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Although I have been a passionate customer of Amazon.com for years, I had never written a book review- that is, until now. My review of Managing with Aloha makes its debut today.
Man, I have to tell you, not only is Rosa's book inspirational, but writing the review felt pretty darn good too!
If you have a chance, visit Rosa Say's blog Talking Story. After reading a few of her posts, you'll be off to buy her book in no time!
CFAC, a budding oranization of unlimited possibilities forms a couple of weeks ago. Its mission is to direct resources to areas of the planet in need.
They have a somewhat unique business model. It relies on their smarts, hard work and the public's near utter inability to resist their endeavor. The group individually solicits the necessary resources to build their product of sale. Then it instills its own value, through personal hard work, in the manufacturing process. Next step is to co-op retail space in a local establishment and sell their products. Proceeds from the sale are sent to organizations better equipped to distribute funds.
Our daughter, Carla Marie and three of her friends formed Cookies For A Cause after feeling the need to personally help victims of the Indian Ocean Tsunmai. The parents donated ingredients, the kids baked the cookies and sold them at a local retail establishment. Everyone in the process feels good. The kid's efforts is an example of Goodwill Amplified.
Is there a way to amplify the need to contribute, or goodwill, in your organization? This doesn't have to be a Tsunami victim endeavor. Maybe one of your employee's parents has recently become disabled. Maybe you have one employee capable of building a wheelchair ramp - and ten others capable of helping - because they want to. The key is you, your ability to hear the need and mobilize resources.
Todd Storch of Business Thoughts is hosting a seminar this week on Customer Service. This topic is so near and dear to me. When I first visited Todd's blog I read a couple of his customer service posts. I thought, wow, there is another human being on this planet who has been the recipient of some really awful customer service. I immediately connected. This led me to explore the rest of the Business Thoughts blog and I'll tell ya, I discovered a gold mine!
The following is a list of authors that are contributing to the experience:
Monday: Jon Strande at Business Evolutionist
Tuesday: Brendon Connelly at Slacker Manager
Wednesday: Rosa Say at Talking Story
Thursday: Terry at Fellowship Church
Friday: Dave -n- Rosemary.......us
Rosemary and I are both truly humbled to be included with such a line up of talented writers!
Todd promises to do a week-end recap and provide his own thoughts on how to improve customer service.
Please stop on by and enjoy the experience!
The first time I cruised the Business Thoughts blog I got hooked on the customer service posts. Todd and I seem to share similar retail shopping experiences. Before I go on, let me tell you why else I really like this blog:
Father-n-Daughter Day
I hit the retail trail yesterday with my youngest daughter. For perspective, this is akin to walking a starving lion through a henhouse. Our first stop is an affluent mall in the most affluent part of town. As we enter the mall, steel bars slam down and isolate the hens. The only reason I am here is to pick up my 05 planner refill from the Franklin Covey store. In the store, I ask the clerks behind the counter if they have read the 8th Habit. One tells me no and the other said he had, but it's no big deal - just a rehash of the Seven Habits and something else. Here I am, an undercover Covey zealot, acutually baiting the clerks into conversation and they spit Stephen out like an overgrown hairball.
Our only obstacle on the way in to the FC store was the Disney store. I took off in flight, gained horizontal air and a quick swipe of the ankle prevented a touchdown. An alternate retreat out of the mall proved even more dangerous. It led us directly into an island aisle vendor...one that was making stuffed bears. Trapped like a rat, I succumb. Really though, $12.95 for a bear stuffed onsite was reasonable. The warm feeling I experienced while my daughter was working with the charming clerk to build the bear was priceless. These people are brilliant. Of course there are no signs telling you the clothes cost one and a half times the bear! But how does one tell their kid the bear has to go naked? They place the bear in a cradle to carry out...this way people walking by can see cute little kids carrying cute little bears wearing cute little clothes.
Next stop, Chili's for lunch. As we are seated, I hear a customer ask his waitress if they have newspapers available. Five minutes later I see this waitress running outside through snow drifts without a coat. She had gone to the biz next door to get this guy a paper! There is little doubt this twenty year old girl took it upon herself to help her customer. This is an example of why I love, love, love this up and coming generation!!
Last stop, the grocery store. I have the unique ability to elevate grocery store sales. You see, I can walk into a sparsely crowded store and by the time I am ready to check-out fill it up faster than a free Shania Twain concert. What really frosts my goat is that the onslaught of shoppers beat me to the registers. But this time it was different. As we approached the check-out I had to duck into an aisle and pick up one more item. My daughter continues on. Looking on at the snarl of bodies in line I see her flagging me over. She was at a self check-out register checking out. There had to be at least eight people in every other line!! The incredulity of this event is beyond description. I just wonder...
Does the universe really provide what we are looking for? I ALWAYS expect to engage clustered masses of humanity at the check-out line. I ALWAYS expect there to be a problem in the line I am in. Could my daughter's non-awareness to disgusting shopping experiences and her ability to check our stuff out faster than a cashier, offset my demand for self-induced shopping naseua?
All in all, a brilliant Father-n-Daughter Day!!!!!!!!
