How To Write A Thank You Note

Over the last few weeks of the academic year, I began writing a note of thanks to someone in my school.  In a school of over 100 adults, it was easy to spot something each day that deserved a “Thank You”.  As my last act each day, I sat down at my desk and wrote the note of thanks and placed it in an employee’s mailbox as I walked out of the door.

The result was immediate.  Almost every teacher told me that the expression of thanks was something that they needed to hear that day.  That made me feel good as well.  Jeff Bailey, at the Wired Presentations blog, and I discussed Thank You notes on Twitter a few days back.  He said, “It feels good to get a Thank You note, but it feels awesome to write one.”  He is right, writing something that brightens someone else’s day is awesome.

Since writing a Thank You note is going to have a major impact on someone, it’s important to do it right.  Below is a summary of good Thank You note writing practices by Rosalie Maggio in her book, “How to Say It”, that are suitable for the workplace:

• Write the note promptly.
• Mention specifically what you are thankful for.
• Express your gratitude in a “enthusiastic, appreciative way”.
• Tell why you like what you are thanking them for.
• Close with one or two sentences that are unrelated to the object of your gratitude (i.e., saying something nice about the person, sending greetings to the recipient’s family, mentioning that you will see him or her soon)
• Never express more than you feel.  In worst case scenarios, a simple, “Thank you very much” will do.

Source: Rosalie Maggio | How to Say It: Choice Words, Phrases, Sentences & Paragraphs for Every Situation

Photo: Simplycenterpieces.com

Comments

[Jennifer Rai]

Thank you for such an uplifting and beautiful post on saying "Thank You". I love to write personal thank you notes to send. The recipients are so appreciative and sometimes surprised when it is not in the form of an email.