Home » Project Management Resources » The Best Gifts To Get Project Managers & Professionals In 2021
Holiday season is upon us again! In addition to spending time with those we love & getting some much-needed time off, most of us look forward to both giving and receiving gifts around this time of year.
despite this, many of us find ourselves pondering the same two thoughts time and again….
“What should I give as gifts this year? and hell, what do i want myself?”
These two questions share the same solution: we need ideas! this is especially true when giving gifts to people we don’t know that well, like coworkers, acquaintances, etc.
Generally speaking, a great gift should be practical & good quality. Even more so when buying gifts for project managers or other professionals that they’ll actually use while working. Doubly-so when that professional also happens to be a loved one!
Thus, we’ve put together this list of “the best gifts to get a professional” aka “Project manager gift ideas”.
Whether you want some ideas for yourself or for someone else, scroll below for our top choices for 2021!
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Where to begin with this one….I suppose the beginning and the end are one in the same. We can now own realistic burrito-esq blankets and subsequently roll ourselves up as human burritos. I’m tempted to just stop writing there, but I will add that this 5-ft. diameter burrito blanket is in fact not made of flour but 100% plush microfiber, making it a legitimate throw blanket. It’s also burrito-patterned on both sides – I’ll let you decide for yourself if that’s a good or bad thing!
MANY OF US LIKE TO BLOCK OUT THE REST OF THE WORLD WHILE WE WORK. OTHERS NEED MUSIC OR PODCASTS PLAYING TO GET IN THE ZONE. WIRELESS BLUETOOTH HEADPHONES ACCOMPLISH BOTH OF THESE THINGS BEAUTIFULLY. WHILE BLUETOOTH HEADPHONES CAN BE USED ALMOST ANYWHERE, THEY’RE PARTICULARLY USEFUL WHILE WORKING AT HOME FOR BLOCKING OUT DISTRACTIONS. FOR MAXIMUM EFFECT, I RECOMMEND SPECIFICALLY GOING WITH NOISE-CANCELLING HEADPHONES!
WORKING IN AN OFFICE HAS ITS’ DOWNSIDES, BUT ONE OF THE POSITIVE ASPECTS IS THE NEED TO WALK AROUND THROUGHOUT THE DAY. WORKING FROM HOME CHANGES THINGS. SOME PEOPLE MAY WALK AROUND JUST AS MUCH, BUT WITHOUT COWORKERS TO TALK WITH AND SUPPLY CLOSETS TO RAID, IT’S EASY TO SIT IN PLACE FOR THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE DAY AT HOME. STANDING DESKS ARE GREAT GIFTS FOR PROJECT MANAGERS, BECAUSE THEY PROMOTE MORE MOVEMENT, GOOD POSTURE AND MANY OTHER HEALTH BENEFITS.
SMARTWATCHES ARE THE REAL-LIFE INCARNATION OF WHAT “THE FUTURE” LOOKED LIKE IN OLD CARTOONS: PERFORMING AN UNBELIEVABLE NUMBER OF FUNCTIONS FROM OUR WRIST WATCH. SMARTWATCHES CAN CALL, TEXT AND EMAIL. THEY CAN TRACK OUR HEALTH STATS. THEY MONITOR OUR EXERCISE. THERE ARE PLENTY OF APPS THAT SYNC WITH SMARTWATCHES TOO. LASTLY, THEY DO IN FACT TELL TIME – BOTH IN DIGITAL AND TRADITIONAL ANALOG STYLING!
WHEN LAPTOPS BEGAN TAKING THE WORKPLACE BY STORM, IT WAS BELIEVED BY MANY THAT THE DAYS OF USING STAND-ALONE MONITORS WERE OVER. THEY THOUGHT WRONG! THE MONITORS OF TODAY ARE A BIT DIFFERENT THAN THEIR PREDECESSORS; MANY FEATURE HDMI OR 4K DISPLAYS AND COME IN FLAT-SCREEN SIZED PROPORTIONS. HAVING A SECOND SCREEN IS HELPFUL FOR SO MANY REASONS, BUT THEY PRESENT THE PERFECT COMBO OF WORK AND PLAY FOR A HOME OFFICE. THESE ARE JUST A FEW REASONS WHY WE’VE PICKED MONITORS AS A GREAT GIFT TO GET A PROJECT MANAGER.
STARING AT SCREENS ALL DAY TAKES A TOLL ON OUR EYES! DIGITAL EYE STRAIN IS INCREASINGLY COMMON THESE DAYS, AND WORKING AT HOME ON THE COMPUTER (OR PHONE) ALL DAY MAKES THE PROBLEM COMPOUND EVEN MORE. WHEN YOU HEAR “COMPUTER EYE PROTECTION”, YOU PROBABLY IMAGINE SOME 90S-ERA PLASTIC CONTRAPTION MOUNTED OVER A SCREEN. BLUE LIGHT THANKFULLY COMPUTER GLASSES COME IN A HUGE VARIETY OF POPULAR STYLES, WHICH MAKE THEM AN OUT-OF-THE BOX GIFT IDEA FOR PROJECT MANAGERS.
BEFORE THE DAYS OF WORKING FROM HOME, YOU PROBABLY GOT BY WITH USING A BASIC WI-FI ROUTER IN THE LIVING ROOM. WI-FI HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY NECESSARY IN THE PAST FEW YEARS, ESPECIALLY FOR FAMILIES THAT ARE HOME TOGETHER. WI-FI SYSTEMS COME WITH SEVERAL ROUTERS THAT CAN BE PLACED ALL AROUND THE HOUSE, ELIMINATING DEAD ZONES FOR GOOD. THEY’RE A WI-FI ROUTER AND NETWORK EXTENDED IN ONE!
PROJECTORS HAVE COME A LONG WAY. SURE, MANY OF THE TRADITIONAL BUSINESS-ONLY, COMMERCIAL GRADE MODELS ARE ON THE MARKET PRESENTLY – THEY JUST DON’T OFFER US MUCH USE IN OUR HOMES. MOST PEOPLE DON’T THINK OF A PROJECTOR AS A GIFT IDEA FOR PROJECT MANAGERS…ENTER THE MODERN PROJECTOR. MODERN PROJECTORS OFFER A HUGE RANGE OF DISPLAY SIZES, BUILT-IN SPEAKERS, BLUETOOTH CONNECTIVITY WITH OTHER DEVICES, BUILT-IN APPS AND MORE. USE IT FOR MOVIES AND TV SHOWS OR AS AN EXTRA MONITOR!
THIS IS NOT THE SEXIEST GIFT ON THE LIST, BUT IT DEFINITELY SERVES A PURPOSE. DOING LOTS OF BUSINESS OUT OF THE HOUSE LEAVES BEHIND A LITERAL PAPER TRAIL, EVEN IN OUR “PAPERLESS” WORLD. WHETHER YOU USE IT TO SHRED BUSINESS PAPERWORK, BILLS OR TAX DOCUMENTS, THERE WILL PROBABLY COME A DAY WHEN A PAPER SHREDDER SAVES THE DAY.
AIR QUALITY WAS NEVER REALLY DISCUSSED IN THE PAST UNLESS IT WAS PARTICULARLY GOOD OR BAD – WE MOSTLY DIDN’T THINK ABOUT IT. A DUSTY ROOM HAS MORE NEGATIVE HEALTH IMPACTS THAN IT MAY SEEM. WHEN WE WORK AT HOME ALL DAY, WE’RE EXPOSING OURSELVES TO A LOT MORE DUST AND OTHER AIRBORNE CONTAMINENTS THAN WE DID BEFORE. HENCE, AN AIR PURIFIER IS NO LONGER JUST A DEVICE YOUR HIPPIE AUNT USES!
I STILL REMEMBER HOW SOUND SYSTEMS LOOKED BACK IN THE DAY – LET’S JUST SAY THERE WAS A WHOLE LOT OF LARGE, BULKY COMPONENTS AND WIRES FOR DAYS. WHILE IT WAS AWESOME AT THE TIME, IT’S NOW UNNECESSARY. BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS ARE PORTABLE, SMALL AND PUT OUT HUGE SOUND! USE THEM IN THE OFFICE DURING THE DAY, IN THE LIVING ROOM AT NIGHT AND IN THE YARD ON THE WEEKENDS!
PORTABLE SOLID STATE DRIVES (SSD) ARE KNOWN FOR BEING PRICIER THAN TRADITIONAL DESKTOP HARD DRIVES. THAT SAID, WE OFTEN GET WHAT WE PAY FOR. A PORTABLE SOLID STATE DRIVE IS A GREAT GIFT TO GET A PROJECT MANAGER WHO HAS LOTS OF E-FILES, WORKS WITH LARGE DOCUMENTS AND WORKS ON THE MOVE: THEY’RE SMALL, PORTABLE, FASTER THAN TRADITIONAL DRIVES (THINK 3-6X TIMES FASTER!), USE LESS POWER, STAY COOLER AND ARE MORE DURABLE. WHAT’S NOT TO LOVE?
ARE YOU SHOPPING FOR SOMEONE WHO TYPES A LOT? THEY’LL LIKELY LOVE A HIGH-QUALITY KEYBOARD. GIVEN THAT WE USE IT DAILY, A NICE KEYBOARD IS A GIFT THAT WON’T BE SOON FORGOTTEN.
MOST PEOPLE WILL LOVE A MODERN WIRELESS KEYBOARD, BUT SOME PREFER A BIT MORE OF AN OLD-SCHOOL TYPING EXPERIENCE.
MECHANICAL KEYBOARDS OFFER DURABILITY, STABILITY, GREAT “RESPONSE” AND DON’T WEAR OUT THE WAY OTHER KEYBOARDS DO. PLUS, TYPING ON A MECHANICAL KEYBOARD GENERATES A TYPEWRITER-ESQ CLICK SOUND THAT CAN BE QUITE SATISFYING. THEY’RE ON THE HEAVY SIDE, BUT THAT MAKES THEM PERFECT FOR A HOME OFFICE.
NEED TO BRAINSTORM, WRITE DOWN REMINDERS OR VISUALLY SEE ALL OF YOUR IDEAS IN ONE PLACE? PERHAPS DOODLE ON THE WALL? A WHITEBOARD IS THE BEST WAY TO DO ALL THAT. A WHITEBOARD IN AN OFFICE IS NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY, BUT A WHITEBOARD IS ONE OF THE MOST PRACTICAL AND USEFUL GIFTS TO GET A PROJECT MANAGER WITH A HOME OFFICE.
A HIGH-QUALITY LAPTOP BAG IS A FAIL-PROOF GIFT IDEA – WELL, NOT FOR SOMEONE WITHOUT A LAPTOP. FOR THE VAST MAJORITY OF CASES, A LAPTOP BAG IS A VERSATILE, FUNCTIONAL GIFT TO GET A PROJECT MANAGER. EVEN THOUGH MANY OF US WORK FROM HOME A LOT MORE FREQUENTLY THAN BEFORE, THERE ARE STILL PLENTY OF TIMES WE NEED TO WORK IN THE OFFICE OR TRAVEL FOR BUSINESS. PLUS, IT CAN ALSO CARRY MANY OF THE OTHER ITEMS ON THIS LIST!
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