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PSA: How to get a gift you want

RoloMather

RoloMather

Golden Member
Tell the person getting you the gift exactly what you want. Be as specific as possible to avoid mistake.

For example, if you want a book, give them the amazon link to the book.

This will solve a lot of frustration for both parties.

You can thank me later after witnessing the usefulness of this strategy for yourself.
 
What if you do that and they only give you the following:

- clothes
- DVD's
- Some kind of metro cologne/manscaping kit
 
I agree.

my Christmas conversation with my sister usually goes something along the lines of..

me: so what do you need?
her: check my amazon wishlist. you?
me: check my amazon wishlist.
 
MoPHo said:
What if you do that and they only give you the following:

- clothes
- DVD's
- Some kind of metro cologne/manscaping kit
Click to expand...

This problem is the usually the result of failure of communication.

You need to try harder to convey your wishes such that the other party understands.
 
Part of getting a gift for someone is knowing that person well enough to buy them a personal gift. If you are getting a gift for someone you don't know at all, it's usually because of some occasion, and then the gift should be obvious or a general gift (candy, gift certificate, etc).

But telling the person exactly what to get ruins the fun of surprise in exchanging gifts. At that point you might as well just buy the item yourself.

Also, some people like getting stuff that they might not have thought of themselves, but end up liking.
Sometimes I get gifts that aren't necessarily things I would have bought myself, but I'm glad I got. U\
 
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Crono said:
Part of getting a gift for someone is knowing that person well enough to buy them a personal gift. If you are getting a gift for someone you don't know at all, it's usually because of some occasion, and then the gift should be obvious or a general gift (candy, gift certificate, etc).

But telling the person exactly what to get ruins the fun of surprise in exchanging gifts. At that point you might as well just buy the item yourself.
Click to expand...

My strategy only deals with how to get a gift you want.

If what you want is a surprise, be prepared to get a gift you do not want. It is a known risk inherently built into surprise gifts.
 
sivart said:
go out and buy it yourself...problem solved.
Click to expand...

It sure is easy when the gift giver and the gift receiver are the same person. Any reasonable man can get himself a gift that he likes.

My strategy is useful for when they are not the same person.
 
RoloMather said:
It sure is easy when the gift giver and the gift receiver are the same person. Any reasonable man can get himself a gift that he likes.

My strategy is useful for when they are not the same person.
Click to expand...

Sorry, misunderstood...you mean someone would actually have to want to give me a gift? :awe:

For my family, I just set up a 'wish list' on Amazon and give them a link...done.
 
RoloMather said:
Tell the person getting you the gift exactly what you want. Be as specific as possible to avoid mistake.

For example, if you want a book, give them the amazon link to the book.
Click to expand...
Have you actually tried that in real life? It certainly never worked for me. I've been so specific as to provide the exact part number, at the exact store, with a link if it is online, with the price, and if there is a deal with details on how to get it for a low price. After ~25 years of being that specific, I have yet to ever receive ANYTHING on my list*. All I hear from friends and family is that they don't know what to get me. Or that they want to surprise me by not getting anything I want. The best I've gotten is the item on the shelf next to the item I actually asked for.

I've also tried the opposite, giving little or even no details in hopes that they can surprise me with a good gift and the result is the same, that I don't get anything I want.

With my family, I've resorted to asking for shopping days where they drive into town, go out with me, spend a day doing things, eating meals, and going shopping so I can have them buy the item that was on my list already.

With my wife, she's been buying herself gifts for years and selling them to her family so that she gets what she wants. I'm fairly certain that I'm going to have to stoop to that level if I ever want to enjoy one of my gifts that I get.

I know that it is the thought that counts. But why does the thought have to be "I'll get what Dullard doesn't want!"?

*There was one exception when someone bought something on my list without knowing it was on my list (a bag of Doritos chips).
 
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RoloMather said:
You can thank me later after witnessing the usefulness of this strategy for yourself.
Click to expand...

i see no reason to wait for the gifty goodness, i thank you NOW

thanksfortheinfo.jpg
 
Just ask for an amazon gift card. You can then return the thoughtfullness with a gift card from a clothing store. Or to make it easier... just paypal eachother $20.
 
Only people who ask me what I want are my parents. I do not trade gifts with my friends, however my room-mate seems to be on the path of getting each other presents.

If I find something I want or would prefer over having them choose what to give me I call them up and say, "Found something I want for $, want me to buy it now so you dont have to go find it yourself?" I buy it, take it over to the parents when I next see them (45 min away) and mom gives me cash for what I got myself. I had her pay off the last bit of a fridge I bought (paid off before 6-month no interest was up w00t!) for Christmas this year and she is gonna end up buying a Oscar de la Renta cardigan for me after I found out it was half-off at Macys wheee
 
Why not just ask for money? Then you can take said money and buy exactly what you want? Or, if you have an exact list and the exact links from Amazon, just buy it yourself and let your SO wrap it for you for Christmas. Those two are not much different than giving your SO an exact list from which she is not supposed to deter.
 
Don't ever just go out and buy a purse for your gf/wife/whatever unless you KNOW EXACTLY WHAT SHE WANTS/LIKES IN A PURSE. I just go with her and pay for it haha.
 
Problem is if I want something, I'll buy it myself... if I can't afford it, it's not something someone would buy for me as a gift anyway. So I can't really tell someone exactly what I want unless they're a millionaire who can plunk down $2k for a set of lens for my Canon DSLR.
 
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