Chris Bonney

The Power Of P.S.

Have you sent an email to someone only to discover upon their response that they clearly didn't read your whole email? Because, of course, if they had read it they wouldn't have asked you the question you already answered right there in your original message...in paragraph seven!

This isn't a post about keeping your emails short (though you should), it's a post about love. Well, sort of.

Ever seen this written? "P.S. I love you."

The power of this statement is not the "I love you" part, but the "P.S." part.

It's a long known fact to copywriters that the most read part of a direct mail letter is the title. Second most read part of a direct mail letter? Yep, the P.S.

Why? Well, we're intrigued by the informality of it. The seemingly ad hoc nature of it. It's an afterthought. It's a piece that needs it's own context. It's an important thought to leave you with just here at the very end.

Well, lately I've been trying the P.S. trick in my own business emails to great success.

For example, I recently sent this as a P.S.:

"I really thought that webinar was great by the way. Can you forward me the slides?"

This is an email whose primary message was not answered for another 24 hours, but I had those slides within 20 minutes. The power of the P.S.

Again, if your email is a wall of words, the P.S. isn't going to mean much, but when you really have a request you'd like to make sure gets through. Try tagging it at the end as a P.S. Then come back here and let me know how that goes for you. I'm curious to hear.

The Resolution I Hope You Didn't Make This Year

So we're a couple days into the new year. You've no doubt tried to resist those left over sugar cookies and have maybe even hit the gym once already in an effort to kick start your resolution to lose weight. Or maybe you've made that connection with the old friend you've resolved to keep in better contact with. Or maybe you've cleaned out your inbox top to bottom because "this year's gonna be different!"

It Won't Be Different
Here's the truth. Next year won't be different from this year. You won't lose 20 pounds and you won't keep your inbox empty. The reason you won't is because you weren't doing those things -- or better yet, being those things, just 3 short days ago. How have you really changed since Wednesday?

You Can't Change Your Lifestyle
It's now become popular to explain how you're not simply going to diet to lose weight, you're going to change your lifestyle. We can thank Dr. Phil for that nugget, but the fact is changing your lifestyle is not the goal.It is the effect of achieving your goal. Your goal should be specific. You don't want to lose 20 pounds, you want to stop eating french fries 4 times a week. You don't want to have a more manageable inbox, you want to create 3 email accounts and use them accordingly: business, personal and inbound only. By making incremental steps toward a broader reaching goal, your lifestyle will change, but not because you set out to do it, but because you're becoming someone new.

Resolutions Are Bunk
Being specific or not in your goals, of course, really isn't the point either, though when setting goals it's where your head needs to be. No, resolutions are bunk because they imply a future state. You're resolving to do something. You're not doing it now, you're going to do it. That mentality is why you'll not achieve your weight loss or keep in touch with your friend or keep your inbox empty. You're not doing it today so you won't do it tomorrow. Resolutions are for people who want to dream, who want to talk about what they'll be someday.Doers do...today.

You Should Be Different
What if you tried something different? What if every day, every single day, you woke up in the morning and resolved to do something? Make resolving part of what you do every day, or, better yet, who you are every day -- continually striving for more. Don't blow off October, November, and December because you know this new idea, endeavor, desire, or want would be better suited as a new year's resolution. Resolve October 1st to call your friend. Not in the future, not next year, right now on October 1st. Resolve on October 2nd to create your 3 email accounts, resolve on Oct 3rd to not eat french fries on that day. Resolve right now, right this very moment, to be more resolute...more often.

Don't get suckered into the cultural vacuum of new year's resolutions. Be the change. Resolve daily. The resolution I hope you didn't make this year is the one you did.