Business Etiquette
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Always Say Thank You
May 26, 2010
Picking up a pen and dashing off a quick thank you note is the appropriate way to express appreciation for a thoughtful act or gift. With graduation and wedding seasons quickly approaching, it’s not too soon to address the basic rules.
- Send thank you notes as quickly as possible, ideally within one week of receipt of a gift. Don’t leave the person who sent a gift wondering whether it was lost in the mail.
- Most thank you notes may be sent on informal stationery, though wedding gifts are generally acknowledged using more formal stationery.
- A thank you note should always make specific reference to the gift.
Never, ever send pre-printed fill-in-the-blank thank you notes. And avoid using e-mail to thank someone for a specific gift.
In the workplace, after an interview, follow-up with a handwritten thank you note. If you believe a hiring decision will be made faster than your note will be delivered, e-mail your thanks and then follow your electronic communication with a handwritten note. Send your boss a handwritten after he or she takes you to lunch or dinner. And whenever someone from work invites you to an event in their, home send a note of thanks afterwards.
Make it a practice to e-mail your thanks to all of the people in the office who make your life easier. Whenever your assistant helps schedule your travel, the people in the mailroom hand deliver an important document, or the copy room reproduces your rush request in record time, an e-mail expressing your thanks should quickly follow.
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