How to Give Better Gifts
An "anti-gift guide" gift guide.
The Problem With Gift Guides
Gift guides are fun to browse, and they garner a ton of traffic for the outlets that publish them. Seemingly a win-win. But how often do they result in a truly meaningful and memorable gift idea for the person you have in mind? In my experience, rarely.
That’s because the best gifts come from a place of contextual specificity: they blend the giver’s distinct tastes with a deep, personal understanding of the recipient. The kinds of gifts that tend to show up on gift guides do the opposite. No matter how cool or tasteful the curator behind them may be, they’re still making generalizations about what your “dad” or “boss” or “sister” is like, which is why you often see the same stuff recommended again and again. If it’s generic enough to appear on a gift guide, it’s generic enough to be regifted — and it probably will be (i.e. scented candles). Or in cases where gift guides do manage to skew niche, it’s usually the wrong kind of niche — one that would feel random in the context of who you are and who the recipient is (i.e. a plum blossom made out of Legos).
But the gift guide industrial complex continues to chug right along, fueled by one undeniable truth: it’s really hard to think of good gift ideas! I used to struggle with it too, until a friend of mine started doing something that permanently changed the way I think about gift-giving. Today I’m sharing what it is — and why it works. Plus, a peek at some of the items on my current “great gift ideas” list that might inspire yours.