Gift Giving to Millenials - Experiences

A quote from Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents’ treasures

"Take Kelly and Josh Phillips, who rent a 700-square-foot apartment in the District’s Shaw neighborhood. The couple frequently sells things on Craigslist and calls an Uber instead of owning a car. “My parents are always trying to give us stuff,” says Kelly Phillips, 29, a real estate marketer. “It’s stuff like bunches of old photos and documents, old bowls or cocktail glasses. We hate clutter. We would rather spend money on experiences.”

Consider this from 8 things millennials want—and don’t want—show how different they are from their parents. 

Millennials

WANT: Athletic gear
Millennials tend to be cash-strapped and carrying a little bit more debt, but that doesn't mean they don't splurge anywhere. And one place they do tend to spend is on athletic apparel and footwear. It makes sense, given the emphasis that Millennials put on health and nutrition.

We coach our clients to think about purging items, not purchasing more and giving gifts of experience. Think about purchasing these things as a gift:

Ticketmaster gift certificate to be used towards concerts
Subscription to a Concert Series 
Running Shoes from a Running Store 
Top Notch Athletic gear
Massage or Spa treatments  

Subscription for an on-line music service like Pandora 
Subscription to Netflix 
Lessons for grandchildren such as Karate, Soccer Camp, etc.
Memberships to museums or the zoo

Saving photos to pass along to your children

Photos, photos, photos, oh my!

Our clients have photos stored in boxes, bags, envelopes, trunks, in a digital maze on smartphones, and computer hard drives.

In this article Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents’ treasures, the author shares:

“Millennials are living a more transient life in cities. They are trying to find stable jobs and paying off loans,” says Scott Roewer, 41, a Washington professional organizer whose business is the Organizing Agency. “They are living their life digitally through Instagram and Facebook and YouTube, and that’s how they are capturing their moments. Their whole life is on a computer; they don’t need a shoebox full of greeting cards.”

“I consider myself a digital hoarder,” says Josh Phillips, 33, who is opening a Oaxacan restaurant, Espita Mezcaleria, this fall in Shaw. “If I can’t store my memories of something in a computer, I’m probably not going to keep them around.”

While Millennials are taking more photos than we can possible store, we understand they are not worrying about where to put Great Aunt Soph's precious genealogical collection. 

We offer these tips:

1. Do not store printed photos in the attic. 
2. When possible, purge duplicates and landscapes. Large bridal portrait of an ex-daughter-in-law?Throw them in the trash people! 
3. Remove large photos from frames to store in flat boxes. 
4. Store traditional photos in small photo shoe boxes. Like with Like. Try to fit a year in one box or one child's portion, etc. 
5. Store larger photos in flat, scrap booking boxes. 
6. Take important photos to be scanned and stored digitally. There are services in town and on-line.
7. Name your digital photos two ways -  Date and Place. If you ever want to search, usually you can remember with the date or the place. 
8. Back up your digital photos and store in a safe place such as a lockbox or safe. 

Don't save that TV for your kids

Inspired by the article Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents’ treasures, I found the link to this article equally fascinating 8 things millennials want—and don’t want—show how different they are from their parents. 

Gretchen and I can attest that many points in this article are surprisingly TRUE. 

For example, the topic want - TO BE HEALTHY and don't want A TV. 

This may be shocking but think about it. Are you saving furniture or electronics for your child for a college apartment or their first house?

Ask yourself these questions:

1. How long before the child will be able to use it? 

2. Do you have a place to store it? 

3. Will your child actually want it? 

Electronics are updated every 3 months: Lighter, more intelligent, more features. 

Goodwill does not accept televisions with a tube. 

Electronic Waste costs money to recycle - see fee schedule below 

Electronic waste is collected for proper disposal each Monday through Thursday, and Saturday from 7:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. at 1140 Haley Road in Murfreesboro. The County provides a small crew to assist residents in unloading electronic waste. The center will accept anything with an electric cord and batteries on those days. Because of the hazardous materials in televisions and computer monitors, the County is accessed a fee per pound by the vendor, therefore this fee is passed on to customers. All other electronic devices are disposed of free-of-charge. The current fee structure for televisions and monitors is as follows:
1- 20 pounds = $5.0021- 40 pounds = $10.0041 – 60 pounds = $15.0061 – 80 pounds = $20.0081 – 100 pounds = $ 25.00101 – 120 pounds = $30.00121 – 140 pounds = $35.00141 – 160 pounds = $40.00161 - 180 pounds = $45.00181 - 200 pounds = $50.00 
Fee continues at $5.00 per 20 pound increment.

Saving items for your children in the attic? Think about the timeline.

An article in that appeared in the Washington Post inspired me to share our ideas about saving stuff for your kids. 

Take a look at it here: Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents’ treasures 

The first thing to consider is the timeline. 

1. How old is your child right now?
2. What date do you think the child can take the items from you?
3. Do you have the space to properly store it? 

Think about this example of collecting your child's recreational sport t-shirts. 

If your child is 10 and you plan to collect 4 shirts for the next 4 years, you will have 16 shirts. 

1. Where will you store them? 
2. After you finish collecting and store them, how old will the child be when he/she will want them back? 28?

So, you are going to keep these 16 shirts for 14 years. 

We suggest another option. Collect shirts for 4 years, store them in your child's bedroom and then make a quilt. Whatever you don't use, give away. ~Amy 

Cleaning Out Your Closet

This month begins our 5th year of cleaning out closets!  

Our best tip is to clean our your closet with an honest friend. Here are a few more:

1. Pull items out of your closet and go to a room in your home with the best light to make your decisions. You will quickly identify items with those little balls on them, holes, rips, tears, stains, ring around the collar. 

2. Place like items together before you purge - like with like. Do you have 9 pairs of clogs? 11 pairs of flip flops? It's hard to make a decision on which items to keep if you have them stored in every closet in the house. Round all of them them up in one place. 

3. Decide what to keep by choosing your top five must-haves in each category. Then, put them away in your closet. Go back to the pile and pick a few more. Be honest with yourself. You are 1 person. How many days are in the week before you wash and hang it back in your closet? How often do you need to wear it?   

~Amy