Organized Energized Living

Be honest. How many of you don’t need to bring one more item into your home? How many of you receive gifts, aren’t crazy about them, and throw them in a closet for them never to be seen again? How many of you don’t know where to put the gifts you receive, so they end up thrown in a spare room? Do you feel guilty getting rid of a gift you don’t like because you don’t want to offend the person who gave it to you? I see this all the time when working with my clients. 

This holiday season, think about giving experiences rather than things. 

Here are six ways you can give experiences.

Spa gift cards. Most people that are disorganized are overwhelmed and stressed. Find out which spa they like to go to and purchase a gift card for a facial, massage, manicure, etc. 

Fitness gift cards. Do they like to work out? Find out where they take classes and buy a gift card for a few classes!

Take them to dinner. How often do you get to see each other? Plan a night out at their favorite restaurant and enjoy the food and time together. Or, if you’d like, give them a gift card for dinner that they can use with their significant other. You could also take them to a play or movie they’ve wanted to see. 

Book a weekend seasonal getaway. When was the last time you enjoyed some fun times together? You could go skiing in the winter or plan a staycation in town, a beach weekend, or a foliage trip in the fall.

Do they want to learn a new skill? Maybe they’ve been talking about taking up knitting, photography, cooking, or painting. Find out if they’ve been doing research and contact that business to see if they offer gift cards. 

Give the gift of organization. You knew I couldn’t leave this out. When people are disorganized and surrounded by chaos, the last thing they need is more stuff coming into the home. If they’ve been hinting that they need help, talk with them about giving them a gift card and if they’re on board, give them the gift of this experience. 

There are so many other experiences you could give, but these are just a few to get you thinking. Before you rush out to purchase gifts this holiday, really think about the people on your list. Are you wasting money on things that are going to get thrown in the back of the closet? Most people that don’t like what they receive feel guilty about getting rid of it. So, it stays in their home taking up space. Be mindful of what you’re purchasing this holiday and think about whether buying an experience will be better and I bet the answer will be yes!

I have one very important tip for you. If you’re receiving an abundance of gift cards, be sure to have a system to contain them. It can be as simple as storing them in a labeled envelope and keeping it stored in a designated space. If you receive a gift card, it goes in the envelope right away. If you have a large amount of them, you can buy a mini accordion file, categorize the cards, and label them. You can label them restaurants, beauty, retail, etc. Whichever system you choose, it is important that you have a system. I’ve found over thousands of gift cards in homes, hidden everywhere. Many people forget they even had them! A good system will solve this problem.