|
This
Newsletter
...
is a quick tip ezine for Managers who believe in
"Results Derived from Within"
Written by:
Vickie Bevenour, a Professional
Certified Coach, PCC
Your
Subscription
You
are receiving this because you have subscribed or
someone you know thought that you might enjoy the
tip and has forwarded it to you.
If
you do not wish to receive this tip ezine in the
future, click here
to send us an email with the word cancel as the
subject.
If
you wish to subscribe, click here
to send us an email with the word subscribe in the
subject.
|
October
2007
ARE
YOU A GRACIOUS BUSINESS PROFESSIONAL?
Are you a gracious business
professional? The word gracious is defined as:
marked by tact, kindness and courtesy,
characterized by charm, good taste and generosity
of spirit. Is
that the way that you would like to be described?
What is preventing you from acting like that?
When I ask that question, I
receive many different answers and they all are
centered on one theme: “Vickie, you don’t
understand, in my world I don’t have time to be
gracious – I have to drive results.” My answer
is that I do understand, and I make the following
request. Please
take ten minutes a week to show some “graciousness”.
After six months let’s evaluate what your return
on investment (ROI) is on those ten minutes spent
each week.
In the business environment,
one of the best ways to convey graciousness is
with a hand written thank you note. Therefore,
your assignment is to create one thoughtful hand
written thank you note each week for the next six
months. Below are some examples of situations that
would warrant a thank you note:
- Write
to your best customer and tell them how much
you appreciate their business.
- Write
to someone on your support staff, the person
who is instinctively always there and tell
them how much you appreciate them making your
life easier.
- Write
to the person who leads any event or volunteer
association that you participate in and
benefit from (parent teacher association,
industry association, and your local book
club).
- Write
to your child’s soccer coach and tell them
thanks for giving up their Saturday mornings
to benefit your child.
- Write
to the person who you would like to work for
(your next boss) and tell them how much you
appreciate them “championing” your ideas.
- Write
to the top producer on your team and tell them
how much you appreciate the job that they do.
And while we are on the
subject, in my work with people in career
transition, can you guess how many candidates
actually follow up after an interview with a thank
you note? The
answer should be 100% but unfortunately it is not.
About 72% of interviewing professionals in this
country DO
NOT send the thank you note.
That means that you can totally set
yourself apart from 72% of your competition, by
simply being gracious.
Why is this important?
The statistic that was quoted is that 88%
of high level executives say that it HELPS
to get the job if you follow up with a
hand written thank you note.
Please note that a hand
written thank you note is far superior to a typed
note or an email.
Taking the time to hand write a thank you
note lets the receiver know that you are truly
grateful and sincere in your expression of thanks.
Go ahead, take the challenge,
what ever your status in your career, spend ten
minutes every week for the next six months and see
what your ROI becomes.
On a consistent and honest basis, this
might be the one thing that helps your career the
most. Congratulations,
you have taken the first step to deriving results from within.
If
you like the tip, let us know but more important,
share it with a friend or colleague. As always,
YOUR SUCCESS IS MY GREATEST PLEASURE.
|
Volume
5, Issue