Gifting Made Easy

Are you starting to feel the anticipation and anxiety of the Holidays?

Well are you? No matter how much you plan, prepare, prod the spouse or pout the holiday season still makes most of our blood pressure rise sometimes between December first and the twenty fifth!  I have heard of every remedy imaginable to prevent this roller coaster of emotions, but honestly none of them work.

However, now after living over a half of a century, I might just have the cure. I can't decide whether to bottle it, sell it on QVC or use social media for its distribution. You are one of the lucky ones who I am going to use as research and development (learned that from my husband). You are my test market, guinea pig, so to say! Knowing you are going to get a break from your routine of getting people things they really don't need should infuse you with a sudden burst of energy and anticipation. It will make the upcoming days not so ho-hum because there is definitely a common thread when buying gifts and that is panic!

While the Holidays are one of life's yummiest joys, they do often lead to the little discussed affliction of panic, as where to shop, what to buy, who to buy for, how much to spend...Not to mention will they like it, will it fit, do they have one, is it the right color, etc....symptoms usually include sweaty palms, headaches, list making,  misplacing the list, arguing with the spouse, snapping at the children, staring blankly for unknown amounts of time in space not remembering what you were supposed to be doing.

Are you relating to this at all?

Does it ring familiar?

The joy of gift giving isn't as easy as it sounds. The giddy feeling of putting on Christmas music in the car and leisurely strolling the aisles for the perfect selection isn't as easy as it initially seemed! Well, let me share the most amazing solution.

As opposed to stressing over what to get, try giving of yourself. One of my favorite Churchill quotes and I use it often is:  "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give." Most of you have worked a lifetime to make a living. I'm giving you a chance in the next twenty days to make a life! I hope you are as inspired by Churchill's words as I am.

As we approach the next few weeks and are considering what to give, start with your thoughts, your words and your actions. Your thoughts become your actions and your actions become your habits. So have good thoughts. Use words of appreciation and inspiration. Let your actions uplift and ignite a spirit of gratitude in others. Show respect for others, treat them as you would want to be treated. Love those who no one else loves. Pass on a few words of admiration to the one who feels worthless. These simple gestures will not only change your life, but they will change the lives of everyone with whom you give this gift!

These gifts will offer a future to some; they will give courage to others. Your encouragement could be the exact thing needed for that person on your list who has been through a difficult time. Sometimes we don't know if the person we are gifting is searching for the answers of life or has already found them. Is the recipient of your gift a dreamer, a musician, a teacher, a firemen, a dancer, a doctor....what would a person in the aforementioned occupations like?

Don't stress...give them the gift that keeps on giving...yourself. There are two people in this world in my humble opinion. There are those who sit around counting their blessing or there are those who step up and are a blessing to others. It's easy to start doing that....really it is! Don't just stand on the edge wishing you could jump, start making a difference. JUMP...jump into a life changing experience and you will not only enjoy this Christmas Season, but You will also own it!

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @LeighAnneTuohy and on Instagram! Learn more about my new book, Making it Happen, and my family's charity at The Making It Happen Foundation.