WEBVTT - Streamline gift giving

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to streamline gift giving. Your time itself

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<v Speaker 1>is a gift, of course, but the good news is

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<v Speaker 1>that giving physical gifts doesn't need to take much time

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<v Speaker 1>if you do it wisely. This year, certainly people want

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<v Speaker 1>to avoid crowded retail stores, but let's be honest, many

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<v Speaker 1>of us don't like hanging out in malls on December Saturdays,

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<v Speaker 1>even when there isn't a pandemic going on. We want

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<v Speaker 1>to spend more time with family and friends and less

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<v Speaker 1>time hunting through racks of sweaters that the recipient isn't

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<v Speaker 1>going to wear anyway. We want to maximize the message

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<v Speaker 1>of presents, that is, you are important to me, while

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<v Speaker 1>minimizing the time cost. So to do that, it's important

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<v Speaker 1>to be strategic. Make a list of everybody you want

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<v Speaker 1>to give presents to. Some of these people you know well,

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<v Speaker 1>like your spouse. Others such as the cousins you exchange

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<v Speaker 1>gifts with every year, maybe not so much. Long time

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<v Speaker 1>listeners know that I am a big fan of having

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<v Speaker 1>a go to gift for such people with a personalized twist. Namely,

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<v Speaker 1>it is personalized to you. Something that you find meaningful

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<v Speaker 1>will have a story attached to it, and that makes

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<v Speaker 1>it seem more meaningful to the recipient as well. So

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<v Speaker 1>think about what that might be for you. Maybe you

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<v Speaker 1>have a favorite local business you'd like to support. You

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<v Speaker 1>know that place that makes amazing gourmet cookies. Well, everyone's

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<v Speaker 1>getting a different batch of the cookies this year, and

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<v Speaker 1>you can talk about why you love the place. Or

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<v Speaker 1>maybe it's a favorite local stationary store. Everyone can get

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<v Speaker 1>slightly different patterns, but all of them can hear about

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<v Speaker 1>how the owner built her way site for online sales

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<v Speaker 1>overnight when COVID struck. Of course, there's something to be

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<v Speaker 1>said for practical go to gifts to yeti coffee cups

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<v Speaker 1>or Nalgene or camelback water bottles are a reliable hit,

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<v Speaker 1>an upgrade from the leaky freebees we often use. You

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<v Speaker 1>can fill the water bottles or coffee cups with Christmas

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<v Speaker 1>candy to make them more festive. Or what about matching

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<v Speaker 1>fleece vests for everyone in your family or blankets for

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<v Speaker 1>every household. We're all in our homes more now, and

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<v Speaker 1>it's nice to feel cozy. The vests or blankets could

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<v Speaker 1>be personalized with a family name or individual names, and

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<v Speaker 1>you can all wear your vests or snuggle up in

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<v Speaker 1>your blankets for your next family video call. Now it

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<v Speaker 1>might feel weird to give the same gift to lots

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<v Speaker 1>of people, like something you would want to keep secret,

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<v Speaker 1>but done right, you could be quite public about it.

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<v Speaker 1>For instance, you could give the same puzzle or cookbook

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<v Speaker 1>to every household or everyone in your friend's circle to

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<v Speaker 1>create a shared experience as you work through are the

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<v Speaker 1>same puzzle or try recipes from the same cookbook even

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<v Speaker 1>though you're in different places. Of course, gifts have to

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<v Speaker 1>get to their recipients too, and standing in line in

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<v Speaker 1>the post office is few people's idea of fun. So

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<v Speaker 1>even if you're buying local, see if the vendor can

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<v Speaker 1>ship and possibly wrap two. Since a lot more small

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<v Speaker 1>businesses have online shopping options these days, you might be

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<v Speaker 1>able to pull this off. For gifts you'll give in

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<v Speaker 1>person dedicated day to wrapping them all at once. It

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<v Speaker 1>can be fun to turn on some holiday music and

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<v Speaker 1>get out all your wrapping supplies. It has that Santa's

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<v Speaker 1>workshop feel, Plus it saves you from having to get

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<v Speaker 1>out wrapping paper, ribbons, scissors, and the like multiple times.

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<v Speaker 1>Since I have five kids, each kid gets their own

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<v Speaker 1>wrapping paper. I can see at a glance if the

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<v Speaker 1>piles look equal. If this feels like a lot of hassle,

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<v Speaker 1>well use gift bags. Gift bags with tissue paper covering

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<v Speaker 1>the president's side are ridiculously easy to pull off. Then

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<v Speaker 1>at the end of all this present giving, save your

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<v Speaker 1>gift bags and save any nice gift tags too, because

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<v Speaker 1>guess what, there will be another present next year to

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<v Speaker 1>Grandma from Fred. Now you already have a head start.

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<v Speaker 1>I am always looking for more tips on how to

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<v Speaker 1>streamline gift giving, so you can let me know yours

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<v Speaker 1>at Laura at Laura Vanderkam dot com. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcast at I

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<v Speaker 1>heart media dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward

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<v Speaker 1>to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of

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