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Holiday gift giving can create some unwarranted holiday stress because some people are impossible to shop for during the holiday season.
According to Frank Flynn, Ph.D., professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, "There are all kinds of reasons people give gifts. Typically, they want to be appreciated by the person they’re giving it to and hoping to not disappoint people and delight them. That can create stress—that they’re going to disappoint the person they care about. It can be an opportunity to fail or succeed."
What do you give to the person who has everything and doesn’t drop a hint about what type of gift they’d like for the holidays? Here are some tips to relieve your holiday stress regarding gift giving:
1) Start a family wish list
You don’t have to start a Google spreadsheet to keep track of everyone’s wishes. However, you can randomly ask members of your family and do some detective work to find out what they’d like for the holidays.
For example, my father was impossible to shop for during the holiday season. We’d ask him what he wanted for Christmas and he’d always say an airplane ticket. After rolling our eyes, we’d ask him again and he’d say socks, a new CD, fishing tackle, etc.
2) Focus on the person receiving the gift
One issue people run into every year is that they buy for themselves versus the person to whom they are giving the gift. It is important to keep the person you are shopping for in mind when you decide to make your purchase. If the gift is for a new member of the family, like a new in-law, it is okay to purchase a gift card to their favorite restaurant, coffee shop or retail store.
3) Go for cold, hard cash
Cash is still king during the holidays. My in-laws love cash because they are on a fixed income and my father-in-law likes to make his own purchasing decisions. So, to empower my in-laws, my husband and I always give them cash or a gift card for Christmas.
4) Don’t get caught up in the price tag
We all have good and bad years. While some times you can give more than other years, there are those years when you might have to scale back. Don’t get caught up in the price tag and get creative with your gift giving.
5) Put some heart into the present
Some of the most memorable gifts I received were homemade gifts. A scarf, a necklace, spices and other items of food may be the presents you'll remember most fondly.
One year, an aunt made her famous lemon bread and delicately wrapped the bread on a one-of-a-kind plate with a perfect red bow. Ten years later, the plate hangs in my kitchen and reminds me of her every day. One-of-a-kind homemade gifts can be time consuming, but they come from the heart and remind everyone about the true intentions of the holiday season.
Happy Holidays!
Sources:
Grumman Bender, Rachel. "Give the Perfect Gift - YouBeauty.com."YouBeauty. 29 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 Dec. 2014.
http://www.youbeauty.com/relationships/give-the-perfect-gift
Holiday Gift Ideas. Country Living. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
http://www.countryliving.com/homes/shopping/holiday-ideas
Reviewed December 22, 2014
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith
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