40 Reasons We’re Thankful To Work In Customer Service

This post was originally published on the FCR blog on November 25, 2015.  Click here to read the original.

If you’ve never done so, take a moment to ask your colleagues what they are thankful for.  I specifically asked my colleagues:

What are you thankful for when it comes to working in customer service?

Before you read any further, let’s just get something straight.  No one in history ever said customer service was an easy job.  Often chock full of challenges and obstacles, greatness at customer service requires supreme adaptability to unique problems presented by unique people.  The best customer service people find deep fulfillment in helping others and challenge those around them to be better.  It’s for these reasons that I hold anyone who finds reason to be thankful in this profession in extremely high regard.

That being said, here are 40 reasons my colleagues are thankful to work in customer service.  While there might be some similarities, they each have their own unique twist.  By the end, you will have no choice but to be thankful as well.

1. Working in customer service satisfies my competitive side.  Working with others pushes me to be better at my job.
2. I enjoy working with customers who really follow instructions in a troubleshooting process.
3. It’s great to share a laugh with a customer even in the frustrating situations.
4. I love the work environment and culture at FCR filled with awesome people.
5. I’m thankful for the opportunity to make customers feel valued. It makes both the customer’s and my day better.
6. I’m thankful for the chance to really help someone else and then be rewarded with a great comment from the customer.
7. Plain and simple, I like to help people. I do not feel whole if I am not helping someone who can’t help themselves.
8. I am thankful for exceptional teachers, employers, and mentors who have instilled in me the hunger to excel at customer service.
9. I am also thankful for the leaders I have never met. I have gleaned a wealth of information from the books, magazine articles, etc. they have written.
10.  I am thankful for all the customers who have acknowledged my efforts. Their smiles, kind words, and great reviews have given me the strength to keep on.
11. I am most thankful for being allowed to experience the variety of people we come in contact with.
12. I am thankful for patient customers.
13. I am thankful to learn patience. Working in customer service can be trying and understanding how to deal with the frustrations of others is important for this type of work.
14. I am thankful to have customer service friends to help me along the way.
15. I am grateful to be the one who brings happiness back into frustrated lives.
16. I am thankful for the excitement in the voice of customers when the troubleshooting works.
17. I am thankful for the opportunity to make sure our clients have the most awesome experience possible.
18. I am thankful for the ability to escalate matters into capable hands.
19. In helping make each experience amazing, I’m thankful to combat the stigma that contacting customer service is anything less than stellar.
20.  I’m thankful to be on a team that’s on the same page and runs like a well-oiled machine.
21. I’m thankful for the opportunity to diffuse anger, relieve frustration, encourage, and bring about happiness with a simple, gentle word.
22. I am thankful to be working for a company that believes in the power of doing the right thing, not just for us, but the customer as well.
23. No one call or customer is ever the same as the next.
24. I am thankful to do customer service via email.
25. When we help another person we make the world a better place in one small way.  I am thankful for being able to do that.
26. I am thankful for my big family that helped me develop a tough skin for dealing with many different people and personalities.
27.  I am most thankful for the temperature-controlled environment. Having done many manual labor jobs outside in the elements, the opportunity to work for FCR in the winter is a great change I really appreciate.
28. I am thankful for the Happy Holidays and well wishes given by our customers around this time of year.
29. I am thankful for the life skills customer service has taught me.  Patience, empathy, sympathy, respect, etc are all important qualities I use every day in my life.
30. I am thankful for all of the wonderful people I have met along the way.  I once met a man who was at one time the governor of Oregon, I met the lead drummer of a world famous rock band, I met a videographer for a major television network, as well as some everyday normal people who ended up becoming lifelong friends. Those experiences are absolutely priceless.
31.  I am thankful for the nice people as well as the ones who test my patience. Customer service has made me better on my feet at resolving problems quickly and efficiently.
32. Working in customer service helps me better understand people and their unique needs.
33. I am grateful to have a stimulating job in challenging economic times.
34. I am thankful for the privilege of being able to help people in real life situations. Whether the issue is big or small, I love knowing that I made a difference for someone.
35. I love taking my time with a customer who may be learning about our product or service for the very first time.
36. I love letting my personality shine through.
37. I am grateful when a customer knows that I will do everything in my ability to help him or her.
38. I am thankful for my colleagues who support me amid personal health challenges and treatments.
39. I’m thankful to be able to use my powers of empathy and compassion in a way that’s impacting to others.
40. I’m thankful for a great group of colleagues who share their knowledge, laughter and tears with me.

You can see why I’m humbled to work with such a thoughtful bunch of colleagues.  What are you grateful for?  If you are part of the millions of customer service professionals who choose to daily make a difference in the lives of others, I’m thankful for you.  Happy Thanksgiving!

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