Times are changing and we’re seeing that today’s fiscally-minded, eco-friendly mentality of ‘Spend the money wisely and skip the gift wrap’ is having an impact on the way people are thinking about their needs when they are getting married, having babies or even graduating from school. You are starting a new chapter in your life, and it’s often a time when you need some new things to help get you started on the right foot. Yes, we can all use some upgrades to our linens, but these days many are finding themselves thinking bigger and focusing on the longer term, both in terms of personal investment and the global impact. These big life milestones are the perfect time to set a precedent for this new phase of life by investing in the future with monetary gifts that both help you reach a big goal and keep your environmental footprint to a minimum.

For many, this is a new way of thinking and challenges our ideas of what is a gift? We think wrapping paper, boxes, physical items and the nostalgia of remembering who it is from while using it. But presents only last so long, and eventually most lose their luster, break or become redundant by the next innovation. We all know this, but it’s what we’re used to and with the advent of the gift registry in the 1920’s, it’s how we’ve come to handle the gifting process during these major life celebrations. Given how emotionally complex gifting can be, its been our best solution until now, since as much as a gift should be about the recipient, there is often a lot, pardon the pun, wrapped-up in the gift itself: how the giver wants to be perceived and what they want to be remembered for.

Especially for the older generation, it may take some getting used to that what you will appreciate most from their singular gift is the good that can come from it when combined with all the others. You won’t be remembering them for the pretty salad bowl they bought you, but rather that they helped you: take your first trip to Europe, buy your first home with money left over for some furniture, enroll in swim lessons to make your baby water-safe or inspired you to get a head start on the college fund that will make things easier years from now. Especially in our disposable society, ‘things’ only last so long, but gifts like these truly last a lifetime.

Your loved ones want to give you something special, something you will actually use, and there’s nothing more special than an investment in your future. Think it’s hard to make this happen? It’s really no different than showing friends and family what kind of china or stroller you would like. A Deposit a Gift cash gift registry works just like the department store registry you’re comfortable with, but is a new twist on an old idea to help your guests have fun contributing to something bigger and help you meet your goals. They will still be remembered for their unique gift, only this time it might be the stove in your new kitchen or the safari you’ll take in South Africa. What’s more fun than that?