The only thing better than receiving an awesome gift from a loved one, is picking out the perfect gift to give to a loved one. Hey, it’s better to give than to receive, right? If you have any introverted friends or family members, then you’re going to want to pay attention to this article that will help you select a kind and thoughtful gift for them. If you’re looking to elevate your gift giving game this year, read on!
Introverts spend a lot of time wrapped up in their own internal thoughts and feelings, so when they receive a gift that really speaks to their soul, it can make a huge impact on them. Before we dive into the list, let’s take a moment to clarify what being an introvert actually means.
A Quick Review Of The Myths and Realities Of Being An Introvert
When many people think of the word introvert they often picture a meek person who is afraid of public speaking, who never goes to parties and likes to hang out at home with a lot of cats. But being shy or anti-social isn’t the same thing as being introverted.
The term introvert was first popularized by Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung. It was later made even more popular by the Myer’s Briggs Personality Type Indicator Test. Simply put, introverts tend to be more introspective and focused on their own inner thoughts and feelings. While an extroverted person thrives on the attention of others and feels happiest within a group of peers, an introvert finds social activities more taxing and needs to recharge or refresh with more solidarity activities. Introverts don’t hate social gathering they simply prefer being alone in their down time. They tend to be more reflective, creative and in tune with their own emotions.
There is a wide spectrum of introvertedness with most people falling somewhere in the middle. The more introverted a person is, the more quiet time or downtime they need. Here are five main personality-based gift giving categories that will help you nail the perfect introvert gift for any occasion.
Mindfulness Gifts For Introverts
Mindfulness is about focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while acknowledging and accepting your own feelings, thoughts, and physical sensations. Used as a therapeutic technique, mindfulness is a calming activity that helps you focus and grow. Examples of mindfulness activities are meditation, yoga, walking, and journaling, just to name a few. Here are few great examples of mindfulness gifts:
Zen Garden Gift Set – Let your stress melt away as you endlessly rake your little sand garden.
Mala Meditation Beads – Mala beads are a beautiful way to count repeating mantras in meditation.
10% Happier Mindfulness and Meditation Book – This popular book will help you use mindfulness to improve your quality of life.
The Five Minute Journal – Spend just five minutes per day with prompted journal entries.
Solitary Hobby Gifts For Introverts
Since introverts like spending time with themselves, it only makes sense that they would have one or more solitary hobbies to keep themselves entertained. Find out what hobbies your favorite introvert likes and buy related gifts or help them find a new hobby that they can do on their own. A solitary hobby might be something skillful like sewing, knitting or making DIY crafts. An introvert might enjoy culinary arts like baking or cooking. Since many introverts tend to be creative they might like art supplies to help them express their inner thoughts as drawings or paintings. There are lots of fun hobbies you can do alone, the possibilities are pretty much endless. A few more hobby ideas could include photography, music, reading, or hiking. Just to give you an idea of what’s out there, here are a few hobby inspired gifts:
Cook fresh meals with high quality ingredients from Whole Foods – cooking meals at home can be very appealing to introverts, especially if the kitchen is closed-in and not open floor. You can find some great meals that can delivered right to your door with all the fresh ingredients you need. Some selected cities even have 2-hour delivery!
Mandala Adult Coloring Book and A Set Of Prisma Colored Pencils – Adult coloring has becoming so popular it is it’s own booming industry. There are lots of fun adult coloring books out there!
Knitting For Beginners – This book will help anyone get into the creative and solitary art of knitting.
Reading And Knowledge-based Gifts For Introverts
Introverts tend to learn best by reading and watching. Signing up for a hands-on, in-person class full of strangers might not be ideal for them but luckily these days we have plenty of online video content to keep introverts happy. Buy your favorite introvert an online class so they can learn a new skill or pursue a new passion that interests them. How about an online video course on brewing your own beer as a great male introvert gift? You can find digital classes on novel writing, drawing, fitness and so many other interesting topics. Not sure exactly what they want to learn? You can sign up for one of several subscription-based lesson services.
Reading is also a relaxing, quiet activity that many introverts love. New books or book lover gifts are a great safe bet. Aside from buying actual books, you can also buy bookmarks, book lights, a digital reading device such as a kindle, or any cute book nerd gifts like t-shirts and coffee mugs with cute quotes about reading. A few ideas for learning or book based gifts for introverts:
Learn a New Skill – Learn about anything that truly interests you. Learning just about any skill or hobby under the sun.
Audible – Another great subscription-based service for introverts, listen to all the audiobooks you want while curled up under a blank on the couch.
Old Book Smell Candles – For everyone that loves the smell of old books, classrooms and libraries!
The Book Seat Reading Pillow – Now book lovers can read in ultimate comfort! Hold your book comfortably on you lap while in bed.
Gifts To Help An Introvert Recharge
Being an introvert can be exhausting at times because social activities and dealing with large groups of people are chores that take a lot of focus and attention. Introverts still like hanging out with their family and friends, they’ll come to your birthday party or meet up with the girls or guys for happy hours, but afterwards they need a few hours of alone time to catch their breath. Gifts that involve personal pampering can be a godsend. Spa treatments, lotions and bath bombs are perfect gifts for female introverts. Recently some great personal-battery recharging activities have become popular such as sensory deprivation floating or spending time in a salt cave. These relaxing activities can help you unwind, reduce stress and give you plenty of time for introspective thought. Here are some recharging gift ideas that you can look up local sources for and get a gift card for your favorite introvert:
- Float Tanks
- Salt Caves
- Spa Treatments
- Massages
- Yoga Classes
- Bath bombs
- Lotions, soaps and candles
Funny Gifts That Celebrate Being An Introvert
When all other ideas have been exhausted, you can never go wrong with a cute, funny or entertaining gift. There is no shortage of introvert celebratory t-shirts, coffee cups, phone cases, welcome mats, coloring books, journals or other fun products with funny introvert sayings on them. Not only will these gifts get a smile or a laugh, they tell your introverted pal that you love and accept them for who they are. Just a few funny ideas to get you going:
Introverts Unite A collection of shirts with a subtle sarcastic touch that only introverts can understand and love!
I love this T-Shirt! Sorry I’m Late, I didn’t want to come
Come To The Introvert Side We Have Cats Shirts and other introverted items to choose from
It’s Too Peopley Outside Coffee Mug
Quiet Girl In A Noisy World Funny book
Go Away Welcome Mat
Introverts can be some of the coolest most interesting people to get to know, so invest your time and attention on selecting a memorable and useful gift for them. Keep in mind the 5 categories above and you should have an endless idea pool for future introvert gift giving.
