already have money set aside for the holiday, get shopping now. Shopping early allows you to take advantage of sales and seasonal pricing trends. It will also help you avoid using credit cards as you're less likely to be buying a lot all at once and if you do, you're prepared to pay off your credit card balance when you receive the statement. Another benefit of shopping early is having more time to find the perfect gift and stocking up on hostess and last minute gifts that are on sale.

Having more time to prepare for the holiday provides you ample time to get crafty too. Consider making gifts, instead of purchasing them. You'll have plenty of time to complete the gifts in the evenings and weekends and hopefully avoid pulling an all-nighter in December.

Order Early
If you're ordering online, make sure you order with enough time to receive the item and take advantage of savings on shipping. If you order at the last minute, you're paying premium for shipping and run the risk of not receiving the item in time. If you buy early, you'll have the option to select the shipping method that fits your budget. In addition, you can have it shipped to the location of your choice with less risk of someone not being home and the delivery being stolen, lost or ruined.

Be Selective
If you're going to charge holiday purchases, be selective in the credit card you use. Opt for the one with the best interest rate. If you end the shopping season with a balance you won't have that big of a debt hole to dig yourself out of, as it will be easier to pay down the balance.

You also want to make sure that the credit card you select will be accepted. If this is a concern for you, check your credit report to make sure there isn't an error to a cause a refusal. Request your credit report from www.annualcreditreport.com, the only authorized online source for a free credit report, and review it. If you find a mistake, you'll have time to correct it before the holidays.

Learn the legal steps to take to improve your credit score in Tips To Improve Your Credit Score.

Plan Ahead
For all of the other holiday details, it is best to plan ahead!

Plan the menu, how you're going to decorate and make a list of everything you'll need. You can start stocking up on non-perishable items and supplies, plus look for great decorations on sale or unique places now. The selection will be better and you can take advantage of sales.

If you're traveling or planning something special, book your tickets and make reservations as early as possible to save money and avoid putting it all on your credit card.

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Sources: Bankrate.com