Gifting Sense

It's an exciting time to work in early financial education. Check out the #MAIAMoneyChangers to learn why optimism reigns in financial literacy.

Have you ever received a holiday or birthday gift that you did not use or appreciate?? A whopping 92% of the students we've had in 'Thinking Before Buying’ workshops said they had received a holiday or birthday gift they did not use or appreciate. No one wins in this situation, neither the gift giver nor the receiver and worst of all, underappreciated gifts end up in landfills. Are gift cards a good option? The data doesn’t say so. A shocking $23B (and growing!) in unredeemed gift card balances are sitting around in kitchen drawers/glove compartments in North America! We need a wake-up call on our gift-giving approach! Here are some suggestions for the holiday season: 1. The purpose of a gift is to make the receiver feel cherished. However, one can’t feel cherished if they don’t feel heard! This is why asking,  “What can I get you that you’ll really enjoy and appreciate?” is such an important part of the gift-giving process. 2. Crowdfunding - Your children may have an expensive wish list item, consider crowdfunding that one expensive gift vs. buying your child less expensive items or experiences they may never use or appreciate. 3. Our money personalities are largely established by adolescence. To avoid wasteful spending and typical financial pitfalls, kids need to learn how to be good with money when they are in middle school. Thinking before buying is a spending speed bump - it slows young people down just enough to help them avoid disappointment, reduce waste, improve family harmony and protect the planet. Imagine a world where even a fraction of the $23B in unredeemed gift cards and the money spent on unused gifts went to causes that matter or stayed in family savings accounts. Share your thoughts on this and/or your answer to the question at the top.

Grandparents! You can be so much more than “pretty sure” your holiday gifts will be enjoyed and appreciated. You can be absolutely certain! GiftingSense.org and the DIMS - DOES IT MAKE SENSE?® SCORE Calculator can help - at no cost. We’re a free public good! 💡   The purpose of a gift is to make the receiver feel cherished. However, one can’t feel cherished if they don’t feel heard. Which is why asking people what they might like to receive is such an important part of the gift-giving process. It’s an honest attempt to listen to them. 🙉   If you’re a grandparent, you have two ways to hear your grandkids: You can go to the source or their parents—that is, your children.   If your children or grandchildren suggest a winter holiday gift you don’t love, of course, it’s your right to go in a different direction. But understand you’re losing an opportunity to make your family feel heard and cherished. 💔   If a wish list item is too expensive, consider crowdfunding with other family members—what about the other set of grandparents or out-of-town aunts and uncles?   We’ve been teaching young people to think before they buy for nine years, and we promise that when kids are given the chance to slow down and really look at a spend, they spend differently!   “What can I get you that you’ll really enjoy and appreciate?” That simple question is the easiest way to avoid disappointment, reduce waste, improve family harmony, and protect the planet.   #BeSure #HappyHolidays #BestGiftEver #GiveMoneySmartz #GrandkidGiftGuide #spendingspeedbump

In the nonprofit world, expanding REACH is everything! We're delighted that Next Gen Personal Finance has incorporated Gifting Sense into its most popular "Consumer Skills" curriculum for High School students, expanding our reach to NGPF's network of 100,000+ personal finance educators in all 50 of the United States! The interactive activity (linked in the comments) is perfect for the winter holiday gift-giving season. Thank you, #NGPF and Tim Ranzetta, for your continued support! Here’s to early financial education and all that it can accomplish. #FinancialLiteracy #Mission2030 #GiveMoneySmartz Karen Holland

Truth Bomb: Asking people what they might like to receive is an important part of the holiday gift-giving process. It’s an honest attempt to listen to them. The best gifts are the ones that make us feel heard. “What can I get you that you’ll truly use and enjoy?” That simple question is the easiest way to avoid disappointment, reduce waste, improve family harmony, and protect the planet.  Our free and safe DIMS-DOES IT MAKE SENSE?® SCORE Calculator can help young people answer that question thoughtfully in minutes! If your children or grandchildren suggest a holiday gift you don’t love, it’s your right to go in a different direction. But understand you’re losing an opportunity to make your family feel heard and cherished. If a wish list item is too expensive, consider crowdfunding with other family members—what about the other set of grandparents or out-of-town aunts and uncles? We’ve been teaching kids to think before they buy for nine years, and we promise that when children slow down and really look at a spend, they spend differently. Learn how and why at GiftingSense.org #GiveMoneySmartz #BestGiftEver #Holiday24 #JustAsk

We owe Taylor Swift an honest “Thank You!” Her Eras Tour hasn’t only brought friendship to the spotlight, boosted local economies and helped the NFL, it’s helped us!! There was a time, before the last 12 months, when not everyone had a quick answer to the question, “Who’s your favorite sports team?” But lately, we’ve been hearing “the Kansas City Chiefs” just about as often as “the Golden State Warriors”. And you know why. We ask this question because team sports and money-smarts have a LOT in common: you need offense and defense to win at either. Financial offense is earning an income. Financial defense is merely spending what you earn with a plan! A spending plan is easy to make when you’re in the habit of asking and answering simple questions about typical childhood (tween or teen) purchases before you spend your money or anyone else’s. Here’s to early financial education and all that it can accomplish, including helping young people everywhere realize that everyone likes a friend in their corner, even if they’re at the tip of their chosen profession. #TeachKidsAboutMoney #GiveMoneySmartz #ThankYouTaylor #taylorintoronto

Who doesn't love a new pencil? ✏ That's why we love handing them out at the end of every thinking-before-buying workshop. Pencils are the perfect mnemonic device—even in today's digital world, students still use them regularly. And we couldn't resist the natural suggestion that young people go old school, "sharpen their pencil," and practice slow spending until it becomes a habit. As tens of thousands of students now know, thinking before buying does NOT mean that you never get to do or buy anything fun. All it means is that you spend with a plan—a plan that is easy to craft when you're in the habit of asking and answering simple questions about typical childhood (tween or teen) purchases before you spend your money or anyone else's! Thank you, Michael Gilmore and Trudi Harris Dubon, for creating The Money Awareness and Inclusion Awards. Here's to early financial education and all that it can accomplish—which, if you ask any of the 300-plus teachers at the Jump$tart National Educator Conference, is a lot! #TeachKidsAboutMoney #JumpstartNEC #GiveMoneySmartz

Welcoming Chitra Unnikrishnan to the Gifting Sense project is more than adding talent—it's an alignment of purpose and personality coming together to serve the greater good. In this case, 2+2=>4! We’re honored to have you, Chitra. Your intelligence, drive, and commitment to our mission will undoubtedly accelerate our impact. Here's to preparing today’s school-aged children for all the personal finance decisions they'll have to make in the future - by teaching them to ask and answer simple questions about typical childhood (tween or teen) purchases before anyone spends a dime. #Welcome #SecondMountain #TeachKidsAboutMoney #EarlyFinancialEducation #GiveMoneySmartz

We started Canadian Financial Literacy Month at the Jump$tart National Educator Conference! Spending the weekend with hundreds of fantastic teachers who care as much about early financial education as we do…counts as many, many, many wins. (A reference to Jeff Eben’s powerful closing remarks.) #TeachKidsAboutMoney #GiveMoneySmartz #JumpStartNEC #ThankYou #FLM

When we were deciding what to bring to the Jump$tart National Educator Conference as a door prize for teachers, we knew the perfect thing: the American edition of “The Wisest Investment” by Robin Taub CPA, CA. It was such a popular choice, we had to promise to send an 11th winner a copy in the mail! Here’s to pencils, passion for early financial education and prizes that capture the attention of the professionals you brought them for! #GiveMoneySmartz #TenThousandPencils #JumpStartNEC #ThankYou #FLM