Pen to paper

The lost art of the handwritten note

By Charlie Clark

I ran into a marketing colleague at an industry conference in New York. After a group dinner sitting in the hotel lobby, he thanked me for a handwritten note I’d sent to him five years earlier welcoming him to his new role in Savannah. He still had that note in his desk, he said, and was touched that I’d taken the time to send a handwritten note to a guy I’d never met to say welcome. It took me about five minutes to handwrite a note that he’d saved for years. 

He reminded me that the top drawer of my desk holds a few handwritten notes I’d received over the years, too. I still review them from time to time for encouragement or to simply brighten my day. They seem too precious to toss in the trash.

In a world filled with hundreds of daily emails and endless text messages, the handwritten note holds more sway now than ever. A well-crafted, handwritten note is as rare as it is powerful. There’s still something special about receiving a handwritten note of encouragement or thanks. It’s a classy move that can make more of a difference than people often realize.

I admittedly judge a job candidate based on whether they recognize the power of writing a handwritten thank-you note following the interview, and I’m not alone. A C-suite executive once told me he had two candidates of almost equal footing vying for an important new role in his company. In the end, the candidate who followed up with the handwritten note got the job over the candidate who didn’t. “If she paid attention to that small, but telling detail with me, I knew she’d treat our clients the same way,” he said.

An investment in personalized stationery is a smart bet in business and in life, too. I’ve never received a handwritten note that didn’t touch me in some way. In a world filled with more than its fair share of communication, putting pen to paper is an art worth preserving.


Charlie Clark is a local businesswoman and practices what she preaches. She recommends investing in personalized stationery and never underestimate the power of a lined envelope. Crane Stationery is a personal favorite. 

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