Meaningful ideas for intentional gift giving

Did you know 3 out of 10 Americans are still paying off last year’s Christmas gifts when they start their holiday shopping the following year?^† It’s an easy trap to fall into if the focus is simply on piling up the gifts in a flurry of spending. Even if blowing the budget or snowballing credit debt isn’t a concern, going overboard can feel overwhelming to everyone.

Maybe these post-Christmas-morning thoughts feel familiar: Where will we put all this stuff? Or: I opened so many gifts, but there’s nothing I really wanted. That’s why our experts recommend a different, more mindful approach to holiday giving. It’s all about slowing down, having an open dialogue with your family about what’s truly important, and making a few small changes that can have a big impact on holiday cheer.

Have the “holiday talk” with family

To get away from the cycle of gift-giving because it’s “just the thing you’re supposed to do,” it’s important to lay the foundation and set shared expectations long before Black Friday sales – which can start with ongoing conversations about goals, wants and needs. Of course, those talks will look different depending on kids’ ages, but it’s never too early to start. “Families should be very intentional with how they are giving gifts,” explains Jill Garvey, a Wealth Strategist at Huntington.

“They are thinking about how they can enhance someone’s life,” she says. She’s found that many of her clients have created some of their most lasting holiday memories not from a pile of gift-wrapped boxes, but from discussions about what each person finds truly meaningful. It’s crucial that you’re coming together as a group to discuss what’s important and to discover what everyone values.

For example, “many families get together at the holidays and discuss charitable giving and the organizations they would like to support,” Garvey continues. By having those conversations throughout the year, you can sidestep the gift-list panic and refocus on things that can’t be bought with a tap, swipe or click in store or online.

Stephanie Hannan, also a Wealth Advisor at Huntington, emphasizes the importance of expanding these conversations beyond the family core. “Engage grandparents or uncles and aunts,” she says, by setting up a conversation to say, “here’s where we find value and meaning.”

This proactive approach has another benefit, too: You can prevent well-meaning relatives from buying unneeded gifts while directing their generosity toward more important and lasting priorities. So instead of another toy with a gazillion separate pieces, you end up with something like dance or gymnastic lessons, or pitching in the final half for that electric scooter your child has been saving up for.

Embrace the experience economy

The shift from stuff to events is a significant trend in recent years.

“I observe families gravitating toward providing experiences for their loved ones,” Garvey observes. “They’re thinking, ‘What does my teenager truly need? Do they need more shirts, or should we create an experience?’”

These experiential gifts, such as family trips, concerts, cooking classes, or adventure outings, create memories that will last longer than material possessions.

Hannan shares a powerful personal example: “When Taylor Swift came to Pittsburgh, it was an experience that was going to happen for our family,” she says, calling it “a very special Christmas” even though the concert took place in June. And while not every family wants stadium concert tickets, the idea is universal: Identify experiences that create lasting family bonds and memories.

And don’t limit yourself to just the winter months, either. “Memorable travel might be at the holidays,” Garvey says, “or during the summer because of the weather.”

For families planning these types of gifts, you can always give it a holiday twist by putting vacation-related items under the tree. Travel guides, new luggage tags, or activity gear can build anticipation for the upcoming adventure. New skis, anyone? Or maybe fun beach toys?

Spending is fine, but don’t forget sharing and saving

Of course, there are other ways to make your gifting more impactful, including paying expenses for immediate or extended family. Lifting the burden of debt from a loved one’s shoulders can be one of the most meaningful gifts anyone can give. Plus, this can be a tax-advantaged “gift” for the giver, too.

“If I have family members who have qualified medical expenses,” Garvey explains, “as long as I pay them directly to the hospital or to the medical provider, they’re outside of the [IRS] lifetime gift limit.” There are tax-advantaged giving strategies that can provide tremendous relief to loved ones facing medical challenges and are worth including in the conversation about what’s most worthwhile to those on your gift list.

Other creative approaches include funding 529 education accounts, establishing family funds where everyone contributes to chosen charities, or creating “gift certificates” for future shared experiences like monthly lunch dates or seasonal activities. In this last scenario, every family member contributes a certain amount to a shared pool of money that can be used to pay the bill for a monthly family lunch or even to plan a major outing later in the year.

The holidays also present unique opportunities to weave financial literacy into family traditions. For example, you can talk to school-aged children about saving for college, or have a conversation with younger children about financial fundamentals. “If you go back to the basics of financial literacy,” Garvey says, “and have a budgeting conversation, we say there’s some money for spending, some for sharing, and some for investing.”

That “spending, sharing and saving” approach can open the eyes of many children to think beyond the next toy or gadget, turning gift-giving into lessons about budgeting and philanthropy around the holidays.

Breaking the cycle of more stuff

The goal isn’t to eliminate gift-giving but to make it more intentional and aligned with your family’s values and financial well-being. By starting conversations early, setting clear expectations, and expanding your definitions of what a gift could be, you can create holiday traditions that bring lasting joy without financial stress or material excess.

“I think it’s less about a dollar amount and more about the meaning behind it,” Hannan emphasizes.

This perspective shift, from focusing on things to focusing on what truly matters, can wholly transform your family’s approach to the holidays.