Sometimes some of us will give gifts to our loved ones, friends, and even coworkers. Gift-giving may seem like a huge task, but it isn’t. My grandmother, bless her soul, explained the art of gift-giving to me when I was a teenager. Here are three easy steps for simple gift-giving that I still use to this day.
# 1–Set a spending limit and stick to it
There are certain times when people will go overboard in gift-giving. Such as Christmas, a scholl graduation, or a birthday. Don’t do it! Set a spending amount and stick to it! Well, try to anyway.
The spending amount can be any amount. It can be as little as $10 or as much as $10,000. It’s whatever you feel you can spend without putting a strain on your finances.
Please don’t go into debt. You don’t want to buy all a gift and then spend the rest of the year paying off the debt. What type of fun is that?
Here’s a little side note. If YOU have a child two years old or under, try giving them big boxes to play with. The ones that are big enough for them to climb inside. I tried this with my daughter and it worked. Here’s what happened.
My daugther’s great grandmother noticed my daughter always wanted to sit in the adult recliner, so she bought a child recliner for my daughter’s second Christmas. I tried to talk her out of it, but a great grandmother is going to do what a great grandmother wants to do.
So on Christmas Day, I helped my daughter unwrap the gift. Then I took the chair out of the box and presented it to her. She sat in the chair for a few minutes; then got up, went to the box, and started playing inside of it. My daughter played with that box for months!
Her great-grandmother kept the chair in the living room in hopes that my daughter would use it. My daughter used it about ten times in the first year. After that, it just sat there unused.
So, I wouldn’t go overboard on gifts for someone two years and under. I’m not saying only buy them boxes. I’m just saying I wouldn’t overspend.
Photo from Pixabay
# 2–Buy for the person, not yourself
When I buy a gift, I like to give the person something that they want or something that they will use.
For example, say you want to buy a gift for your cousin, but you’re not sure what she would like. You know she is into video games, anime and likes wearing hoodies.
What do you pick for your cousin? If you know what video games she’s into, it’s an easy choice. If you don’t know, ask. Say something like, hey, I know you’re into video games. What kind are your favorites?
Suppose you can’t afford a video game. How about buying a t-shirt with a video game logo or her favorite anime character? Even a hoodie in her favorite color.
These items can be found in a lot of different stores (department stores, discount stores, video game stores) at reasonable prices.
Photo from Pixabay
# 3–Keep it a secret
It’s hard to hide things from some people.
There are those rare people who say they don’t like surprises. I should take them at their word, but I don’t. I feel everyone likes a pleasant surprise of a gift they like or want.
So if you buy a gift for someone, do your best to keep it a secret.
Photo from Pixabay
The takeaway
Gift-giving may seem like a big task, but it doesn’t have to be. Remember these three easy steps to simple gift-giving: set a spending limit, think about what the person wants, and keep it a secret from them.
Just saying!
If you have tips and tricks about gift giving that you would like to share, please put them down in the comment section. It could help someone else.
