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Have We Forgotten How to Say Thank You?

By Alan Gray, NewsBlaze  

Earlier this week, some friends gave me a wonderful gift, a lazy-susan stationery holder for my desk. I love it! It sits here, every day, holding business cards, pens, paperclips and little reminder notes - and it gives me that great feeling that only love and friendship can.

One important thing I forgot to do immediately was to let them know how much I appreciate this gift and how much I appreciate them. I just wrote my thank you note and I'll post it today.

We get so busy in our own world that we put some things off until we have time. There are still only 24 hours in a day and many times, those "little things" just don't get done.

Two business friends, Katrina Sawa of Jumpstart Your Marketing and Elaine Starling of Promise Power really know how to follow up. It is part of who they are - and that is part of the reason their businesses are doing so well. A follow-up and a thank you not only means a lot, they help form a bond.

On Thursday, I met with my friend, Terry Carroll at Sierrastyle Publishing. We talked about how to help each other and as we went through the possibilities, Terry showed me a great little item he uses to feature local businesses. The featured business gets free publicity, no strings attached, and Sierra Style readers learn something new.

This is a wonderful thing for a small business, an introduction to more than 100,000 readers each month. I asked Terry about the response the businesses got from that entry and he said the few who called, said it brought them a lot of great contacts. I pressed him more, and he said most people never called at all. That doesn't stop him doing it, but I thought how much better life would be if we all remembered those little niceties.

Shay Wheat at Send Out Cards has an automated, but highly personalized card system for thank yous, birthdays, or follow up. I met Shay at EntrePalooza, a conference for entrepreneurs. Shay's service saves a lot of time, effort and also money, so I'm using it today.

So my message today, whether you are in business or not, is don't forget to follow up. Check to see who you should have contacted but didn't - and get it done this week.

Thank your friends, just for being friends, thank the people who help you, thank your customers, say hello to everyone you meet - and really mean it. Your day will be so much better - I know mine is.