Christmas is around the corner and where there will be a lot of gifts from one to each other. Personally, I think Christmas gifts are an important part of Christmas and can bring joy to many people, especially the young and hopeful. But it can also require many difficult trade-offs between the desire to please the recipient on the one hand and the use of money and sustainability on the other hand. Then it is important to find a balance that makes joy the dominating part.
Some believe that exchanging Christmas gifts is inefficient because many gifts do not appeal to the recipient. They therefore provide less benefit than if the recipient had bought something for the same amount themselves. However, there are other characteristics of Christmas gifts that are positive and that may offset this "loss of usefulness". Research shows that we become a little happier by giving than by receiving. While the happiness we feel from repeating the same experience usually diminishes over time, it is different when we give. Let's take an example. You will be required to spend five dollars every day for five days. You can spend the money either on yourself or others, but you must repeat the same choice every day. The results of this show that if you spent the money on yourself, you experienced a decreasing level of happiness over the five days, while if you spent the money on others, the level of happiness would not decrease. This experiment was explained by the researchers Ed O'Brien and Samantha. You can read more about that here.
In addition to being happy when giving, gift exchange is important for building GREAT relationships over time. In this sense, one can look at giving gifts on Christmas eve as a good investment in social networks. But precisely because gifts have such an important function, it can be difficult to give. The worries that the gift we give are not good enough are strong in us, unfortunately, this can create trouble for the joy of giving. We are all a little unsure of what is expected of us, so always remember that:
It is the case that we are afraid of this anyway and we think that our gifts are not good enough, so it is easy to spend more money than necessary… Several of us actually take out loans to finance Christmas or Christmas gifts just because we are so afraid that people will dislike the gifts we give them. The latter is not good, but a fact. Remember that if you spend more money on Christmas presents than your wallet can handle, you can have far greater problems or challenges later in life. Then it is important that I say that the fewest recipients will be happy for a gift that gives the giver problems. It is therefore wise if we hold back on spending money, go make something with your own hands - go green!
Christmas as we know it is accused of being materialistic and not very environmentally friendly. This is of course something to consider. Why not try some new Christmas gift trends this year? They can fulfill three wishes at once: Affordable, sustainable, and personal. Give used gifts? I mean go by a cheaper gift on the second-hand market or old things you have found in “your own cabinets"? Lego or collectibles that you no longer need yourself might be a good start, right? Many things can be so good in quality that they can be used by many generations after you. Another trend I have seen is to give self-produced gifts that cost time and ingenuity, and that are cheap as well. They also do not want to burden the environment to such an extent. Or not to mention crypto or NFTs such as a crypto punk? The latter do not harm the environment and can be very valuable in the future! Or Splinterland Cards? Wondering if your brother or sister gets confused when he gets a letter that says: please create a Splinterlands account and I will send you Kron – an Earth monster who takes a lot of damage while healing himself! I would personally be very happy for the latter gift, lol!
We will not stop giving Christmas presents guys! The gifts are most likely given with the heart, they bring joy and that is important. But we must also remember to use our brain when collecting gifts. If we start planning this year's Christmas presents early, the chances are greater that we will be able to take care of both the wallet and the environment. Therefore, use the early days in December for planning - it will probably pay off!
An early Happy Christmas from me, Olebulls!
Cheers
-Olebulls