Gifts That Have Value

“If you don’t know your own value, somebody will tell you your value, and it’ll be less than you’re worth.” 
 –Bernard Hopkins

Think back many years ago, as a young child receiving Christmas gifts of clothes. Your immediate thoughts might have been clothes are not a gift. Especially since you were expecting a toy. The major disappointment you might have felt is the sadness of not understanding why you did not get what you wanted.
The truth of the matter is that we have all received gifts, and we questioned why I’m getting this. How many ‘ties’ can your father wear? How many knickknacks have been bought and given, only to be re-gifted or placed on a shelf and long forgotten?

How much time was spent aimlessly walking around in the mall thinking about what should I buy? Is there such a thing as the perfect gift? In my private practice as an appraiser, I have worked for many high-net-worth individuals across Canada which has shown me another world. People’s perceptions of the lifestyles of the “Rich & Famous” are far from what is shown on TV shows or movies. One would think that if the person has the money, then the gift would be something special. Yes, these things do happen, but most of the High Net Worth Individuals, give through foundations or other charities. And they are very generous-minded. Within their own families, they try to build memories or experiences. These are examples of some of the “Greatest Gifts that have been given.

• Giving the gift of experience and the love of learning. The gift of using your life experience that a family member knows he or she is standing on the shoulders of a solid foundation. The trials and errors that you made, will help your family member to move forward and succeed in life. It does not matter what you do for a living if you earn an income to support yourself and your family, then you are a success. Sharing your experiences with a younger person might ignite a spark that will change his or her life course. The love of learning is something that you are never too old to learn new things. Give a gift certificate to an online course.


• If your kids or grand kids are a little older, sitting down with them to teach financial basics will go a long way to help their journey through life. If you are not sure of the concepts yourself, there are many YouTube videos on the subject. These can be watched together. These are topics that are not taught in school. This gift has the largest benefit in helping your child or family member. Mentor their educational path, towards topics that are not taught in schools.


• Time spent with your family and friends is another special gift. Someone who has the pressures of business and earning an income for the family has very little time. Giving the gift of helping out to reduce the number of things he or she is doing is one option. Give a handmade certificate to promise to do something that will give more time to the person to allow him or her to do something else with their time. Spending time with family and friends is a great gift of time. Think of all the seniors who reside in residences, who never have any visitors or if they do, the time between visits could be weeks or months. Spending some time with these family members, or if you have a friend who has a relative in a residence a visit would mean the world to them. (Don’t forget to bring some homemade or store-bought cookies) Or just spending time with that special someone. It’s not about spending money all the time.


• As a grandparent of 3, receiving something that they made with their own hands has a special place for me. Think about this, if you want something, no matter” what it is, you can buy it yourself. From my youngest grandson, I’m happy to receive any drawings or craft items. For the middle grandson, I want him to show me the latest video game that he created. Or what programming he did to control a microprocessor to do certain things. The oldest of the bunch, my granddaughter loves to create beaded jewelry and play the guitar. For me, my greatest gift is to be with them. Your attention to your younger family members is also a gift that they will appreciate. “How many times have you heard that no one pays any attention to me”.


• Any homemade baked goods will always be welcomed. Or prepared meals. There is a saying, You can be at the most fancy expensive restaurant with people that you do not connect with in any meaningful way. Or be with people you enjoy being with, eating hot dogs from a food truck and savoring each bite and moment.

Next Article: How do Taxable Donation Receipts work? Why you should consider donating personal property.

Disclaimer: We do not buy sell or engage in any financial transaction regarding personal property.

About the Author

John H. Grow, ISA-AM, is a partner in the appraisal firm Prestige Evaluation Inc. The firm specializes in antiquities, watches, clocks, jewelry, fine art, and collectibles in general. John works with clients worldwide, museums, corporations, foundations, financial / Insurance firms, and government agencies. He regularly appears on radio and television shows and charity appraisal fairs. A long-time member of the International Society of Appraisers. (ISA) & Canadian Chapter of the ISA. https://www.isa-appraisers.ca

John has been a volunteer for the past 35 years at the Shriner’s Hospital for Children (Canada) located in Montreal.
https://www.shrinerschildrens.ort/en/
locations/canada

He also does pro-bono assignments to various Hospital foundations. He is a founding board member of Orchestre Nouvelle Generations.
https://orchestrenouvellegeneration.com


Prestige Evaluation Inc. can be found at http://prestigeevaluations.com and the email is [email protected].