Subscribe to my Feed
« What will it take to bring the banks on board? | Home | Write your rules with care »
Be ready with a bad gift apology!
By Lauren | December 16, 2009
It’s that time of year again … mail boxes crammed with catalogues, crowds at the mall, Bing Crosby crooning “White Christmas” on the radio, and everyone trying to find the perfect gift for someone they love. Many of those gifts will undoubtedly be winners. But what if you buy a present that’s an out-and-out flop?
It happens.
Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal featured a funny article by Elizabeth Bernstein about really terrible Christmas presents that spouses - okay, mostly husbands - gave to their wives. From unsolicited plastic surgery to breath freshener and anti-snoring strips, these gifts were almost certain to elicit immediate tears and decades of “remember the year you gave me that horrible weed wacker for Christmas?” long after the gift has gone to Goodwill.
Bernstein offered some great advice about how to avoid accidentally insulting your spouse with a bad gift. (Though I question her recommendation, “when in doubt, go down a size.” Nothing like making your honey try to struggle into something that fits like shrinkwrap.) But she neglected to mention one important point. If you’re determined to give your sweetheart a gift that’s all too practical or something of a practical joke, make sure you also have a sincere apology at the ready. It might be the gift that saves your holiday.
To read the Wall Street Journal article, go to http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703954904574595872903137030.html?mod=WSJ_hps_MIDDLESixthNews.
Topics: Apologies, Lauren Recommends |
December 24th, 2009 at 3:44 pm
[...] presents Be ready with a bad gift apology! posted at The Business Ethics Blog, saying, “In the rush to get your loved one something for [...]