Gift-giving in the Workplace

Having learned how to gift wrap at the age of three, I eventually became my mother’s little helper during Christmas. Every year for more than twenty years, I grew up wrapping hundreds of gifts for my mother because she is a “Ninang ng Bayan” (town’s godmother).

In the beginning, it was all quite fun as I perfected my craft---in gift wrapping. But as the years went by, I started seeing this task as a repetitive chore. Every year, there were more gifts to wrap and more people to give them to, so much so that I lost the thrill and started wondering why my mother would put so much effort and care in finding and wrapping perfect gifts for people. At that point, I became jaded enough to start thinking, “Why should we even bother putting in too much time, money and effort in giving gifts to so many people?”

The answer came a few years back when I accompanied my mother to visit some cousins in the United States. My mother packed two luggage-full of presents aside from another luggage to carry her clothes. Since we went on a tour prior to visiting my cousins, we were lugging around all of these as we hopped from one city to the another. After five cities and extremely sore muscles, we finally arrived at my cousins’ place in New York and I was relieved to see my mom off-loading and giving all the presents to my cousins. Deep down though, I was asking “Why go through all the trouble?”

Then with tears in their eyes, my cousins hugged my mom and thanked her. Later on while one of my cousins and I were alone, she told me that out of the 12 uncles and aunties that we have (my mother belongs to a very big household), my mother was the one person who always checked up on them and gave them nice things when they were young and struggling financially as a family to survive. My mother helped them succeed in life and more importantly, she made them feel that someone cared. I remember my cousin telling me with awe and sincere admiration, “Your mother is the most gracious person I know.”

GRACIOUSNESS…wow, what a glorious word.

There are moments in one’s life that etches a profound meaning in ones heart. For me, this was one of them. Hearing my cousin say those words about my mother made me see her in a magnificent light and it made me realize how lucky I am to be her daughter.

That event also enlightened me to the real meaning of gift-giving. Now I understand that gift-giving is really about showing a person that you care and that they matter to you. And once a year, we get the perfect opportunity to show people around us that we do care and appreciate them. Christmas is a time of giving and thanking people who have touched our lives.

In the workplace, there are many people who we work with closely or who work quietly to make our lives better. This holiday season, you can show them that you care by giving a sincere greeting or a thoughtful gift. Here are a few suggestions…

FOR YOUR BOSS
This is a tough one. I suggest finding out your boss’ interest or hobby, then go from there. Bosses don’t really expect you to give them expensive gifts, but a thoughtful one will tickle them. The best gift I’ve ever received as a boss is actually a simple picture frame with a magazine photo of myself with personalized headlines that my staff designed using photoshop.

FOR YOUR SUBORDINATES
Go for things that they can use in the office such as desk organizers, toiletry bags, lunch boxes, personalized pens or daily planners. You can also give motivational books or cds that can inspire them. These things are much appreciated and will help your staff perform better at work.

FOR YOUR COLLEAGUES
Colleagues may experience the same issues or stresses that you may encounter. So cheer them up with gifts of humour like novelty clips for the office, quotable quote magnets, book of jokes and funny calendars. A little humour in gifts will help your colleagues relax and remember you for giving them these little welcomed breaks.

FOR YOUR CLIENTS
Since customers are critical for every business, your company will definitely allot the budget and gift inventory for clients. Popular gifts for top clients include gift baskets, wines, cakes and goodies. Corporate giveaways such as bags, pens, calculators, caps, and mugs are also quite popular. Personalized greeting cards also help.

FOR OFFICE HELPERS
Janitors, guards, pantry keepers and messengers make our work lives a lot easier. Show them that you appreciate their help with simple things like cookies, umbrellas, t-shirts, or slippers. These things do not cost much but it goes a long way in making them feel extra special this Christmas.

A thoughtful gift need not be expensive. The point of gift-giving is showing people that you care enough to spend time and effort in making them feel special. It is really about being gracious. Let’s all celebrate the yuletide season with a gift of grace.


Aside from her day job as president of Businessmaker Academy and the managing director for HR Club Philippines, Jhoanna O. Gan-So is also a master wrapper of gifts during the holiday season. She has appeared on several TV shows and has conducted workshops on creative arts and crafts for fun to hundreds of people. Meanwhile, her company regularly conducts seminars on Business, Finance, HR and Corporate Skills Training. To know more about the seminars that they offer, you may visit www.businessmaker-academy.com or call (632)6874645. You may email your comments and questions to: mbworklife@gmail.com