Pausing to Give Thanks
We are approaching one of my absolute favorite times of year and NO I do NOT like to shop. I’m a guy so if I’m going to the store, it’s for one purpose and one purpose only and I get out as fast as I can. I do however love pecan pie hence the picture. In three days we are going to celebrate Thanksgiving and I thought, what better way to talk about customer service than to look at it through the lens of thankfulness.
I’m not sure where you are coming from this year but I’m guessing we have a broad spectrum of readers. Some thankful, some desperately searching for something to be thankful about. Some feeling happy and blessed, others feeling like they can’t get a break. Some feeling like they are on top of the world, others dealing with the loss of a loved one or chronic pain or a battle with cancer. Admittedly, 2012 hasn’t been my favorite year and at times, I too have struggled to be thankful.
A few year ago, I read the book FISH!. It’s a simple, easy read but a must read for any one in customer service or any company wanting to build a customer centered culture. Our company tried to implement FISH! in all its glory and it totally flopped I think because our employees didn’t really want to be a part of some “experiment.” Regardless of what you call it, FISH! is filled with timeless principles that every company should adopt.
One of the principles that has always stuck with me is “Choose your attitude.” The principle is simply that every day, you can choose to have a great attitude. You can choose not to let circumstances ruin your attitude. That principle constantly looms over my head challenging me to do better, reminding me when I fail and congratulating me when I succeed.
So this week, as Thanksgiving approaches or looms depending on how you are feeling right now, my challenge to you is to not only choose your attitude but to choose an attitude of gratitude and Thanksgiving. If you are a customer service professional, tell your customers you are thankful for them. Write notes to your staff or to your customers expressing gratitude.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am thankful for YOU!
Thank you for sharing your insights and great guidance… You are absolutely correct, we all have the capability to choose how we feel. We should all remember this, and choose to never underestimate our capability for positive greatness. I would like to add by saying that we should also always make sure to treat our customers exactly how we want to be treated. No matter the circumstance, we can all use our great innate abilities to guide a negative circumstance into an enlightening experience by both choosing our attitude, and delivering a positive interaction based on the reflection of how one would wish to receive such. Happy Thanksgiving …We all have so much to be grateful for!
Right on Michael! Thanks for your comments. It’s an honor to have you read the blog. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family as well!
Jeremy
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Nice blog post. Concise and directed.
“Choose your attitude” kind of sums up how I look at a lot of things I can’t help it if a customer doesn’t listen to reason, or the help they are asking for is completely out of my range. If they fly into a psychotic white-hot rage when there’s nothing I can do, I don’t let it get to me, because frankly, I’m not the one with the problem and the bad attitude; they are. I’m not in control of my environment, and I accept that, even if I don’t like it sometimes.
I like that you used this post to try and remind people that, even if things aren’t going the way they want at work, they can choose how to respond by controlling their actions. “Choosing your attitude” is extremely important when dealing with any kind of customer service, because frankly, customer service is the epitome of work stress for almost everyone who works with customers on a regular basis.