Should you get your new guy a holiday gift? It’s a tough call and depends on a few factors. The amount of time you’ve been dating plays a significant role in whether or not you should buy a gift. If you’ve only been on a few dates, no matter how well you think things are going between the two of you, getting him a holiday gift this early in the game might scare him off.
Here is my advice on when it’s a good idea to buy and when it might be better to wait to get your new guy a holiday gift:
Are the two of you exclusive?
If you have yet to have the “what are we doing here” talk and haven’t crossed over from casually going on dates to “dating” it might be best to skip the holiday gift this time. That’s not to say you can’t get him a card and something small, but going so far as to get him a thoughtful, potentially pricey present isn’t worth the effort if you’re really not sure what’s going on between you. Once you know this is going to be more than a few dates here and there, feel free to shop. That’s how you know if you should get your new guy a holiday gift.
How well do you know him?
Getting to know someone new takes time and there’s no need to wait three holiday seasons in order to start shopping for a gift for a significant other. But if you’ve only been together for a short time how well do you really know this person? Depending on how long you’ve been dating, if you have absolutely no idea where you’d even begin when it comes to gift picking, you might not be ready yet.
If you’ve bonded to the point of knowing exactly what you’d pick out and why, that means you’re much more ready to buy for the new person in your life.
Would you care if he doesn’t buy for you?
This is an important question to ask yourself. If you feel ready to buy for him–the two of you are exclusive, you’ve been dating more than a month, would you be OK with not getting a gift in return? If the answer is yes, then hit the shops, but if you would feel uncomfortable not having your gifting reciprocated you might want to hold off this season. There’s nothing worse than waiting expectantly for a gift–and not getting one. So maybe its not a good idea to get your new guy a holiday gift.
The bottom line: There are no rules when it comes to who you can and can’t buy for over the holidays, but when it comes to shopping for someone you just started dating, the key is to be careful. Feel him out, know where you stand and just be comfortable with your decision before you wrap something up for him. If the idea of presenting him with a gift feels good and it won’t come off as too much too soon, then you have nothing to worry about.
