First the bad news; it’s December 22 and you’ve officially waited until ‘the midnight hour’ to complete your holiday shopping. I’m not judging. I am the President and Founder of the Last Minute Shoppers Coalition. I also bring good news. You can still get it done without increasing your stress level, doing battle in traffic or throwing caution to the wind and purchasing CVS gift cards for everyone.

I’m sure you’ve read the countless articles on last minute gift ideas; I will post a few of them at the end of this article. Why reinvent the wheel? Yes, I’m in holiday mode (otherwise known as “lazy). However, I do wish to focus on some ideas that you may not have considered:

1. Your Time

According to the U.S. Census reports “Nearly Half of our Lives [are] Spent with TV, Radio, Internet, Newspapers.” And a great percentage of what’s leftover is spent working or thinking about work. The holidays offer a great opportunity to reconnect with the people that mean the most to you. Think of an activity that involves every member of your family. Go skiing. Play card games (if your family is capable of playing cards without fighting LOL). Bring out the old board games. Cook some great tasting foods & snacks and call it an event. Being attentive to those around you is the greatest gift you can give.

2. Your Creativity

There are many tools and software programs available that allow you to store your photos and video. Many times we take tons of pictures, but they never get shared with our extended family. Organize your photos and video and give the gift of “great memories”. Create a scrapbook. Or create a DVD or CD archive of the photos you’ve taken during the year. Memories are priceless and can not be recreated. You are fortunate if you have them in digital format and you should share them with those you love.

3. Your Appreciation

Fabulous looking note cards are readily available. You may already have some at home collecting dust. You can use your note cards to express your appreciation to your friends and family members for a specific memory that they shared with you during the last year. Real personalized notes are rare. There are handwritten notes. And there are personalized notes. The receiver should know that the note card couldn’t have been given to anyone, but them.

Each is a priceless gift in its own right. Also, each is appropriate to give to those that are important to you both personally and professionally. However, if you must shop ’til you drop, here are a few additional last minute gift ideas:

1. “Five last-minute gifts you can print!” by Rick Broida (CNET News)
2. “101+ best holiday eco-gift ideas” by Laurie (ecoki)
3. “Mashable’s Holiday Gift Guide” by Matt Silverman (Mashable)
4. “Last-Minute Gift Ideas: There’s Still Time For Christmas Shopping” (HuffPost)
5. “Top 10 Best Christmas Gift Ideas 2009″ (Squidoo Lens)

Happy Holidays!
Kishau Rogers