The holidays are approaching fast, that’s just the way it feels many times. It’s a time of joy & bliss, and of course,  for last minute gift purchasing—which is my case this year. Alejandro’s gifts are all backordered…

This entire year I have had the opportunity to get a little closer to myself, to listen to my feelings and act upon my gut’s beliefs and I came to the conclusion that this holiday season I will be giving gifts that make a difference in people’s lives. Yes, it is nice to get that new iPad or any other cool gadget but most of the time this things are not life changing and ephemeral. During the year, I had the opportunity of experiencing new ways of seeing and doing things because of a blog post, an audiobook, or an internet videos show I downloaded or just a link that a friend shared on social media with a kick ass message. These kinds of things usually don’t cost much but a little bit of time… and maybe some money.

So for your consideration, I have 6 holiday gifts that can make a difference.  If you are brave enough, why not give then this holiday a:

1- Tutorial
There are tons of things you know how to do that your mother doesn’t, even have a clue on how to go about it. Why don’t you teach her how to search online for cheaper dresses on eBay (Luz and her mom can tell you about that). Or teaching your sister how to make her favorite stew (that she ask you to make her every time she visits you). You can give a tutorial about anything that you know. You think you don’t know much? You’ll be surprised about the things you know that many don’t. So give it a try.

2- Give a Makeover
Do you get comments as to how nice you dress up/apply makeup/do your hair or insert your power here…? Why don’t you teach someone? You can give your tips on how to buy clothes, how to put together a wardrobe for different occasions. You can teach how to use one piece of clothing for different occasions or how to style your hair in a hurry or how to do smokey eyes the right way. Anything that you are an expert of could be a great gift for that person. I know that there are tons of blogs online that teaches about that stuff but you can’t compare how powerful it is to have someone teaching you one on one and even better when that person is your friend.

3-Give Your Time
The most valuable resource is time. Give an hour of your time to help someone. I’m not talking about a charity or community work I’m talking about giving time to an individual. My wife and I have a friend that recently had her first  baby. I remember that she posted on social media how she will kill for a night out. My wife showed the post to me laughing because it reminded her us on our first baby and then asked “Oh! Can we take care of her little one for a night? Right?” which I replied “Ok, but I’ll feed her and you change her, deal!” We ended up giving our time as babysitters to our lovely friends and they enjoyed a great night out. You can think of hundreds ways you can give a couple of hours to an individual that will make a great impact in their current life.

4-Give knowledge
This is different than a tutorial. Gift a cooking workshop, a how to audiobook, a  CPR class… any way to increase knowledge in a particular topic it’s always a good gift. There are great places where you can buy knowledge, for example I love Creative Live, there you can purchase a class from experts for a fraction of the price. This is mostly for the creative person in your life but you can also get other types of courses there. You can buy an audiobook gift card  at Audible.com and write a cute note with your recommendations for books or magazine that make you think of that person.  Or if you want to go to the most cost effective round, you can create a kick ass Youtube playlist of videos you think can make a difference and write a nice email presenting each link with a summary. Here are some channels that I love: TED talks, Chase Jarvis Live, And Ask Gary Vee Show.

5- Give a photo session
Yes, I said it. Give the gift of existing in beautiful photographs to someone you want to keep for a long time. Now, we are the generation that is the most photographed in human history but we are also the one that gets the most memories lost because we don’t print photographs anymore. So give the gift of a photo session to your sister, your mom or event to yourself. There are many photographers that have gift cards available for purchase. You can create a package with your photographer that includes prints and give the gift of a lifetime. Photography is one of those rare things that increases in value the older it gets.

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6-Give Music
Music is the sound of the soul,  it doesn’t matter how old or young you are music is always good for you. So give the gift of happiness through music. You can gift a Spotify subscription and give it to your loved one or purchase an iTunes download of her favorite tunes. If you want to go big and wide, get him an LP player and get that particular album in LP… these kinds of gifts are so valued. You can get some LP’s here.

7- Give a Subscription 
It could be a month, a year, or however long you want of the things you think will be beneficial for that person to learn. I think that dancing is one of the most amazing skills someone can have. It gives you a boost in confidence, makes you feel happier and not to mention it’s physical benefits. You can find more about dancing clases at your local YMCA. You can also gift your sister’s son a karate class, or buy piano lessons for your niece or singing lessons for your wife, the list goes on and on. You just need to look at their interest.

6- Give a Meal
Simple as that. Cook a meal for a group of friends, host a gathering in your home and give thanks to those that helped you be the person that you are today while having a great meal together.

Remember that the majority of life changing gifts are usually not the ones you purchase at Amazon but the one you put time, thoughts, and good wishes. It’s good to know that these are people very close to you and that underneath of all, you will be better if they are better.

Please share if you like.