Purchasing gifts for your boss can be a challenging experience. On one hand, you want to select a gift that is appropriate, meaningful, and one that will be appreciated. At the same time, you might be concerned about costs, and want to find a gift that strikes exactly the right tone. It can be difficult (but not impossible) to juggle these competing demands.
There are several issues to consider when selecting a gift for your boss. First, you want to remember that your relationship is, primarily, a professional one. This means your gifts should reflect this.
It is rarely a good move to buy your boss intimate or personal gifts, such as clothes, handbags, belts, wallets, or shoes. You may select something in the wrong size, wrong style, or wrong color, creating an awkward situation in which your boss either asks you to return or exchange the item, or has to take time to do it him or herself.
A better strategy would be to select gifts which are less intimate, but still appropriate. For example, if your boss loves golf, you might buy a book on golfing or golf courses, rather than a golf shirt. Similarly, you might buy golf balls or tees, rather than golf clubs. Try to find gifts that align with your boss' interests, without becoming too personal.
Two other gift ideas which fit this model would be physical books or books on tape, as well as gift certificates or gift cards. These options allow you to convey knowledge of your boss' likes, while leaving the exact choice of item up to him or her.
Another strategy for gift giving is to focus on more general items that can be widely used, such as picture frames or photo albums. These can be useful, especially if your boss has children or grandchildren whose photographs need displaying. The one risk you may have with gifts like this is that they may be almost too generic.
You may also consider a customized gift basket as another boss appropriate gift. Gift baskets can be personalized and created exactly for your boss.
Let's say, for example, that your boss enjoys a particular brand of tea and classical music. Creating a gift basket with her favorite tea, two mugs, and a classical music CD might be the perfect gift, because it is constructed from elements she enjoys (tea, music) without being too personal or overly friendly. It's always better to give a gift that you're reasonably certain your boss will like.
Between gift baskets, gift certificates, books or books on tape, as well as gifts aligned with your boss' interests, you should have at least a few ideas for appropriate gifts.
Remember, gift giving for your boss should be thoughtful without being too intimate, and should strike the right balance of cost and meaning. This can be a tricky balance, but not one impossible to achieve.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Wedding Gift Registry - Suggesting Gift Ideas to Your Guests
A Wedding Gift Registry is a traditional way to suggest wedding gift ideas that you would like or would find useful to your wedding guests. Many leading retailers will help you to set up a Wedding Gift Registry for your wedding at no charge. An increasing number of online shops now also offer this service.
As the bride and groom, it may seem a little rude or even cheeky to list out things that you like as suggestions for your friends and family to buy for you. Walking around the shop and picking out lots of things that you would like to have in your new home may seem like a self-indulgence. You can take heart that it is a traditional thing to do and perfectly socially acceptable.
When you are getting married your guests will wish to give you wedding gifts. They will appreciate your help and guidance to make sure their gifts will give you pleasure. Having access to a Gift Registry makes their task of buying your gift much easier. Some retailers will offer a discount for gifts purchased off a Wedding Gift Registry. You are doing your guests a big favor.
From the wedding couple's point of view, a Wedding Gift Registry greatly reduces the worry that your guests will choose gifts that you already have, colors or styles that you do not like or strange items that are of no use to you. You can coordinate gifts in matching styles and colors to fit into your new home. Nobody likes to give a gift that is not appreciated, or that is later returned and exchanged for something more appealing. In years to come your friends and family will take pride in seeing the wedding gift they gave to you on display or in use when they visit your new home.
Another useful feature of a Wedding Gift Registry is that each purchase is ticked off so that the next guest does not duplicate the gift. You probably only need one toaster, so receiving three of them as gifts to choose from is an embarrassment best avoided.
When you have a whole shop to select from and dreaming of your new home, it can be tempting to list only the most expensive and attractive items. A well-designed Wedding Gift Registry should include gifts from a range of prices that are affordable for all of your guests. Your guests may be offended and feel out of place if most of the gift suggestions are beyond their reach, or of a value that they feel is not appropriate for their relationship with the bride and groom. Often not all wedding guests are close family and friends, and they may be just looking for a polite rather than a generous gift. Having somebody else along, like the bride's mother or a good friend, can help to keep the Gift Registry in perspective and suitable for the guest list.
A wedding couple may find it helpful to set up several wedding gift registers in different shops or online to give their guests more choices and shopping convenience.
Using a Wedding Gift Registry can help to make for a more successful wedding from the point of view of both the new couple and their guests.
As the bride and groom, it may seem a little rude or even cheeky to list out things that you like as suggestions for your friends and family to buy for you. Walking around the shop and picking out lots of things that you would like to have in your new home may seem like a self-indulgence. You can take heart that it is a traditional thing to do and perfectly socially acceptable.
When you are getting married your guests will wish to give you wedding gifts. They will appreciate your help and guidance to make sure their gifts will give you pleasure. Having access to a Gift Registry makes their task of buying your gift much easier. Some retailers will offer a discount for gifts purchased off a Wedding Gift Registry. You are doing your guests a big favor.
From the wedding couple's point of view, a Wedding Gift Registry greatly reduces the worry that your guests will choose gifts that you already have, colors or styles that you do not like or strange items that are of no use to you. You can coordinate gifts in matching styles and colors to fit into your new home. Nobody likes to give a gift that is not appreciated, or that is later returned and exchanged for something more appealing. In years to come your friends and family will take pride in seeing the wedding gift they gave to you on display or in use when they visit your new home.
Another useful feature of a Wedding Gift Registry is that each purchase is ticked off so that the next guest does not duplicate the gift. You probably only need one toaster, so receiving three of them as gifts to choose from is an embarrassment best avoided.
When you have a whole shop to select from and dreaming of your new home, it can be tempting to list only the most expensive and attractive items. A well-designed Wedding Gift Registry should include gifts from a range of prices that are affordable for all of your guests. Your guests may be offended and feel out of place if most of the gift suggestions are beyond their reach, or of a value that they feel is not appropriate for their relationship with the bride and groom. Often not all wedding guests are close family and friends, and they may be just looking for a polite rather than a generous gift. Having somebody else along, like the bride's mother or a good friend, can help to keep the Gift Registry in perspective and suitable for the guest list.
A wedding couple may find it helpful to set up several wedding gift registers in different shops or online to give their guests more choices and shopping convenience.
Using a Wedding Gift Registry can help to make for a more successful wedding from the point of view of both the new couple and their guests.
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