The “anti-gift” from T.M. Harris

Hey readers!

I see all of these marketers out here giving out digital ‘gifts’ to
their subscribers as a way of saying “happy holidays”.

Well, I’m going to be dead honest with you…I’m not doing it. That’s
my gift to you. My gift is not hoodwinking you with a bunch of free
crap that you’ll probably never use, never read, and never fully
utilize of comprehend because it’s FREE.

For example, take two books on the same subject.

One of them you pay $19.95 for, and the other you get for free.

Which one do you think you’re going to actually read all the way
through, comprehend totally, and then actually utilize?

The paid one, of course. We as humans tend to put more perceived
value into things that we have to make a sacrifice for. If some
thing is just handed to us, we tend to forget it, right?

Just think about all of those holiday gifts you’ve gotten over the
years. How many of them do you actually STILL USE?

Compare that to the number of items that you have personally bought
yourself with your hard earned money. How many of THEM are you
still using now?

I have holiday gifts that are still sitting around here collecting
dust. Whereas, I still have a cheap pair of earbud headphones I paid
$1 from at the dollar store…and I still use them 3 years later.

Do you get my drift?

I’m not giving you an ebook, a report, a piece of software or
anything for this holiday season. And I’m mad that a lot of marketers
are actually taking the time out to give stuff out during this…
the time of ‘giving’.

They’re only doing it for obvious reasons. If you don’t know what
they are yet, check out this blog post I wrote exactly a month ago:

http://tmharris.net/blog/2008/11/why-marketers-are-always-giving-away-free-stuff/

I figured this…if a marketer is serious about GIVING stuff out,
then why the hell haven’t they done it the other 11 months, 3 weeks
and 6 days before this holiday?

Let’s be real here…

So yes, it may seem as if I’m playing the Scrooge of internet
marketing…I’m just being real with you.

Why WAIT for that one day of the year to give something to the .
people who have not only helped propel you to success and online
celebrity status?

I mean, if you truly appreciate your subscribers that much…give to
them ALL YEAR LONG…not just on Christmas!

If you’ve been reading my blog long enough, you know that every now and
then I like to give out things. I just don’t WAIT until it’s
Christmas time for the spirit of greed to subside like other guys
do.

And with this message, I actually wanted to be a little broader, if
you don’t mind.

Like I said above, many many marketers wait until the holiday season
to give things to their subscribers and customers, for free.

And likewise, people also WAIT until this holiday season to give out
things and do good deeds “because of the holiday spirit”.

There are 364 days of the year to do the exact same thing. Why do
you need a reason (a holiday) to do what you should be doing in the
first place? …giving to your fellow man/woman.

Like, you know that you have a friend who’s been having trouble
quitting smoking cigarettes. So, when new years day comes around,
you do nothing for him. Valentines day…nothing.

St. Patricks Day…nothing.
Easter…nothing.
Memorial day…nothing.
Ramadan…nothing.
Rosh Hashannah…nothing.
July 4th…nothing.
Cinco de Mayo…nothing.
Yom Kippur…nothing.
Thanksgiving…maybe a little bit, but overall nothing.

Christmas…ALL of a sudden NOW we wanna give him/her that Quit
Smoking Hypnosis DVD to him…letting him go 364 others days coughing
up his lungs and losing his breath.

Do you get what I’m saying?

This is the lesson I’m trying to let be known. There are other days
beyond the ‘holiday season’ to promote peace on earth and to do the
good will that mankind so rightfully needs right now.

Don’t just save your generous spirit for the last week of December.
Spread it around ALL YEAR LONG.

Get it?

I’m gonna go make a quick cup of tea, and get ready to get the kids
all dressed up for 1 of 2 holiday parties occurring today and
tomorrow with family and friends.

Christmas is definitely for the kids, though.

But take heed to what I said above, and hope that the lesson sinks
in with you.

Happy holidays,

T.M. Harris
tmharris.net
timharriswebsites.com

P.S. - If you celebrate Christmas, just remember that Jesus is the
reason for the season, not all the gifts you get on the 25th thanks
to good old Santa Claus.

If you celebrate Hanukkah, remember that it’s all about the Festival
of Lights, the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem after
Antiochus IV’s forces destroyed it, as well as commemorates the
“miracle of the container of oil”. It’s not about presents, either.

Just keep in mind that holidays are ‘holy days’ not commercial days
off.