Watching ABC this morning, I saw a profile on John Kralik, the author of the new book 365 Thank Yous. This man, going through a rough time in his life, turned to gratitude to help him through. So he set a New Years Resolution to write a thank you note every day for a year, and what he found was his life changed for the better and he realized his life wasn’t so bad after all…he had a lot more than he thought to be thankful for. Click here for the full GMA report.
Now, I don’t know about writing a thank you every day for a year (that’s a mighty long resolution to keep), but the notion is inspiring, and I’ve gotten a taste of John’s medicine this past week. I’ve had a meeting nearly every day since I got here with individuals willing to help me get my feet wet here in Chicago and start my job search off on a positive note. And after every meeting, I’ve written a hand written thank you note as well as an email follow up. And it feels good.
How many times does someone do something for you where you think, in your head, “Hey, thanks!” What if every time that happened, you picked up a thank you note and wrote it down. Nothing fancy just a quick thanks and words of gratitude? Would your future interactions with that person change? Would you develop a deeper relationship? Would you feel better about yourself? You might.
Yesterday, I bought a new box of 50 thank you notes, ensuring I have the tools on hand to pick up a pen and send a note whenever I think, “Hey, thanks!” We can all learn from Mr. Kralick. Join in the gratitude trend!
About the Author: Marcy Twete
Marcy Twete is the Founder and CEO of Career Girl Network and the author of the book “You Know Everybody! A Career Girl’s Guide to Building a Network That Works.” At Career Girl Network, Marcy provides women with information, resources, and networking to empower them in their careers and to advance the work of women in business as a whole. Prior to launching Career Girl Network, Marcy worked in numerous nonprofit organizations and as a consultant in the field of nonprofit fundraising, marketing, and community relations. Marcy is a graduate of the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, and a native of rural North Dakota. She is the Vice Chair of the Chicago Board of Directors for Step Up Women’s Network in Chicago and a member of the Advisory Board for Girls on the Run Twin Cities, and is dedicated to advancing the work of organizations that move the needle for women and girls worldwide.
This is a really good idea. I think I might get a few thank you notes and join you =)
Whitney
Another blog that does this is called
http://www.thxthxthx.com by this lady named Leah….
Hers are funny and thoughtful. It's a great idea!!!
If you did both, what is written for the follow up email and the thank you note? How do you make sure to make it sound different?
Great question! I would keep the follow up email short and sweet. Day thank you for XYZ and that’s about it. Take more time to go into detail in the written thank you note. There, you can pull out thoughts from your conversation etc.