Ode to Those Behind the Scenes

I've always been a big fan of assistants, office managers and secretaries. These are the people who really know what's going on. They copy the reports, they chit chat with clients, they overhear important conversations. And usually they are the least likely to get a thank you.

Often times, these are the best people to have on your side, and the worst people to not have on your side. They can tell you the best way to get a hold of the Very Important Person you need to talk to, or they can give you so much run-around, you won't know which way is up. Much less ever talk to Mr. Very Important Person.

A good way to get them get them to like you? Genuinely (because these people deal with enough cold-calling salespeople to know the difference) tell them you appreciate them and the work they do. Obviously it's nice to send such glad tidings after a big project or a particular job well done. But don't wait for an opportunity. They like out-of-the-blue praise as much as you do.

Comments

This week's Thank You: The door closer

I have a reminder that goes off each Monday at 8:30am. The reminder says "Write a Thank You Note". I work in a large building, housing several hundred employees during our peak rush season. A large portion of the building is our warehouse, with conveyor belts whirring and totes strolling their merry way to the shipping stations. Within this large building, I work in an open configuration of desks and cubes in a fairly quiet area. Fairly quiet, that is, when the door to the room is closed. That door maintains the balance between concentration-enhancing white noise and a cacophony of heavy steps on concrete, snippets of conversation and the buzz of machinery. Maybe because my desk is closest to that door, or perhaps because I have the concentration of a gnat while I'm procrastinating, but my productivity drops to sloth-like levels when the door is left open by unaware (or less distraction-prone) co-workers. Many times have I looked at the door left ajar, will...

When in doubt, add chocolate

Gifts by Polly Goncalves on Flicker CC BY NC In another installment of things I didn't actually know existed, February 17 was Random Acts of Kindness day. A day devoted to small tokens of appreciation to people you know, barely know or who are complete strangers. I like to think of thank you notes often as random acts of kindness. People don't often realize the impact their positive attitude, willingness to help or simple gestures have on the people around them, so a hand-written thank you note many times appear random. While I honestly believe most people enjoy the unexpected surprise of a hand-written note, sometimes I feel like a small gift included with those notes makes the surprise even better. I've gotten in the habit of including a little something extra when I can, especially for those notes that are hand delivered. Here are a few of my favorites: Chocolate: High-quality, individually wrapped candies such as Ghirardelli or Godiva are pretty easy to come b...

It's All About Style

I'm a terrible sister. The fact that I haven't talked to my sister in months in no way means I don't care about her, her life or my nephew's latest Evel Knievel stunt. I blame a lot of things for my lack of talk-talk with my sister -- crazy schedules, current addiction to social networking sites, Harry Potter. But I think the real reason is much more psychological (aren't all the good reasons psychological?). Communication style. I'm a writer. She's a talker. I pick up a pen and paper or a keyboard. She picks up the phone. I think to talk. She talks to think. We are opposite communicators and therefore we have trouble connecting. This happens in all facets of life. Your boss. Your coworker. Your friends. Your lover. People communicate differently and unless you can give them information in the medium they digest it best, they probably will only get half the story. But if you can pick up on and cater to those communication styles, you are much more likely to ...

A Note of Thanks

Search This Blog