I have had a love-hate relationship with thank you notes for most of my life – I loved the idea of them, but hated writing them. I remember the trials and tribulations that went with thank-you card writing after my Bat Mitzvah. There’s very little that a 12-year-old girl would rather do LESS than sit down and hand-write notes to a bunch of her Mom and Dad’s friends.
As my high school and college friends started getting married, I would often include a line in the note accompanying the gift that said, “There’s no need to write a thank-you card.” Good-mannered people that they are, they wrote thank you notes anyway. 🙂
My time working at the newspaper began to change my tune, though. I write a business column that people are eager to be included in. Having written about close to a thousand businesses in the past four years, I can tell you exactly how many business owners have sent me handwritten thank-you cards: four.
I keep that small stack of handwritten thank-you cards on my desk in a place where I can always see them. I know exactly who wrote them. And you can bet your bippy that whenever I’m thinking about who to contact as a source for future stories, those people are at the top of my list – they’re pleasant to deal with, they’re proactive, and they have made an effort to let me know that they appreciate having a relationship with me. Any time I go out to speak with groups about how to develop a positive relationship with a reporter, I always mention sending a thank-you note.
As I prepared to release “You Are Not Alone: Stories from the front lines of womanhood” in October, it was already a foregone conclusion in my mind that I would send a handwritten thank-you note as often as possible in connection with the book. As someone at the beginning of my career in this field, I truly appreciate every person who invests their time and energy in helping me get the word out, and I want to build relationships with those people.
I designed some special stationery that matches the book cover and have been sending out those notes every time they’re appropriate. For instance, I sent a note to the producer, floor producer, and interviewer for this great piece on our local CBS affiliate:
WCAX.COM
To my delight, I’ve also started receiving thank you cards in the mail from people who have gotten copies of the book. What a joy it is to find a little missive in my mailbox!
And so I come to you, dear readers, because the time has come for me to send a thank you note to you for the time that we have spent here together.
I have decided to bring The Miracle Journal to a close.
But this isn’t an ending – it’s just a transition to a new space. In fact, in keeping with the theme of sending notes in the mail, think of this as a change-of-address card. I am simply relocating from www.TheMiracleJournal.com to www.LeahCarey.com.
Over the past year, as I’ve supported my Mom through treatment for cancer, I’ve had time to reflect and re-evaluate a lot. Part of what I’ve realized is that I’m ready to shift my focus from myself, the writer, to you, the reader. For the past four years, I have focused on sharing my own journey toward becoming a happier and more fulfilled person, in the hopes that you could gain some clarity and insight from it. In this new space, I want to explore what you need in order to grow into the happy and fulfilled person that I know you can be. It will also give me the opportunity to talk about some subjects that I’ve stayed away from because they didn’t fit within the “Miracle” space that I had defined here.
I’ll still be sharing the same type of thoughtful inquiry into everyday living with you. I have big plans for the new blog, including a video series that I’m really excited to get started on. It may take some time to get up to full speed over there – especially since Mom’s treatment is ongoing – but this last year has shown me that it’s okay to take time to get things right.
You are – and have been since our first day here – my miracle.
Thank you.
This may be the most important thank-you note I’ve written yet, and it’s for you:
For those of you who are subscribed to receive blog posts by email, that subscription will automatically be transferred to the new blog. You don’t need to do anything. If you’re not yet subscribed and you’d like to, visit www.leahcarey.com/feel-the-love/
And never fear, the Miracle Journal will remain here as a resource and archive.
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