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Transcript

The Best Way to Make Somebody’s Day · The Daily Writer

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hey my friend, welcome to the Daily Writer, where we help writers become authors of their own lives.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Well, here's perhaps a strange question for you.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: When you go to the mailbox each day, which pieces of mail do you typically open immediately?
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Well, the answer, of course, is the ones that are handwritten.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Whenever I get a handwritten card in the mail, I always feel like somebody totally just made my day.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: Another human being took the time and effort to create something just for me.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: They wrote it on a card, they put it in an envelope, they used one of their stamps, and they put it in the mailbox.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: So there's actually a lot of effort involved in that.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: And whenever I get those cards, I just feel really special.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I also love sending those cards in addition to receiving them.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: Handwritten notes have long been a staple of the way that I connect with other people and try to make them feel special and valued.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: It's also a really key part of my business since business is all about relationships.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: And to that end, I want to give you a few tips for sending out powerful handwritten cards.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: And there's four or five tips here that I want to share.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: Number one is keep your materials handy so it's really convenient for you.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: So what I do is I have custom three and a half by five inch cards made from VistaPrint, but you can buy any type of card from a stationary store or Amazon.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't really make any difference.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: I buy the cards in bulk so I don't have to think about getting, you know, 10 or 15 or 20 new cards at a time.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: I buy these literally in hundreds at a time.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, I just got a shipment of 500 custom-made cards from VistaPrint uh probably about two or three weeks ago.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: And that's going to last me for quite a long time.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: And I also buy my stamps in bulk.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I do this because I don't want to have to think about where to get supplies or go into the post office or whatever.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: And I keep these cards and stamps on my desk so they're always handy.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: You know, one of the biggest reasons that people don't send out more cards is because they don't have materials handy.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: It's not a matter of motivation, it's just a matter of, well, it's kind of a hassle to figure out your stationary and your stamps and the address and all that.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: So the first thing to do is get your materials together and keep them handy so you never have to wonder, oh, where do I get stationary and stamps?
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: Number two is when it comes to what you actually write on the card, keep it short and sweet.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: Now, as I said, I use cards that are a little bit smaller.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: They're three and a half inch by five inch.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I like that size card because it's a little bit smaller and it restricts the room that I have to write.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: If you buy a larger card, you're going to feel more pressure to write more in the card, which is going to give you more resistance to actually doing it.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: So there's just a little psychological trick here.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: If you use a smaller card, you feel less pressure to write more.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: So plus, it's just faster to read.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: And there's all kinds of benefits for having a handwritten card that's actually a little bit smaller than the typical bigger size card that you see oftentimes.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: And so what I think about here is I don't want to write a novel in this card.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: I just want to write two or three sentences that are adequate to express thanks, appreciation, encouragement, whatever the reason for the card is.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: Number three is you can add a special touch to the cards if you want to elevate it to the next level.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: Now, depending on the reason that I'm sending any particular card, I will sometimes include a little trinket of some kind.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: And my trinket of choice, if you will, I'm not even sure I like the word trinket.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: I would say maybe a token is a better word.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_00: I purchase small skeleton keys in bulk from Amazon.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I sometimes tape one of those to the inside top of the card.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_00: And then by that skeleton key, I will write something like this.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: P.S.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: Here's a little reminder of your incredible power to unlock other people's potential.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: Or I might write something like, P.S.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: I hope your new book opens all kinds of doors for your business.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: So again, the idea here is you just want to write a little something that has something to do with a key or unlocking or whatever it is.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: If you're using a key, if you're including some other kind of a little item, then obviously you write something related to that.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: But you're just trying to elevate this card to something that's a little bit more special.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: Number four is, and this sounds really obvious, but you want to keep people's addresses handy.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: So what I do is I keep addresses in the contacts app on my phone, which also syncs with my MacBook, and I can access those easily.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: Anytime that I get somebody's address for anything, I put that address in my contacts.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: So I always have it handy.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: And then finally, number five, I look for reasons to send people cards in the mail.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: So the most valuable thing I can say here in this episode is that this is not really about cards or stamps.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's about being intentional about connecting with people.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: It is honestly not unusual for me to send five, eight, ten cards out every single week.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_00: And when I do that, that means I'm looking for reasons to connect with people and to celebrate them, encourage them, or to support them.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: I really enjoy sending out these cards.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: It's just part of my generosity practice, if you will.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'm always kind of looking for reasons to send people a little card in the mail.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: And because I know people love cards, they absolutely love them to death.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I love getting cards.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: So I know other people do as well.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: And the feedback I've gotten from people over the years is that my gosh, they love getting these little cards, especially if there's a little token or a trinket inside and it's meaningfully done.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: You would honestly be amazed at the number of people who have told me how much they appreciate the cards that I send, especially when I send a skeleton key within those cards.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: And no joke, sometimes they mention this years after the fact.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's just absolutely crazy how meaningful these cards can be to people.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: They are really that powerful.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: So I want you to be the person in your circle who notices people, who takes the time and takes the effort to send a card in the mail because you will immediately stand out.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: It just takes a few minutes, but they will remember it for a long time, I promise.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: Plus, after all, I'm a writer, you're a writer.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: If anybody in this world should be sending out handwritten cards, it should be writers, correct?
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: Well, one more thing I want to mention before I wrap up this episode.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: I talk more about encouragement, thoughtfulness, and other qualities for success in a book that I wrote for my son a few years ago.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's a really quick read and it is perfect for giving you a shot of inspiration when you need it most.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_00: This book is called 18 Words to Live By A Father's Wisdom on What Matters Most.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_00: And you can grab that book via the link in the show notes.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: As always, thanks for listening.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: Keep plugging away, keep pressing on, keep showing up, and I'll see you tomorrow.