Inflation. Supply chain issues. Delayed mail.
If there was ever a year to start giving experiences for Christmas rather than physical possessions, this is the year.
A few years ago, my friend and his family of six started a new holiday tradition.
“Rather than spending money on a bunch of stuff we don’t need, we started a new Christmas tradition. Every day of the week after Christmas until New Year’s, we did something fun as a family.
Sometimes it was simple: pizza and a movie. Other days, it was more extravagant: horse-back riding. But we took the money that would have been spent on physical gifts and spread it out over the week making sure everyone got to do something they’d really love.”
After the holiday season I asked him how it went.
He replied with a smile on his face, “Best decision we ever made. A new family tradition has been born. We’re already looking forward to next year.”
When we found minimalism twelve years ago, we also decided to change how we celebrated the holiday season limiting our children’s gifts to three: one thing they need, one thing they want, and one experience to share with the family.
To celebrate holidays differently, you need to make the decision to do so.
And if there was ever a year to try out a change, this is the one.
– News reports are already surfacing that this holiday season may be filled with increased challenges and frustrations.
– Inflation is reaching levels we haven’t seen in decades.
– Millions of people have just lost pandemic-era unemployment benefits.
– Meanwhile, COVID cases continue to increase in many places around the world.
An important phenomenon took place in 2020. People began spending more on goods and less on services. As a percentage of personal spending, nonconsumable goods increased 6% in 2020 while services fell by 7% with some sectors falling 20-30% (recreation, travel, food).
All that to say, in 2020, most Americans spent the year purchasing more and more physical possessions and fewer and fewer services.
If our homes weren’t full enough in 2019, they are even fuller in 2021.
If there was ever a year to start giving experiences for Christmas rather than physical possessions, this is the year.
Most of your family and friends desire that anyway.
Every year, I post a list of 52 clutterfree gift ideas on Facebook. This year I decided to post it a bit earlier than normal. As of today, not even halfway into November, the list has been viewed and shared by over 12 million people!
Anecdotal evidence I know, but when a clutterfree gift list is more than twice as popular this year than any previous year, something unique is happening.
Try it out. You’ll be surprised how much more you enjoy the holiday season.
In your own family, set expectations early (now). Get buy-in from your spouse, tell your kids that you are trying something new this year, and then set healthy expectations. Focusing more on experiences than physical gifts, doesn’t mean you have to cut out all physical gifts—just shift some of your focus. As I mentioned earlier, my kids still receive one thing they need (usually a clothing item) and one thing they want.
For your extended family, bring up the conversation now. Get on the phone with your parents or siblings and see if they think trying something new would be fun this year. In many cases, people will be relieved that they don’t have to shop for yet another Christmas gift. Formulate a plan and try it out.
Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever talked to someone who moved towards an experience-based holiday season and regretted the decision.
Experiences last longer than physical possessions. And we’re all hungry for greater connection with each other after 18 months of sacrificing it.
Maybe you’ll hate it and change back next year, but I doubt it.
Either way, if there was ever a year to start giving experiences for Christmas rather than physical possessions, this is the year.
Diane says
My kids are grown but don’t have kids of their own yet. I have a close, younger friend with three kids who I love to spend time with, and it has been challenging but rewarding to keep up with their interests in a way that you must do if you want to gift an experience they’ll love. We lost some time during Covid, so I had to catch up with their new interests. I love your list and bookmarked it Joshua! I’ll add just a short list of fun things with kids:
Bird watching (with binoculars!) at a refuge.
Hiking at a local state or national park, and lunch after
A small Zoo that is not crowded and provides lots of “hands on” for kids
Tickets to a minor league baseball game (again, more up close & personal)