Sean D’Souza’s latest ‘PsychoTactics’ article is titled “The Art of Saying Thank You Meaningfully”.

The Art of Saying Thank You Meaningfully
Imagine this. Imagine you move into a neighbourhood and a neighbour brings across a big cake.
What happens to you instantly?
There you are, with all your unpacked boxes, a to-do list so long it stretches all the way to Geneva and all that you can think of, is how to pay that person back. How you can thank that person in return.
Brian Tracy did me such a favour
Brian Tracy is a speaker/trainer and famous for sales-training worldwide. I stumbled upon his work early in the year 2002, when
the first ebooks were trickling out onto the Internet. I bought an ebook and with it came some audio from Brian Tracy. And I was
hooked. Imagine my surprise when I found half a dozen books in the library as well as audio cassettes (yup, cassettes). For me, a
rookie in marketing and sales, those books and audio were heaven-sent. I’d listen to the tapes twenty, even fifty times over.

Can you tell I was thankful beyond words?
But how do you thank someone like that? Well actually in today’s world it’s dead easy. But this wasn’t today. This was 2002.
Anyway, since I was now officially stalking Brian’s every move, I learned he was coming to Auckland. So I did what any good stalker
would do. I emailed his secretary. Back and forth we communicated. I found out stuff he liked, the type of wine he preferred etc. And
of course, when Brian was coming to Auckland. Yup, down to the flight number.
And the day he landed, I was there to say hello
Weird, I know, but that’s how stalkers are. Brian was amused, but a little taken aback as well. I told him about the exchanges with his
secretary and he decided I was slightly bananas, but kinda bearable. What he didn’t expect was a superb bottle of wine (I think it cost about $50) and a note thanking him for all he’d done.
That opened my door to Brian’s world
I was able to meet him for breakfast. I got to go to his event. He shared some ‘secrets’ with me that over the years saved us thousands of dollars (and made us thousands too). And I got to go backstage and see how things were done. There’s more of a story, but the point is simple.
Most people never say thank you in a meaningful way
And when you go out of your way to say thank you, you are remembered. People remember you because most people never say thanks. They may just send an email over. Or may not even bother to do that. But to really say thanks means that you stand out like crazy. I can, for instance remember a chocolate cake that showed up on my doorstep one November. I can remember the dinner at my favourite restaurant. I can remember a simple iTunes voucher I got from someone. I can remember that audio series on the ‘Talent Code’ that came in the mail. I remember, because thanks is so rare.
So is this about me getting gifts?
That’s a nice thought, so hold it, but that’s not the point at all. The point is just to say thanks to people who make a difference in
your life. Renuka and I will often give the waiters and waitresses at the cafe a small bar of chocolate. When we travel, we often take
little gifts for people. We will send t-shirts (after checking the size etc) or a little tree, for instance. The point is that you need to learn to say thanks often and consistently.
The problem with thanks is that you can’t wait
You have to say thanks quickly. And in a way that works. So for instance, a bar of chocolate may be appropriate for one person and
not for another. A bottle of wine may be great for someone and not for another. And this can’t wait. You can procrastinate too long
and forget about things. And a thank you opportunity lost is a thank you opportunity lost.
Be aware that it’s not always a gift as well
A book. A little card. A crayon drawing. A special video. There are a million ways to say thanks without spending a dime. But first you
have to learn to say thanks as often as possible. And there are reasons. The first being that it makes you happy. That’s the most
important reason. The second is that it makes the other person happy. And finally, the concept of ‘give and you shall receive’
comes into play.
You don’t give because you want to receive, but you get stuff back anyway. That one conversation with Brian made a difference to my
life forever. And it changed my perception of things and added to my bank balance. One measly bottle of wine makes a massive difference.
So yeah, have you said thanks today in a meaningful way, yet? How did you do it? Share your stories here.

Sean D’Souza

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*IMNewswatch would like to thank Sean D’Souza and Psychotactics for granting permission to reprint this latest article.

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