Monday Motivation: Slow It Down!

I have grown to love the practice of writing a motivational post as I attempt to set my own mind straight leading into the week.  Let me preface this by saying that these motivational posts are as much, if not more, about motivating myself as they are about motivating others.

On a typical Sunday afternoon I love nothing more than to lay down on the couch and fall asleep to a football game I don’t care a whole lot about.  Over the past year or so my son Zack has grown out of naps and while we still require him to spend some time in his room for a “rest,” he manages to make his presence known throughout the “rest” time.  Needless to say, this makes napping difficult and often frustrating.

This afternoon I changed the routine up a bit.  I asked Zack if he wanted to go hiking instead.  We went to one of my favorite local trails and made our way up a fairly steep grade.  I was proud and impressed at what he was able to handle.  You’re probably asking what this has to do with customer service.  Actually it has nothing to do with customer service.  I just wanted an excuse to talk about my kids.  Just kidding.

Here’s my big insight for this morning.  Rather than fighting my son for the nap I knew I wanted, I chose to instead find an activity the two of us could enjoy together.  In that activity we got to enjoy each other’s company, laugh, talk and even cry together (he fell).  Had I been so focused on what I wanted, I would have missed out on that opportunity.  You see, Zack is one of my most important customers.

As customer service professionals I daresay we have 30-50 opportunities each day to wow customers.  It’s so easy however, to rush our way through each encounter in an attempt to make the day go faster or grasp hold of what little bit of downtime we can find.  Allow me to propose that we slow down in our work today and give a little extra focus to each encounter with others.  Let’s really listen and seek to understand our customers (internal and external) and see if it doesn’t add a little bit more meaning and fulfillment in our work and lives.  Try this today and please share your story with me if this makes a difference for you.

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