The Ultimate Gift Guide for Men -Organizer-Approved Gifts Men Actually Want

For The Man In Your Life Who Already Has ‘Everything’

Simplifying Gift-Giving for Men

Whether it’s your grandpa, dad, brother, husband, best friend, or anywhere in-between, gift giving for the men in our lives can often times be grueling and mentally draining as the revolving door of the question, “what does he want” represents itself yet again. Holiday after holiday, year after year we revisit the same conversation with ourselves as we scour the internet trying to come up with the “perfect gift.” But what do you buy for someone who has “everything” or says they don’t want anything?

Let’s try not to generalize all men here, but there does seem to be a pattern and normalization in society that men are more likely to purchase the items they need and want at a quicker rate than that of women even though women dominate the national percentage of consumer spending year over year.

Understanding Men's Shopping Habits: Insights from Wharton Study

The Study's Findings: "Men Buy, Women Shop"

In fact, Wharton, a business school at the University of Pennsylvania, did a study on the behaviors of men and women shoppers titled, “Men Buy, Women Shop,” and you’ll never guess what they found. In the comparison of Nordstrom to Sears, Wharton researchers used the symbolism here to compare the mindset differentiation between women and men as they go through their individual purchasing processes.

At the time of this study, researchers found that while women find shopping therapeutic and an experience of its own, men view shopping as a mission. In other words “women walk into a store and scan. Men look for a specific product.”

And as research shows, women have better peripheral vision than men which contributes more to the gatherer role, as she walks down the aisle and picks up an item she didn’t even think or know she needed until she saw it. Whereas, a man has more of a laser beamed, tunnel vision shopping mentality. Studies show he cares more about finding a great parking spot, getting in quickly, finding the item he initially came to the store for, and checking out with little to no interaction with anyone or any other product at all.

Consumer Spending Trends: Men's Purchasing Power

When it comes to purchases, at the time of this study, “women spend $4 trillion annually and account for 83% of U.S. consumer spending, which makes up two-thirds of the nation’s gross national product.” Now we also know women tend to neglect themselves from various purchases or expenses as they become more and more responsible for their households and the want to serve others. However, just because women are buying more doesn’t mean that men aren’t fulfilling their wants commercially. This just may point to the narrowed results that they buy what they need, when they need it, and nothing else.

Which then creates this domino effect of not knowing what to buy for them…until now.

Before we get to the gifts themselves, I want to challenge you to pivot your perspective just a bit. Knowing that men operate differently than women, let’s alter the way we try to shop for them too. Men like to problem solve, so when it comes to shopping or gift giving try to narrow down what you can get for him by the problems you can solve or minimize for him.

Let’s focus in on an aspect, area, or environment that he’s always in and ask ourselves, “how can I make his life easier in space xyz?”

Gift Ideas That Organize and Simplify: Catering to Every Man's Needs

Below, I have broken down 10 different categories that majority of men would often use or have in their lives. Within these categories are gifts to organize, streamline, problem solve, and make his life more efficient and productive - while also increasing the aesthetic which is always a plus!

And as a bonus perk, these Amazon Prime items make it so you can purchase without stretching yourself even thinner in your day-to-day tasks coupled with the stress that surrounds our favorite holidays.

Trying to maintain and excel, in holding all the plates of our responsibilities up in the air at the same time, can easily become overwhelming when all we are trying to do is celebrate, serve, and love. Let me help you carry some of that weight, because you don’t have to do it alone.

Here are 10 different problem-solving gift ideas for the man in your life who seemingly already has “everything.”

Organize His Garage: Tools and Storage Solutions

If he spends more time in his garage than he does anywhere else, helping him organize this space will be sure to make you his favorite.

Garages don’t have to be dusty, cluttered, or a holding place for empty boxes.

With intentionality, purpose and resourcefulness, you can help him decrease the amount of time spent looking for things by solving the problem of where every item can call “home.”

These spaces are a safe haven, a retreating place, a “man cave,” if you will, for the man in your life. By helping him enhance the look of his garage, you will also be helping him problem solve by finding his items quicker while also creating more space for him to tinker, piddle, and enjoy the space that makes his heart happy.

Streamlining His Daily Essentials - Where Functionality Meets Fashion

As we know men tend to prefer the most convenient and simplified option. So organizing and minimizing his day-to-day life lines is going to save him time and energy.

But who’s to say we can’t do it in a functional, fashionable way?

Instead of fidgeting around in different pockets for exactly what he needs all day every day, he can minimize the steps by having everything in the same space. After all, what’s repeated gets remembered and what’s remembered gets repeated. So by having a space, a place, or a home for all his belongings, he’ll never have to guess what or where his daily must-haves are. Therefore, we also reap the benefit of not having the, “hey honey, where’s my —” conversation for the hundredth time. It’s simply a win-win, am I right?

Enhance His Home Gym: Organizational Equipment

Home gyms are the most incredible opportunity when it comes to honing in on your health and wellness. It also decreases the inconveniences like driving to a gym or having to schedule around the business’ high peak hours due to the influx of people with limited equipment.

But unless you’re a Kardashian and have an entire lower level of your home designed as a legitimate gym, you’ll have to carefully maximize a space to create the atmosphere and workout area to accommodate the often times bulky equipment.

And as his gym collection grows, it’s easy to feel like stuff is just lying around everywhere. However, we can easily regain control of the space and increase functionality by using space on the walls and intricate areas on the floor.

By organizing the gym, you are once again providing purpose and intention to the items in your home. Therefore, he will use more of what he sees, and it will decrease the time it takes to locate items and put them back when he’s done.

Simplify His Vehicle: Smart Organizational Tools

As our vehicles provide a specific service for us, they tend to become a holding ground of all things trash and personal items that were brought into the car for a reason but now have been left stranded in the backseat floorboard.

You can easily combat this with routine cleaning and tidying. However, without systems set in place, majority of people simply say “I’ll do it later.” “I don’t want to do it right now.” “I’m running late. I just can’t.”

What we don’t realize is the environment we sit in on our way from point A to point B directly effects and impacts our mental capacity in how confident we’ll be and the tone we’ll display when we arrive at our destination.

Helping the man in your life create functionality in his vehicle is going to help increase his mood, decrease his frustration of not being able to find what he needs when he needs it, and ensures that anything he brings into the car has a place for his temporary items.

Nightstand Organization: Essentials for Relaxation and Efficiency

Nightstands can quickly and easily become a catch-all at the end of the day as fatigue and the want to relax and decompress set in.

Regardless of the size or the options of drawers, there are endless ways to bring structure to an item that’s meant to set him up for success day after day and night after night.

Start with the top of the nightstand. What purpose or intentionality can be applied there? A lamp for light? A stand to charge his phone, watch, or ear buds? A specific space for a book he likes to read before bed? You can help create a reliable system of items he uses or needs to maintain on a nightly basis in this area the most.

It’s time to bring back simplicity and intentionality to the aides of our bedside that are supposed to help us go to sleep or make our lives easier when we wake up in the mornings.

Coffee Station Organization: Brewing Simplicity

Did you know, based on statistics and data in 2022,

…the average American drinks 3 cups of coffee a day?

…62% of men drink coffee on a daily basis?

…79% of Americans prepare coffee at home?

All that to say, if the man in your life enjoys coffee, this designated coffee station is a must. Whether it’s setting him up to enjoy it from the comfort of his own home or if he typically takes it on the go, creating and maintaining an auto-pilot like system is going to be key.

Our main focus here is to create a smooth and reliable system. That what he needs is 1) kept in one location, 2) organized and streamlined for easy use and access, and 3) won’t require additional brain energy to think or problem solve before his first cup of coffee at least.

Closet Organization for Easier Access

From hats to belts and ties to shoes, it’s amazing how diverse a man’s closet can be and the various designing aspects that are needed in order to hang let alone organize his side of the closet.

We can ensure that if we take care of his items by creating a space, place, and home that they will in turn take care of him for a long time to come.

Within the space of a closet and even possibly the use of dresser drawers, you can use wall space, the back of the door, and the option to stack items like shoes as a way to maximize the space through and through.

With a designated space and repetitious use, he will find harmony in his day-to-day process of getting ready without having to wonder where his favorite shirt is only to find it crumpled in a drawer.

Bathroom Organization: Maximizing Bathroom Space and Functionality

Whether he travels a lot or lacks space for his grooming and hygiene products, you can organize and create space for him in any bathroom regardless of size.

Remember, simplify the process for him as much as possible. The goal is to streamline his daily routine so he can get in, get out, and tackle the day.

Desk Organization: Enhancing Productivity

Bring structure and routine to his daily work station with tools that are sure to make his life easier. Beginning with the top of his desk, would he benefit from a raised stand to hold his phone, pens, coffee, notepad, etc? Does he always have papers covering it’s surface that could easily be differentiated through the use of file trays? Try to keep in mind, items he uses the most would be helpful, in small doses, within easy to reach use on the top of his desk.

Bonus tip: With using products like acrylic on a desktop, it allows structure without the overpowering look or bulk of a divider/file tray like an enclosed one would. Using acrylic is an easy way to keep the look and feel of having enough room and helps give the light and airy vibe without being too constricting on space or aesthetic.

The Ultimate “Go” Bag for Everyday Use

This could pertain to a travel bag, an every day “go” bag, or anything in between! When it comes to items and tasks he does on a regular basis, helping ensure that all his things are easy to grab and ready to go will be extremely helpful in creating a domino effect of routine and rhythm in his life.

These seemingly simple items often times have the biggest impact in how someone flows through their day-to-day life. If they are always running around like a chicken with their head cut off, that will overflow into every aspect of their life. However, if they have repetitive tasks, activities, and reliable as well as sustainable functions and systems they are more likely to feel calm, put together, and confident as they go throughout their day.

There you go! The ultimate hack towards being the BEST gift-giver in your favorite guy’s book is simply helping him solve a problem or finding a way for him to be more organized, efficient, and productive. Bonus points for it looking pretty too!