The Holiday Shopping Experience - Rewarding or Traumatic?

Navigation: Main page » Holidays

 Print this page Submit articleComment article

Author: Lee-Anne Robert

Article source: http://www.aaands.com/. Used with author's permission.

Picture this scenario! It's December 24^th, the day of Christmas Eve. On this day you should be relaxing, enjoying time with family and thinking of all the precious memories you have created throughout the year.

No, wait! It's the last day of shopping before Christmas and you haven't even started to do your gift shopping.

You get into your car and fight traffic all the way to the local mall, only to spend an hour trying to find a parking spot. That is if you find one at all. You enter the mall in search of the perfect gifts and there is a stampede of people. Looks like everyone else is doing last minute shopping too!

You dodge the nudging elbows and stomping feet of the crowds. You're starting to feel claustrophobic, your stress level is starting to increase and you haven't even begun shopping yet!

Sound familiar? To top it all off, you browse through the stores only to find that meager offerings remain. The shelves are practically empty. What happens then? You spend too much money on something that your gift recipient neither needs or wants. Their gift wasn't chosen for them...it was chosen out of desperation.

Once again, you remind yourself that you will prepare far in advance for Christmas next year. The next Holiday Season arrives and you repeat the same traumatic shopping experience.

How many of us have waited until the very last moment to buy a gift for a loved one, friend or business associate? There is only three months left until Christmas and those days will go quickly.

Christmas is one of the most stressful events of the year. The expense of buying gifts and the pressure of last minute shopping can all take the joy out of the most joyful time of year.

Here are some tips to take the stress out of Holiday shopping this year:

1) Make a list of the people you will be buying a gift for before you go shopping. If you have a large family or friends to buy gifts for, it can get expensive. In our family, we have made the decision to buy only for the children. Another way to reduce costs is to have everyone draw a name out of a hat and buy a present only for that person.

2) Think of gift ideas for the people on your list and write them down. What are their hobbies and interests? What are their needs and wants? If you cannot come up with anything, ask the person directly for ideas. This will save you time wandering aimlessly in the mall in search of a gift and you will give a gift that your gift recipient really wants and will appreciate.

3) Buy a few extra gifts, for instance chocolates, so that you will be prepared just in case you forgot somebody or an unexpected guest arrives bearing gifts.

4) If possible, start your Holiday shopping a month or two before Christmas. It is never to early to prepare!

5) Don't forget about online shopping! Buy your gifts over the internet. You can find most gifts online, shop at your own convenience and you won't have to step foot in a mall.

If you follow these tips, you are on your way to a rewarding shopping experience and a less stressful Holiday Season.

We all must remember that Christmas is a joyful time of year. It's not about the gift you give or receive but it is about cherishing the special people in your life and spending time with them. Create new traditions and memories that will be with you for a lifetime.

Dating Tips: The First Impression Matters
The first impression you give plays a very important part in the blooming of a love relationship. It determines the ever possibility of a development of the rel...

How Intelligent is Your Dog
Find out just how Intelligent your Pooch really is. This article enables you to find out your dog's canine IQ. This article first appeared in the Healthy Pet Ne...

Pressure Washing Decks
Learn to pressure wash your deck and/or the decks of others. Useful primer gives you what you need to know to do the job right.

Sporty AND Sexy: The Perfect Look
Active wear is no longer reserved for sports. There has been an amazing rise in the popularity of sporty apparel throughout the past years, but it has never has...

How to Prepare for Labor
Although nothing anybody says can ever completely prepare a woman for the day she delivers her first baby, there are some simple suggestions that should help ma...

Communication in Relationships
Bad communication in a relationship is one of the main reasons for love and marriage problems. A listening attitude with focus on eye contact is essential when ...

How to Create Sizzling Sales online
"Don't Sell the Steak, Sell the Sizzle." The article shows ways on how to write a sizzling sales copy...

Debt Relief and Reality Check
The United States and other first world nations have been asked to forgive debts of foreign third world nations. We have obliged in doing so. This is a tremendo...

10 Tips on Color Coding Your Paper: From Chaos to Coherence
When I hold files up in my hand at my workshops, even at 50 feet the audience can see there are three different manila files. It's the magic of color - that 1/8...

Being Tender With the Ugly Parts of Yourself
We don't like to think about our "ugly parts," do we? By ugly parts of course I mean those aspects of ourselves we perceive to be less than perfect. For some it...

The Incredible Daylily
Daylilies have come a long way from the old fashioned type that are seen in ditches. Now daylilies come in varies sizes, numerous colors and some are even very...

Jain Agams
Language and Literature apart from art and architecture constitute the most important records of the cultural history of a country. Hence, the study of the Agam...

Managing E-Mails - 7 Tips for Effective Communication
The sending and receiving of e-mails can eat up lots of your time if you let it. Keep on top of it with these easy tips.

Lead By The Right Example
We've all heard that leaders should lead by example; that people pay more attention to our deeds than our words. What is implied by this truth, but not always ...

How To Start A Wholesale Business
Starting a wholesale business can be a profitable venture when done right.

Weight Loss & Health Tips Revealed: Can I Be Fit And Fat?
We all have an image of "fit" - lean, even thin, with a healthy glow. Many researchers are now beginning to question that picture of fitness - there may be more...

Heart Friendly Foods
Heart disease results when plaque builds up inside the arterial walls, which causes a partial or complete obstruction of blood flow. This reduces flow of blood...

Watch Out For Power Thieves
When you have to speak to a group or do a presentation, do you ever find yourself saying things like,

Visiting the Last Paradise on Earth – Costa Rica
I'm Lucky, and i've been traveling and writing about places I believe others would love to visit, to unwind from their busy and hectic schedules. Most recently...

The Different Cell Phone Accessories Available
Once you have purchased your cell phone you might want to add some accessories for fun or as a necessity. Cell phone accessories is a large market in its own ri...

What You Should Know About Mixing Medications and Diet...
Chemistry is everywhere and in everything. Eating foods and taking medications is allowing your stomach and intestines to become that experimental flask in the...

How to Keep Your Boxer - or any Dog - Healthy...
Excellent, detailed article which explains some of the things to watch for, do, and don't do in order to keep your dog healthy. Focuses on the breed of boxer do...

Action vs. Apathy - Feeling Powerless? Get Moving!
We are never powerless in any situation. It is only our minds that tell us we are. Sure, there will be circumstances that we truly can't change. Those are life ...

Free Internet Advertising: 6 Proven Ways To Prevent Your Competitors From Stealing Your Customers
It is getting harder daily to generate traffic.