The Non-Obvious 2024 Holiday Gift Guide + FREE Audio Book
Dear Fellow Trend Curator,
Happy Thanksgiving to those of you who celebrate! This week, I’m going to follow an annual tradition and share some ideas for non-obvious gifts this holiday season. These are a combination of products introduced this year and previously launched products that I felt had some relevance for right now. The things we buy often reflect the times in which we live, and so I hope you find my 12 picks below to be both useful and insightful.
The last one is something my team and I have been working on for several months as an exclusive gift for all of you who are loyal readers of my newsletter … a FREE audio book version of my latest book Non-Obvious Thinking available for month-long access to any of you who prefer audio books (along with some insights below on why we are NOT going to be putting the book on Audible this time around).
This holiday season, enjoy your time with family and friends and amidst the temptation to indulge in buying things you may or may not “need,” remember to be kind to one another and take time to appreciate the most human gift of time with those you love.
- The Book – A Guide to Rebuilding Civilization
If the world ended tomorrow, how would we rebuild society? This book has the answer across 400 painstakingly illustrated pages compiled by a group of scientists and experts who spent over 5000 hours creating this book. At a time when doomsday scenarios are all around us, perhaps it’s no surprise that the book described as a “beautiful encyclopedia of incredible inventions and discoveries throughout human history“ has sold more than 80,000 units in under a year.
2. Firefly Petunia Glow-in-the-Dark Houseplants
Genetically engineered plants are here and this is one of the most popular and fun early entrants into the field … glow in the dark petunias. “Their subtle glow offers a backdrop for meditation, reflection, or simply a moment of tranquility,” as the website promises. They aren’t quite shipping yet, but now’s the perfect time to get your order in so you’ll be among the first to get one in the Spring when they ship.
3. Ciselier Fennek Kitchen Scissors
It may seem odd to describe scissors as legendary, but in this case the tagline definitely applies. Luxury scissormakers Ciselier partnered with Fennek, “a little-known, but highly respected Premanese scissormaking shop.” The scissors include a bone notch, bottle opener and high-quality construction that will quickly make it your favorite kitchen tool and a memorable gift this holiday season too.
4. Rode Wireless Micro
For the past year I’ve been using the Rode Wireless Go, an “ultra-compact wireless microphone system” and it’s been great for videos on the move. The Rode Wireless Micro is a perfect and even more affordable alternative that plugs into your phone and offers the ability to easily capture perfect audio even in a crowded and noisy space. If you do any content creation or videos, this is a perfect addition to your tool kit.
5. Ostrich Napping Pillow
Quite literally designed to help you block out the world, this extremely silly looking napping pillow works by blocking your eyes and ears so when you cocoon your entire head into this, you’ll be able to steal a moment of piece no matter where you happen to be. And if the design of this doesn’t help you block out the world, the functionally terrible design will definitely help repel any would-be human distractors as well.
6. The Macallan Time: Space
Just a sip of this 84-year-old whiskey will make a serious dent in your wallet and a full bottle is currently listed for about $280,000—well out of most of our budgets. Still, I included it on the list because the very idea of a whiskey aged for literally a lifetime and then introduced as a story of brand heritage and quality craftsmanship is fascinating to think about in a time when we are surrounded by products, stories and ideas that expire much more quickly.
7. Spek Magnetic Fidget Putty
Last week I was on stage telling the story of something I called the “4 pm problem” … the idea that there’s a time of day when I find it nearly impossible to concentrate. Fidget toys like this “oddly satisfying magnetic fidget putty” are one way I help myself get past this daily hurdle and they might help you too. They are particularly useful for anyone who has ADHD or concentrates better when they just have something to play with.
8. Compost-A-Ball™ Biodegradable Pickleball
For the past several years, Pickleball has been ranked the fastest growing sport in the US. Unlike tennis balls, typical pickleballs are made of plastic but biodegradable alternatives can help make the sport less environmentally destructive than tennis. Whether you play pickleball or not, these balls are a great reminder that we can all take more personal responsibility to find more eco-friendly ways to enjoy our hobbies.
9. Birdify Bamboo Feeder
An “AI enabled bird feeder” probably sounds like seriously overhyped techno-babble, but in this case the Birdify bird feeder that integrates a live camera and uses AI to identify bird species lives up to its own hype. For anyone who is a bird lover or just wants to add a bit of whimsy to their enjoyment of the natural world around them, just fill this feeder with different seeds, nuts and berries—then sit back and watch what new avian friends you might attract.
10. The Fruit Company – HarvestClub Exotica
In Non-Obvious Thinking, Ben and I wrote about how to create more space for new ideas and a tip we shared was based on chef Ferran Adria’s creative habit of eating a different fruit every day for a month. Doing that can help you break habits and signal to your brain that every day is a new day, not like yesterday. If you want try this but need a bit of help acquiring the fruits, this exotic fruit box will make it easy by sending them right to your door. Let the ideas flow!
11. Loka Chai Maker
When the Kickstarter for this product first came out, we immediately bought several of these chai making pots—and if you make real chai at home, you’ll definitely want one too (they should start shipping very soon). It’s one of many “brown gifts” that are being shared within the Indian community now but might make a fun addition to your gift list no matter what your cultural background happens to be.
12. Non-Obvious Thinking Audio Book
People love audio books but as a publisher or author, it’s really hard to make money on them because of how Amazon exploits authors on Audible. It’s no wonder authors like Seth Godin are avoiding Audible and this time we are too, by choosing to make the audio version of Non-Obvious Thinking freely available to listeners on another platform instead. My hope is that you like it enough to spread the ideas and buy the book too. Enjoy!
How are these stories curated?
Every week I spend hours going through hundreds of stories in order to curate this email. Looking for a speaker to inspire your team to become non-obvious thinkers through a keynote or workshop?
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This Non-Obvious Insights Newsletter is curated by Rohit Bhargava.
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