Tuesday, February 06, 2007

catch them doing good

Tonight I went to two different stores in a row(sort of a stretch for me), and at both places enjoyed exceptional service. Maybe I was in a better mood than usual, maybe I emitted a friendly vibe in my comfy college sweatshirt (from my alma mater) and yoga pants ... but I was wowed by the service provided by the two employees with whom I interacted in each environment.

In both stores, I went to the customer service desk and asked to speak with a manager.

In both stores, the person behind the customer service desk immediately looked worried and asked if there was something with which they could help me. To both people I said no, and insisted (in a non-confrontational way) to speak with the manager.

I spoke to the manager in each store, and the start of the conversations was almost identical ... "is something wrong, ma'am?" I fought hard not to laugh, shook each of their hands, and told them that I was sorry to see that they seemed to be immediately ready to hear a complaint.

I engaged in conversation with each manager for a few minutes, and praised the respective employees ... the managers seemed surprised and also a bit relieved. I told them that I wished they received more calls with compliments instead of complaints.

A sort of "bonus" was when I learned that, at the second store, it was the employee's second day on the job ... and I was happy to see the manager head toward her at the end of our conversation.

My experiences tonight were a powerful reminder to me of the power of words, and of the tongue, and of what a very negative world in which we live. I am re-instituting the personal challenge of leaving each person and each place a little brighter than it was before I was there ... and I'm hoping that's what happened in each of those stores tonight.

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