TUTORIAL: Budgeting Basics
Services may include anything from
babysitting to walking the family dog or giving both the baby and the dog a
bath. The only limitations are the limits of your imagination. Below, we list
seven unique personal services.
A Complete House Cleaning
Working people will appreciate this service
immensely. The service could include vacuuming the carpets, dusting the
furniture, washing the day's dishes, washing the windows or taking out the
garbage. The procedure may take more than one day, so the gift-giver may want
to recruit a helper. This would be an excellent gift for siblings to give to
their working parents, or a husband to a wife.
Grocery Shopping
Shopping for groceries can take a precious
hour or more from your day. A gift of grocery shopping for a month - say four
separate trips, or one every week - will be more than welcomed by the person
who gets this service. Ask the recipient to draft a shopping list, provide the
cash and leave the rest up to the giver. If the giver of this service can
afford it, perhaps he or she can pay for one of those shopping trips. (To help
you while grocery shopping, check out A Map To Grocery Store Savings.)
Doggy Care
Dogs can be high maintenance pets and their
masters spend a lot of time tending to their needs. So, a gift of doggy services,
which could include walking, bathing, feeding, a trip to the vet, etc., would
be greatly appreciated. If the giver is not available for dog services during
the week, the gift can be restricted to weekends only.
Chauffeur Services
This gift is particularly appropriate for
seniors who can no longer drive, but it's also a service that others who do
lots of driving and searching for a place to park will appreciate. The driving
should include door-to-door pick up and delivery. The chauffeur does the
parking, letting the passenger disembark at the door of his or her destination.
The chauffeur service can be valid for an entire day, or an entire weekend.
Errand Service
People are overwhelmed by all the things they
have to do: go to the bank to make a deposit, pick up the dry cleaning, return
the library books or pick up the pizza. An errand service eliminates all this
time-consuming hassle for the recipient.
Complete Laundry Service
Washing, drying and ironing someone's laundry
will put you in solid with the recipient of this gift.
Wash It All
There are plenty of objects around the house
that could use a good washing, kids and pets not included. Among the likely
targets of soap and water are the floors, windows and cars. By washing any or
all of these as a gift, an abundance of gratitude will follow.
The Bottom Line
You
can baby sit, mow the lawn or shovel the snow. You can also cook, paint the
walls or repair whatever is broken. These are inexpensive services you can
provide yourself, but they also provide a personal aspect to the gift that will
be long remembered by the grateful recipients.
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