Can't Buy Me Happiness

I normally flip through the newspaper with not much interest for political news or scandals - it is our (RedRibbon Days team) habit to look through the newspaper for new interesting ideas,news on us, and perhaps, if we are lucky enough - we will spot one or two articles of great interest.

On February 15th, The Star under the section of Quick Study(Fit4Life) released an article with the headline "Can't Buy Me Happiness". A catchy topic that soon caught my interest and I read on.

The article started off like this :-

"Money is an emotional issue, especially during economic hard times. Social scientists have always warned that once a person's needs are met, money doesn't buy happiness. .. Ryan Howell, an assistant professor of psychology at San Francisco State University, found that buying experiences - such as vacations, going to the theater or renting a sailboat - give people more happiness than buying material things. The study, of 154 people ages 19 to 50, showed that experience increase happiness because they are often social in nature." - extracted from The Star, QuickStudy

I couldn't agree further with Ryan on this. After all, this is what RedRibbon Days is truly about. We are about experiences, gifting and creating memorable days! The concept of gifting previously has always been about chocolates, hampers, flowers and photo frames.

Gifting is an extension of one - and we should always express some thoughts when giving a gift rather than looking around our house / office for anything which could be re-gift. The experience of receiving a gift that is beautifully wrapped up and delivered to the recipient's door is amazing. What heighten the experience of receiving a gift is when a recipient received an experience in an envelope/box! An experience can be something relaxing and pampering like a day spa, or something more adventurous like Sphereing Rides.

Mr. Howell also went on to say that experiences tend to make people feel more alive. "People report a sense of feeling invigorated or inspired. Experiences may also yield more happiness because people are left with positive memories, a sort of return on their investment.

Many of our RedRibbon Days experiences are uniquely selected and packaged in way that could achieve what Mr. Howell mentioned above. We have a full day pampering treatment for those who needs to feel invigorated and we have creative classes to inspire people.

Mr. Howell also mentioned in his article that it is not material things don't bring any happiness. It's just that they don't bring as much.

Once again, I can't stress enough on how true that is. Yes, material things do bring some sort of happiness to me(and most people), but the satisfaction from the end of receiving a material thing is just not enough good enough. I certainly don't feel inspired from receiving another candle holder and most definately not invigorated from a chocolate hamper.

We create our own "Days"

In average, our life consist of 27,610 days. But how many of these days are spent truly memorable and amazingly? Yes, we celebrate few traditional-passed-down occasions such as Valentine's, Mother's Day, Father's Day to name a few. What happen to those other people in our life that is truly, perhaps, worth a thank you at least?

I could think of half a dozen people that I must thank in my life (apart from those mentioned above).My nana, for instance. She see me grow up, she is after all my mother's mother and I probably inherited some of her blood, if not wealth. So, yes, a day to thank our Nana is in order. I've always wanted to thank my Nanny too - the sweet lady who brought me up. She's the one that make sure I sleep enough, eat well(even though, not hygienically) and yes, always bring me along to the night market, morning market and her many mahjong sessions.

I also have to thank my friends - so a Friends Day is also a must. Well, saying so, there are ovbviously many types of friends. There are friends who look down on you when you did badly in school( I must say, to thank them is definately a must - after all, they are those that motivated me to work hard and be successful), friends who only are friends with you when they are drunkity, drunk drunk ( the next time when they see you down the road, sober - they can't even bother to smile when your eyes met. Hmm...should I even thank them? Well, at least they kept me entertained when I was drunk myself). And I must stay, a few true friends who went through thick and thin with me.

What about a "Me Day"? We always send gifts to our family, friends and our partner(s) when it is their birthday or when they are getting married. Some of us(in saying so, I include yours truly) don't even get a birthday gift on our birthdays! So, I say, we must have a "Me Day" whereby it is dedicated to your very own self. A day to do nothing but pamper and treat yourself to something nice, comforting, and relaxing that complements your lifestyle and taste. It is a day to stop thinking of pleasing other people, making sure they are happy, and yes, a me me me day!!!! Call it selfish and self centered? Nope.

Mother & Daughter Bonding Day - many of us (again, guilty as charged)often neglected our beloved mother when we are busy with our worklife, lovelife, personal life. We only say thank you to our mother's (really) twice a year - Birthday and Mother's Day. Well, and if you are lucky, on that very year, 3 times - the third will be on your wedding day. So, as I'm saying this, I'm actually purchasing a Mother & Bonding experience and booking my mum and I in for a pampering session of spa, pedicure and manicure this weekend.

Hmm...Ah yes, how can I forget to thank our customers who have continuously and relentless supporting us since our birth? So, a "RedRibbon Days Customer Day" is definately a must. So, to all RedRibbon Days - thank you for your support and please continue to support us!

We are on Facebook!

We are excited and thrilled! Finally, we have our very own Gift Application in our RedRibbon Days group in FaceBook. Join us at RedRibbon Days Group in Facebook and we promise to keep you updated with our new release, promotion and yes, coming shortly, we will even have something to keep you entertain for at least 60 seconds.

Check out our gift application on Facebook and start sending a RedRibbon Day e-Gift to your friends in facebook anytime of the day!

Log on to facebook and join our group now !

farewell 2008 and hello 2009

2008 came and left. It has been a year filled with many challenges expecially for a fledging company like RedRibbon Days. In a blink of an eye, we have turned 1 year old since our company was first registered. Today, we have over 1000 over people who had had a RedRibbon Day and this year, we promise to do even better.

Life at RedRibbon Days.