Regarding the ultimate question "What kind of gift is a good gift", we can't give a universal gift that everyone loves as an answer, but we can tell you responsibly what kind of gift is not very good.
Why do we always receive "terrible and irritating" gifts? Carnegie Mellon University and Indiana University once conducted a survey. They find that giving gifts is always a topic of complaint because the giver and the receiver have different concerns. The giver pays more attention to the moment when the gift is sent, while the recipient pays more attention to the practical attributes and long-term value of the gift.
This conclusion also explains two unsolved mysteries of the Gift Festival-"Why do people always give you ornaments" and "Why do you hate ornaments so much". The person who sent the ornaments felt that the plush toy/crystal ball/eternal flower looked good, decent and quite satisfied at the moment of unpacking, but the person who received the ornaments has been entangled in his mind. "What's the use of this thing except dust?" This is the 800th time that I have received ornaments. Where do you think I should put them? "
Researcher Jeff Garak also gave an example to emphasize how much people love practical gifts. He said: "The vacuum cleaner sounds ordinary and old-fashioned, but many people really think that the vacuum cleaner is a very good gift. First of all, it can help them do housework. Second, it can really be used for a long time. "
In addition to explaining why we always receive bad and irritating gifts, this survey also summarizes some common "gift-giving mistakes"
1. "self-righteous surprise"
Such people don't want to give gifts that are already on each other's wish list. For example, if the other party has mentioned "I especially like XX", they will avoid this choice and think it is a shortcut and "lazy". On the contrary, they will rack their brains to prepare some strange gifts and try to surprise Bo Jun with a smile, but in fact, most people who receive gifts actually want gifts on the wish list, not surprises.
2. "Too realistic"
This type of giver pays too much attention to "physical gifts" and feels that the gifts must be packed in a square box and then wait for the other party to open them carefully. But in fact, for people who love experiential consumption, it is also possible to send concert tickets or send a DIY biscuit course together.
3. "philanthropist type"
Such people especially like to give socially responsible gifts, such as donating money to social charities in the name of the donee, but in almost all cases, the donee really just wants to receive a gift himself!
4. "Rolling price"
This kind of giver adheres to the iron law of "the more expensive the better", and they always like to express their love with price. But in fact, the high price of gifts is not necessarily positively related to each other's liking. Moreover, this way of giving gifts invisibly increases the cost of giving gifts back to each other, which is a sweet burden that everyone does not want.
According to a series of investigations on "gifts" by Curiosity Research Institute, our research institute has specially summarized a "bad gift list". Although no matter how bad the gift is, it also represents your mind, but I hope everyone will keep their eyes open and do a good job in lightning protection:
1. Useless ornaments: The Curiosity Institute once conducted a survey on "silent gifts", and we found that the most annoying gifts were ugly and useless ornaments.
2. Super-large doll: This is a kind of large-scale bacteria hotbed that "one person can't move it at all, it is basically impossible to clean it, and the freight for moving it is more expensive than the doll itself". Generally, after working for one or two years, they will fall in parks, roadsides and garbage bins, and will not die naturally.
3. get the series in one minute: for example, if the other party is not a die-hard fan of Starbucks, it is best not to send t a Starbucks mugs. This kind of street gift always has a perfunctory temperament. "What if it seems too late to prepare the gift?" It is better to stay at Starbucks on the side of the road for a minute. "
4. Insult aesthetics series: sincere and precious, not spicy eyes. Suppose your mother spent half a year embroidering a cross stitch of "Flowers on the Spring River" in Tomb-Sweeping Day, and let you hang it in the living room. What's your mood?
5. Handmade series: For example, send a secret secret love PPT that took only one night to make. Congratulations, you are likely to get a sentence "someone who has no right to order" or a sentence "the other party has started friend verification, and you are not a friend of t a".
6. Throw it into its rotten series: it is always right to send snacks to foodies, love beans to fans and electronic products to cool brothers. There is a tragedy in this world: you tried your best to bring red wine back from Italy to cheer TA up, but forgot that TA was allergic to alcohol.
7. Cash: If you two are not good enough to "rush to each other's house for a week anytime and anywhere", please don't try this high-risk gift-giving method easily. Of course, if you are really close, this is basically the most popular gift.