Preparation is the key to success.

One of my favorite Lion King songs is Scar's "Be Prepared."Scar has a plan, he is maticulously planning, and Black Friday shoppers can learn from this. I, usually have a plan of attack for Black Friday, and that should start right at the beginning of November. This year I felt a little rushed (hence the lack of blog posts) but I felt like I had a good handle of what I wanted to do this year.

"Even the best laid plans..."

It takes more than having a plan of attack, it takes fine attention to detail, research and follow through. The last part is where I came up short this year. But sometimes that happens, life gets in the way.

If I were to draft a Black Friday constitution, one of the amendments would be "Find your deals online first, saves hassle and stress on the actual Friday of Dark." Amazon releases a lot of great deals the WEEK of Black Friday. Some of the items that go on sale will even be close to or even AT Black Friday prices. You do have to be quick on the draw with some great deals though. Amazon gives you a chance to "preview" the items as to give you a chance to be by your browser. Get your clicking fingers ready!

Some retailers (Best Buy, Sears, Target) will release some items online before Black Friday. This year, Best Buy even threw some of the Black Friday deals online. The trick is to keep a watchful eye on the items you want. Then be aggressive, be be aggressive. I work under the assumption that if I buy it, and I don't like it... return it. (Also, check return policies.)

So to a personal story. Two TVs that I was interested in went on sale, I put them in my cart and kind of dilly dallied before buying them. The punch line? They sold out as soon as I put them in my cart. Why? Because the sale caught me by surprise. Didn't now it was happening when it did, so I was scrambling to find what I wanted. Now I have non-buyers remorse. I hope I can get them on Friday... then next year, I need to be more prepared. (For what? For the death of the king! Why is he sick?)