How good are you at choosing gifts?
In my opinion, gifting is a form of art, one at which I´m personally awful at... In fact, that´s one of the main reasons I get so stressed around this time of the year (together with having to pack for the holidays, but I´ll tell you about that some other time).
By the way, I apologize for being so late with these thoughts and reflections; by now, Christmas is around the corner, and if you´re celebrating, I´m sure you already have all your presents sorted... The truth is, what I´m going to say is valid all year round, so I hope you find it useful anyway.
Sometimes we make our own lives harder by searching for the perfect gift for each person; or maybe we buy gifts just for the sake of buying gifts, out of habit, tradition or a sense of obligation. Because it´s "what you should do", because it´s always been done this way. With that mindset, what is likely to happen? Well, on the one hand, ending up with a hole in our bank account, and on the other hand, facing a big huge pile of things we don´t need.
What if we simplified a little?
Minimalism is something I´ve always found interesting, and even though I don´t consider myself a proper minimalist (my "just in case" mentality plays against me on this one), there are a few minimalist principles I tend to keep fresh on my mind, starting with less stuff, less stress.
Joshua Becker describes on his website, Becoming Minimalist a different way of establishing priorities, both when choosing gifts and also as rules for life in general:
We can value...
- Needs over wants.
- Quality over quantity.
- Experiences over possessions.
This proposal points to a much more sustainable lifestyle, and it also helps us to get back to the original intention of gifting: creating a moment of joy and excitement, a moment of shared happiness with that person you love so much. And if we can do all that in a more enriching, more economical and even more ecological way, what else could we ask for?
What about you? What strategies do you use when gifting (or not gifting)?
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