The Life Skill of Writing Thank You Notes

Writing thank you notes is an art that need not be lost. It is a life skill that every child should learn and get in the practice of. Personally, I attribute getting jobs to the fact that I followed up the interview with a thank you note. It can’t hurt, right? So how to organize thank yous after a party or holiday?

First off make a list of the gifts received and who they were received by. Don’t have a pad of paper handy? Write what gift the person gave on the back of the card that came with the gift. After the fun, take your list of givers and put them in an obvious spot along with thank you cards, stamps and address labels. Have your child write 3 thank you notes a day until they are all done.

Again, writing thank you notes is a life skill that can only serve your child well. People appreciate being thanked in writing. Kids may fuss about having to do it, but if you make it an easy process it will be easier on everyone.

Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Organization and Manners

Organization and manners aren’t two things that are often associated with one another, but they could be. Living in a state of disorganization often leads to unintended bad manners. So often people make comments like “I meant to send a thank you note, but I just forgot” or “Sorry your gift is late. I just didn’t have time to get it to you earlier.” These apologies may have come from a lack of organization and time management. So I challenge you to honestly ask yourself this question: would you rather spend the rest of your life apologizing for failing to do things or would you rather get organized??

To take this a step further, disorganization may also lead to the loss of friends or rifts with loved ones. So often people complain that they never hear from friends or that someone never acknowledged a gift they sent. If this happens frequently enough, friendships may end up falling apart or family problems may crop up. You may have had the best intentions in sending a thank you note or making a thank you call for a gift received, but just didn’t get to it because you are unorganized. However, the gift giver can’t read your mind and is left thinking that maybe you just didn’t care enough to make the effort. My Grandmother used to always say that if “you can’t make the time to properly acknowledge a gift, then why should I make the time to send one in the first place.” Again, I challenge you to make a choice today. Is being disorganized worth upsetting or hurting friends or loved ones over? You decide.

For some great time management tips or ideas for getting organized for the holidays, check out my blog at www.cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com.


Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/