Gift Guide for Men
Buying gifts for men can be a difficult process, especially if you’re a woman. Men and women look at gift giving in completely different ways. This comprehensive guide will help you choose gifts he’ll truly love, avoid spending problems, and surprise him on Christmas morning.
The Rules of Giving to Men:
While women want gifts that are sentimental and romantic, men prefer functional and practical gifts. This is a basic difference in personality between the sexes. For generations, women have been buying romantic and sentimental gifts for men, and men have been buying practical gifts for women. Within a few mental leaps, the occasion becomes a catastrophe, and the good intentions of the gift giver are lost.
When buying gifts for men, follow this general rule: if he can’t use it, eat it, wear it, or play with it, put it down and keep looking. Think of his hobbies and look for toys and tools that coincide. If he likes to fix things, consider a cordless power drill or new toolbox. A camper or hiker might enjoy a Swiss army knife, industrial-sized cooler or snack basket.
Maybe every other day of the year you are annoyed by his excessive sports watching and poker playing, but today is Christmas. Show him you love him by not only tolerating his hobbies but promoting them. You could give him a sports themed gift basket, tickets to a game, sporting equipment, a weight set or sports memorabilia. A new poker set and gaming snack basket would be perfect for card night with the guys. Not only will he brag about you to his friends, but he’ll be ecstatic about the gift.
When in doubt, many women buy men ties and socks. They are classic generic gifts. For the important men in your life like you boyfriend or husband, father and brothers, never give a generic gift. You don’t have to get something sentimental, but make it personal. If you decide on clothing, buy a sweater or pants. If he really does need a new tie and socks, why not add a dress shirt, dress pants or a jacket? Choose clothing you know he’d wear, and not clothing you wish he’d wear. The gift is for him, not you.
No matter what his age, there is still a little boy inside him. For men, the toys get larger, more complicated and more expensive. Taking an interest in his hobby is a great Christmas gift. If he plays video games, get him one you can play together. Give him a popular gadget or technical toy, and let him show you how it works. He’ll be thrilled with your new found fascination.
Men have sensitive egos and if you shower him in extravagant gifts for Christmas, he may feel bad about giving you less. Being thoughtful is one thing, but being excessive is another. If the relationship isn’t that serious, spending too much money on gifts could overwhelm him and ultimately chase him away. Overspending isn’t worth losing a potential boyfriend. You have two options to avoid this problem:
- 1. Estimate the amount you think he’ll spend on you, and don’t exceed it.
- 2. Talk to him about setting a spending limit and obey it.
Giving clues about gifts seems like an innocent way to boost his curiosity, but appearances may be deceiving. He’s already curious, too curious. Simply mentioning you got him something will send him into snoop mode. The anticipation of Christmas is killing him. He will hunt and search until he finds or figures out what you got him. Act discreetly about his gifts, hide them well, or keep them at a different location, like your parent’s house. He’ll appreciate the effort when he’s surprised on Christmas morning.
Good luck and Happy Shopping!
