The secret power of a handwritten note



"The more gatitude you show the more good fortune you recieve"

Some forms of gratitude are more powerful than others.   Here is my list from least powerful to most powerful expressions of gratitude:

Silent gratitude is the least powerful of course.
Facebook and twitter 
Text messages
Emails
Letters
Handwritten letters, thank you cards and notes
Gifts

These days its hard to ignore the efficiency of some form of an electronic message.  It's fast and easy to do.   And that's why you shouldn't do it....because its what everyone else is doing and so you won't stand out or be remembered.  

It takes your personal time to hand write a message.   It is memorable, remarkable and it sustains.   Electronic type messages are soon deleted and forgotten in the avalanche of daily communications we receive. 

Here is how to make your messages memorable...

Write clearly and neatly.  

Awhile back I received a thank you card from a Westjet Vice President thanking me for the ideas I had submitted and that they had employed.   That was nice except for one thing.....his writing was so damn sloppy it was nearly impossible to read it.   No point in scanning it and using it as a reference or even showing it to my buddies.  A total waste!

Make it personal.

"Thanks you did a great job" is not near as powerful as something like this..."Hey Eduardo you did a remarkable job on the Westjet file.    Your ideas made a huge difference and I absolutely loved your humor and willingness to share your insights.  Thanks a ton"    Which note would you like to get?

Be sincere.

Flattery is phoney but a sincere compliment is a gift that keeps on giving.

It can be a gift.

Many times I've seen others showing off a note or card they received that was complimentary. So to that person its like a gift.

Don't limit it to thank you's.

Sometimes a handwritten letter or note of encouragement goes a long way to motivate others.    I've used handwritten notes to solve differences with others.   The real secret of a handwritten note is that it forces the other person to hear you out.   In a conversation its our nature to be thinking about what we are going to say while the other person is talking and thus not be fully focused on what they are saying.  And the recipient can re-read it later.