What's The Perfect Gift, Really?

December 26, 2018 | Colleen O’ Connell-Campbell


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The paper, ribbons and boxes are tidied away (mostly), and you may still be finding Christmas dishes around the house. What does a typical Boxing Day hold for you? Scouring the stores or napping by a fire?

 

Today I’ll be celebrating Christmas, Round Two with my husband’s maternal side. While others are scouring the malls or scoping out deals online, we’ll gather once again for festive cheer and a few hands of euchre, pass the ace, or skip-boo. We’ll dive in to another Christmas dinner with all the fixings and enjoy some more gift giving. While it may be a day ‘late’, it’s always more fun to give a gift in person and see the joy spread across the recipient’s face.

 

I am not the best ‘gifter’ in the world, and I figured out why this might be when I discovered The Five Love Languages by Dr. Gary Chapman. Actually, I wrote a blog on this topic last December: “Holiday giving through the lens of the five love languages.”

The Five Love Languages aren’t about romantic love, necessarily, and I’ve found that the basic themes apply to any relationships – even in business. Our love language is about how we show, and want to be shown, that somebody cares. It’s about how we each know that another person cares about us, or put another way, that we are appreciated. You know, it’s a universal human need to be needed, to belong, and that’s regardless of wealth.

Dr. Chapman explains that each one of us will usually ‘speak” one primary love language. All five love languages are important, and in his research, they seem to translate across cultures. All I had to do is read the descriptions, and I had figured out my primary love language.

The five love languages are (in no order)

  1. Quality Time: receiving undivided attention;
  2. Acts of Service: when actions speak louder than words;
  3. Words of Affirmation: hearing compliments and words of appreciation;
  4. Physical Touch: the tactile sense of appropriate touch; and
  5. Receiving Gifts: feeling most appreciated by receiving a thoughtful gift.

For some, turning off the cell phone, a promise kept, a love letter, or a sincere bear hug will be the best gift ever. In each case, the action taken is a manifestation of the fact that someone is thinking of you and bothers to express their affection. I would hazard to say that if Receiving Gifts is your love language, then you’re probably incredibly talented at picking out gifts too. That’s not the case for me. My love language is quality time; time invested with my friends, family and clients means far more to me than getting things. And my Christmas(ses) are designed to allow me to invest that time.

In the eloquent words of Dr. Seuss…

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store; what if Christmas, perhaps, is a little bit more?”

I hope you’ll find time to express your affection for those you care about – however you choose – over the holidays. And I do hope you’ll tune into my podcast I’m a Millionaire! So Now What? (listen & subscribe here) for an exclusive New Year’s Day, New Year’s Resolution show. Actually, it’s going to be much bigger than that. I’m buzzing with anticipation to share with you, my listeners, my bold vision for the future.

Until then, have a very Happy Holiday.

 

Please note that O’Connell-Campbell Wealth Management, will be maintaining compressed office hours over the holiday season.

 

Monday, December 24th, 2018

Carole is Off, Colleen will be available 9 am to 12 pm

Tuesday, December 25th, 2018

CLOSED

Wednesday, December 26th, 2018

CLOSED

Thursday, December 27th, 2018

Friday, December 28th, 2018

Monday, December 31, 2018

Carole is Off, Colleen will be available 9 am to 3 pm (phone & email, only)

 

Tuesday, January 1, 2019      

CLOSED