Coming up with gift ideas can be time-consuming, frustrating, and just straight-up impossible at times—especially if you wait until the last minute. I don’t know about you, but I try really hard not to get someone a present just for the sake of getting them something. When I’m trying to simply check someone off my list, I tend to either spend hours surfing the Internet or walking around stores searching for some shred of inspiration, or I give up too fast and buy something generic they probably don’t even want.
I think it’s safe to say we ALL would prefer to give gifts that people actually appreciate and, ideally, have some meaning to them. Seeing a person’s face light up at the realization that you really know them and get them can feel so rewarding. I’m talking a Leslie Knope level of gift giving here—AKA, giving the most insanely thoughtful presents that show you know exactly what the person likes or needs.
I introduced the trick I’m about to share in my November Favorites on Wednesday, but just writing one paragraph about it didn’t seem to do it justice. I seriously can’t recommend this system enough. So if you’re tired of racking your brain every year for what to buy people for a holiday or their birthday, read on!
About three or four years ago, when I was fed up with never knowing what to get friends and family, I started taking notes throughout the entire year. All I did was start a note on my phone that I would add to randomly with ideas of what people might want for their birthday or Christmas. Even when a gift-giving holiday was really far away, I would still jot down ideas when they’d come to me (or when people would say they wanted something). This little holiday hack has completely transformed how I buy gifts. The trick is to always be listening and looking for ideas.
There are about three different types of ideas I jot down in my list for each person I regularly buy gifts for:
- Items they specifically want or have shown interest in (e.g., new sweater, cookbook, local coffee, movie, etc.)
- Themes related to their hobbies or job (e.g., yoga, cooking, TV show, teaching tools, fishing, etc.)
- Things they could use based off problems they’ve mentioned (e.g., nighttime tea for insomnia, gripping tool for opening jars, new toolbox, dress socks, etc.)
When creating a list for your people, I recommend writing anything down that could potentially help you in the future. Even if it’s not a specific item or you think it’s obvious, chances are you might forget the ideas six months later. So having all those general ideas written down to refer to later can make a huge difference.
In addition to making YOUR life easier around birthdays and holidays, you might find having these lists of ideas helps others as well. I feel like I’ve become the center of a lot of my family’s gift giving, because I have a lot of ideas for several people on deck at all times. This is especially useful now that I’ve had to speak for both myself and Matt. People ask what we both want for Christmas or our birthdays, and I’m always so happy when I can give them legitimate ideas and not just respond with “I don’t know, I’ll get back to you” and never get back to them.
Another little tip: create a list for yourself too. Yes, just like when you were 7 years old and would write out that long list of what you wanted from Santa this year. Keep a list of items you want but probably won’t buy for yourself (or just haven’t yet). This was a later addition to my gift idea database, because I would never know what to tell people that I wanted. And while it’s great to be happy with what you have and not want more, face the facts: people want to buy you crap, so make it easier on them by having simple ideas to give them.
And there you have it…how I’ve learned to never run out of gift ideas. While it might be too late for this holiday season, start planning ahead now for the next round of gift-giving!
