Holiday Gift Giving Stress? This Can Help

It’s here! Walk the aisles of any store and you’re reminded that the Holiday shopping season has kicked in. 

So how does that make you feel? While most of us love the Holidays, sometimes just seeing shelves of cheery wrapping paper can trigger a stress response at the mere thought of all that gift shopping.

So Many People … So Little Time

However much we enjoy the holidays, almost everyone gets stressed about gift giving because we so genuinely want the recipient to enjoy -- and use -- our gift. Who wants to see a fake smile on the face of a person face saying “Thank you” but really thinking, “What in the world I am going to do with this?” And you certainly don't want to find out that your gift is re-gifted.

So how do we make this lovely time a year a little less stressful?

Recently I had the good fortune to come across a wonderful little software service called Giftster.  This is a free app that you can use on the Internet or download on your smart phone. You, your family members, and close friends can easily use the app to create personal gift lists and share them.  You can include links to store pages and reserve or claim gifts to avoid duplicate gift giving. 

Now while some people might feel this kind of app makes give giving less personal, I believe it actually makes gift giving more heartfelt. When you follow a person's desire it tells the person that you really want to make sure they are pleased.  And, since we don't always have a lot of time to shop being able to view someone’s personal gift list certainly makes gift giving easier. Then there’s the time you save by not having to wait on return lines because your gift didn't quite work out. 

You can also try Giftster at work for the office gift exchange party. Too often we return home from the holiday work party with something we will probably never use. So if everyone in the office gets together and puts their preferences in Giftster at least everyone walks away happy.
The Holidays and Beyond

Not only can online gift lists be a great help during the holidays, you can get pretty creative using them throughout the year for events like graduations, house warmings, birthdays, showers, Mother’s Day, and so on. 

If you are actively involved in a non-profit organization like I am, there can even be uses for Giftster here. Maybe you can start a public gift registry for a local family in need or support an organization that serves children in foster care. By setting up a wish list you help insure that they get exactly what they need rather than receiving a whole bunch useless items. 

There are so many ways to use online wish list apps like Giftster. So try it out … and enjoy your Holidays.