Greenbank Bulletin

Well it is that time of year again and many of us are facing the challenge of Christmas shopping and finding the right gifts for our loved ones. If like us that fills you with trepidation then we have a helping hand to offer. Many of you reading this will be familiar with Insights Discovery, the personality instrument which we use on many of our programmes where we normally use it as a tool to navigate the serious and demanding challenges of building business relationships. Now we have taken a lighter look at Insights to see if it can help us with the challenge of Christmas Shopping! 

The Shopping Experience

We all find our own challenges when shopping and of course some of us actually enjoy the experience. We've put together some tips and hints for the different Insights Personality types and how best to harness your natural colour energies when shopping at Christmas....

If YOU are Fiery Red

Obviously Christmas shopping needs to be efficient, but at the same time you will want to make an impact.

So - have you thought about employing a Personal Shopper?  You can give them clear instructions, budget and deadlines for completion - all of which you will love of course...

In the London area here are some suggestions to try:

Signature Gifts

Explain who you're buying for, pay £35 an hour, and a present will be suggested, selected, wrapped and delivered for any occasion. www.signaturegifts.co.uk, 020 7284 4922

Selfridges

Email or arrange an appointment to discuss your gift-buying dilemmas. A personal shopper will give you ideas and arrange wrapping and delivery to any address within the M25. Selfridges: 020 7318 3536 or personalshopping@selfridges.co.uk

John Lewis

For Christmas-shopping-phobic men, the store arranges a "buddy" to join them on a two-hour shopping spree around the store. If shopping for a woman, they need to know her sizes. Info: 08456 049 049.

Alternatively delegate the task to an easy going family member or perhaps someone wanting to make a little spending money before Christmas.

If YOU are Sunshine Yellow

Shopping of course CAN be fun if you make it - so go shopping with a friend or friends - you can chat as you shop.

Brainstorm gift ideas over drinks

Reward yourself for a shopping trip - meet up afterwards with friends for lunch. Or perhaps just the lunch?

This is our own Insights energy so here are two of our current favourites where we can  shop and then meet up with friends:

Navarro's

Quite small but warm, sociable and relaxed with a great selection of tapas to share amongst friends. The 'brocheta de cordero con patatas a lo pobre' is one of our favourites.

67 Charlotte Street, London, W1T 4PH, United Kingdom.

Reservations: 020 7637 7713

Email: enquiries@navarros.co.uk

Lobby Bar

One Aldwych, WC2B 4RH (020 7300 1070/ www.onealdwych.com).

Plenty of people watching opportunities at this bar in the One Aldwych hotel .Has a wonderful and unusual range of cocktails such as a Gazpacho Martini! Also some interestingly, different bar snacks such as mini wagyu steak burgers!

If YOU are Earth Green

You probably want to avoid the commercialisation of Christmas, whilst selecting gifts that are real personalised to your friends and family - the good news is that there is an increasing selection of companies offering ethical, fairly traded gifts this year:

Howies
The Howies website is brimming with quality eco goodies such as organic cotton T-shirts, jumpers made of bamboo (it grows quicker than cotton, and without pesticides), and locally produced items such as these socks, made in Cardigan Bay, Wales.

Bobelle Check out bobelle.co.uk for bags and purses made of hand-dyed Fair Trade eel skin (see above), a by-product of the food industry in Asia. Eel skin leather is around three times stronger than cow hide and beautifully smooth to touch.

Made specialises in jewellery by designers such as Pippa Small. Metals and stones are sourced and produced in disadvantaged communities in East Africa. made.uk.com

John Smedley
The British company has been ecologically friendly for more than 200 years. Its Peak District factory uses three underground springs to wash garments and to power the buildings. (020-7495 2222) Go for gloves for women, and a pullover for men.

Ascension
The online shop Ascension (formally Adili) stocks ethical brands such as Jackpot, People Tree, Edun and Kuyichi, as well as its own line. Ascension digital-print silk coat, £159 (ascensiononline.com)

Izzy Lane
The RSPCA Good Business Award winner Izzy Lane's knitwear is produced using woollen yarns from its 600 rare-breed rescue sheep or cashmere from British goats. Each product is luxuriously soft.

Mou products are ethically sourced and produced using natural fibres. Many, like its fab calf-skin make-up bag, are from remnants that would otherwise be thrown away. (mou-online.com)

If YOU are Cool Blue

The internet is great for Cool Blue shoppers of course - efficient and easy to research in order to get the best price - no need to pay over the odds!  It's also increasingly easy to send goods back, so is low risk if you choose sites that have a clear returns policy...

Now - by now you will probably already have done your shopping of course and got everything all wrapped - but just in case....

Ebay can be a great source for shopping - and you can check the seller has good references before bidding!

Vouchercodes.co.uk offers some great discounts at shops and restaurants - worth checking out before buying on line.

Gift Suggestions for different types

How to find the gift for the man or woman who already has everything? What will impress, delight or simply get us off the hook for another year! We have some suggestions for the 4 different colour energies....

Gifts for Fiery Reds

The luxury touch - the best you can buy e.g. always make it Vintage Champagne never sparkling wine.

Something that makes them feel special - the right brand - perhaps an exclusive fountain pen perhaps an engraved Cross or if money is no object take a look at the Nakaya range-sheer luxury and very, very special/expensive).

A desk clock to remind colleagues at work to 'be brief, be bright and be gone!'

A leadership book that steers clear of jargon and gives quick, practical steps to tackle some of today's leaders greatest challenges: 'The Leadership Book: How to Deliver Outstanding Results' (Financial Times Series) by Mark Anderson

Personalisation - eg their engraved initials often works for Fiery Reds

Gifts for Sunshine Yellows

Creativity is good here...

A gift that brings a new experience may be just the ticket. Companies such as www.RedLetterDays.co.uk offer gift experiences offer the chance for exciting bungee jumping, car racing experiences etc - and of course they also allow the individual to be flexible about when they schedule their special day.

One of our most appreciated gifts for our Sunshine Yellow son was a stand-up comedy weekend workshop in London www.jackmilner.com

Take them out to a show, comedy evening, dinner and surprise them when some of their best friends pitch up too....

Gifts for Earth Greens

Showing you really understand them is vital here - avoid vouchers or over commercialisation...

So - an electronic photo frame pre-loaded with favourite photos of friends and family can work a treat

Something that will bring back fond memories - a Cd of an old favourite album or a re-mastered film classic.

An electronic book/ Kindle already loaded with some of their favourites or a new book from one of their favourite authors

Gifts for Cool Blues

Avoid the extravagant and focus on the practical and useful.

Take a good look at the person you are buying for - is anything wearing out and looking like it needs replacing. Even if it is an everyday item a replacement will be well appreciated e.g. slippers tend to wear out every year so buying an identical pair of firm favourites can be a good choice

Vouchers can be useful way to make sure that your gift is going to be practical and useful -by letting the final choice be theirs.

Books on the person's special interest are always a welcome chance to reflect and gain a better understanding of the world around them - try Andrew Marr's 'A History of Modern Britain.'

In conclusion…

Obviously we are more than our 'personality type' but there may be some words here that ring a bell.  The main thing is to recognize of course that the person you are buying for may be different to you - so avoid the 'what would I want if I were them?' questions and instead consider "what might they want given who THEY are?" instead.  If Ian had done this a few years ago he might have avoided buying Judith a very nice - but never used - set of golf clubs - but there again that would have spoiled a brilliant and regularly referred to wind-up story whenever he has needed to be taken down a peg or two….

Happy Christmas from both of us!