Food for thought

I know you have heard that song line: “It’s all about the Benjamin ba-by” but I am here to tell you that it just isn’t true. For those that are not “Hip” like me, Benjamin refers to the hundred dollar bill. Ok I just gave away my not-with-it-ness by using the word Hip. I don’t even know what term they use these days for being "hip" but you know what I meant. The point is, that it really is all about the attitude ba-by.

These days, I sometimes look for a good attitude and customer service more than I do the actual product itself. I avoid some establishments and go out of my way to others based solely on the service that I receive. Some of it has to do with lack of job satisfaction but I truly believe that some people would be miserable no matter where they work. I work with some of these people and sometimes I just have to bite my lip because I really want to say something. Every once in a while I do slip when it is just too much to take. If I feel I am getting close to saying something, I sometimes retreat to my office and read some Bible verses and try to remind myself to keep quiet.

Recently though, I felt compelled to write two letters because of great service that I had received. The first one was about a local convenience store. I stop there from time to time for coffee or gas. Usually it is early in the morning, around 5 am. When I do stop, the people are always friendly and the place is really clean. If I find something like a coffee spill on the counter, I point it out and someone comes right over and cleans it up. I wrote to the company and told them how much I liked shopping at this particular store and they passed it along to the manager. They actually forwarded the email to the manager . The next time I stopped in, the girl at the counter asked me what my last name was. When I told her, she said “I thought it was you” and called for the manager. Oops, I sent the email in from work and it has my last name in it. The manager was in the back and came out and hugged me and said thank you. Now the store directly across the street is just the opposite. It is dirty, cluttered, and the people working there are not very friendly.

The other company I wrote to believe it or not was a fast food place called Mcburgers. (not their real name but you get the picture) I also sometimes stop there in the mornings on my way to work. When I get to the drive up window I am greeted with an Eeyore sounding voice that says “can I help you” I give my order and pull up to the first window. The girl at this window then says the price and nothing more. After I get my change, she says “pull up” At the pickup window however it is a whole different ball game. The window opens and a young girl with a bright smile greats me with a happy “Good morning sir, here’s your order”. Then she repeats what I ordered. After that she says “Have a great day” and I tell her to do the same. I usually only stop there a few times a month but this girl knows that I like jelly and what kind and she puts some in my bag without me asking. Sometimes I still ask for jelly just to check and she says I already put it in the bag.

I wrote to this company and told them about both girls and made a comparison between the two. I got a nice email back, thanking me for taking the time to comment and they also sent me a coupon for a free burger. (I didn’t expect to get anything but it was a nice gesture) The next time I stopped in, the first girl had changed her speech but not her attitude. She still sounded like Eeyore but she did say “good morning, can I take your order”? The other girl smiled even more than usual and I could tell that the comments had got back to them both. It is nice to hear something positive and not always the negative stuff. I think that is why I like my new job so much. When I do something good I hear about it. At my old job, we only heard negative things.

See you can make a difference if you speak up and say something positive.

Have a wonderful day,
Greg