WE CAN DO BETTER!
A couple of days ago a storm came through here that was crazy. I’ve never seen that much rain. It reminded me of when I was living in my old house. Every time there was a bad storm I had to go through some major things to get the lights back on in the house. One time there was a storm so bad that lightning hit the house and all the power went out. I looked across the street and my neighbor had power, so I knew the problem was just in my house.
Stay with me, I’m going somewhere here…
I knew I had to get to the circuit breaker to fix what was going on. Now, in my old house, the breaker box was in the attic, and in order to get to it I had to climb a ladder, go up a flight of stairs and then climb over an air conditioning unit, all the while trying to not step through the ceiling joist or I would go straight through the sheet rock. And imagine trying to do all of this in the dark. But I had to do it if I wanted lights on in my house.
I got to the breaker box and started turning the breakers back on. For those of you who are not up on your DIY (do it yourself, LOL), the circuit breakers protect the house from further damage by turning themselves off if they get too much power or pull too much power to them.
As I was thinking about this yesterday I started thinking about us as people, as souls... me, you and any other human on this planet. What is common about us all is that we all, at one time or another, will go through or have been through a storm, and sometimes the storms are so bad that they turn off circuit breakers in our lives. We can look at others who have gone through the same storm and they are fine, like my neighbor across the street. They had power, but I was in the dark. Same storm, but it affected me differently. Many people can have the same experience and get over it but it affects each of us differently. Never let someone tell you to just get over it because they did. It’s not that simple.
When circuit breakers shut down in our lives they usually turn off to protect us from trauma, but just because they turn off doesn’t mean that they are supposed to stay off. A lot of times we leave them off because we don’t want to do all that is necessary to reach the breaker box to turn them back on. So what happens? We begin to live a life that is not as bright and fulfilling as it was originally designed to be. You just stay in the dark because it’s easier to not go through what you need to go through for healing. Trust me, I’ve been there, lived there for a while until I realized that I wanted all the lights on in my soul. I had to get these breakers back on.
Why am I saying this to you? Well I know that God designed all of us to live the fullest life that we can, to live in the light, love and joy. It is my hope and prayer today that you will start to do the work to turn on some of the breakers that may have been turned off in your life by difficult moments. What do I mean by that? If you have a dream and you stopped dreaming because it got too hard, that’s a breaker that went off. Turn it back on. If you decided that you wouldn’t love anyone else because you’ve been hurt, that’s a breaker that’s been turned off. Turn it back on. If you have decided to give up on life because nothing seems to go right, that’s a breaker that went off. Turn it back on. If you have given up on your kids because they won’t do the right thing, that’s a breaker that went off. Turn it back on.
You see what I mean? Go through your life and look at all the people who have hurt you. Look at all the situations that have left you in the dark. Turn those breakers back on. Live in a full house. One of my favorite scriptures says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father, which is in heaven.” Light up your soul! Tyler Perry
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Thursday, March 10, 2011
How to Praise Good Work
By Elango R.
Waiting for my ride home one evening, I noticed a colleague looking quite upset. I was about to ask him what was wrong when I heard him murmuring to himself, “What does he think I am? Some puppy that he can throw biscuits at to do tricks?”
Thinking about my own safety, I decided to wait till the next day to talk to him. What had gotten this colleague so agitated, and who was throwing biscuits at him?
- Elango R.
His answer was revealing. This colleague was very upset with his manager’s habit of linking every action to the reward that the subordinate could expect. The manager would say things like–“If you deliver this module on time, I will give you an ‘Achieves Expectations’ rating,” or “If the client is happy with our presentation, I will ensure you are sent for that training you want.”
I still didn’t get why my colleague was upset. Isn’t it good when the manager lets the team know what is expected and what they will get in return? Shouldn’t results and rewards be tied together, and ideally be immediate?
Not necessarily.
My colleague was simply doing his job, but the boss made it seem like everything was being done for a rating, an assignment or a promotion. The colleague felt like he was being treated like a child in front of whom a carrot was dangled every time. He wanted to be treated like an adult who is simply told what needs to be done. This colleague was self-motivated, but the manager was oblivious to that.
To be sure, the manager had good intentions. Had he paid attention to his team members’ body language, he might have picked up some clues that his reward technique was not working for everyone.
Different people have different needs, and thus require different types of recognition. I suggest some tips that managers can keep in mind when thinking of non-monetary rewards for their employees:
1. Alternate public and private praise
We tend to think that if something worked for us, it will work for others. Wrong.
One manager I know personally thanks each member of his team for a job well done. So he was surprised to learn in an internal feedback that his team members said he didn’t do a good job of giving recognition.
This manager would be very pleased if his boss personally congratulated him–why didn’t his subordinates feel the same way?
It turns out that the subordinates would have preferred a more public recognition, as opposed to a pat in their cubicles. These employees were seeking peer recognition.
Managers can spend a few minutes in a staff meeting congratulating and thanking team members who have done well on a project. Or, they can send an email to the entire team congratulating the performers.
Ideally, managers should try a combination of both private and public recognition.
2. Communication is key
One of our managers was surprised when his favorite employee left the company citing overwork, when all the manager did was give him plum assignments as recognition!
The manager could have avoided this situation had he informed the employee why he was giving him extra work. He could have said something like: “You’re the best person I have on the ground, so I’d like you to do this assignment. Tell me if the work load is getting too much.”
Of course, even for the best employees, more work is not always the ideal recognition.
3. Grade your praise
When I was younger, I always wondered why my mother beamed when my brother appreciated her cooking, but just nodded when I did. She explained one day that it was because I appreciated everything but my brother was tough to please. He said “good” only if the food was really good.
I haven’t forgotten that lesson.
Managers should grade their feedback and not be too lavish with their praise. Don’t use words like “great,” “terrific” and “fantastic” very often.
4. Add an element of surprise
Don’t become predictable in your accolades. You can stick to the same message, but the way you deliver it can change. Try email sometimes, or a handwritten note, while at other times you can walk to the employee’s cubicle…variety works!
5. One size doesn’t fit all
This sounds hackneyed, but many of us use only a handful of tools to recognize our employees.
The manager who really wins employees’ hearts is the one who knows unique ways to deal with each team member. Perhaps the young mother on your team would appreciate flexibility to work from home sometimes. Maybe the ambitious young employee could use a training program. Sometimes flexibility, space, and an opportunity to grow can be the best recognition.
Managers need to listen closely to pick up cues on what works for whom. There’s no substitute for knowing your team well.
6. Change with the times
When someone joins your team, your time and attention is the biggest recognition he or she can get. But as employees grow in their jobs, their needs for your time will change. It’s possible that after some time, they may think you are micro-managing if you ask too many questions! Maybe now they need less advice and more pats and encouragement.
So, keep changing your method of offering recognition.
Good luck, and share your tips on rewarding employees in the Comments section.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Thursday, November 18, 2010
CUSTOMER SERVICES - THE CUSTOMER
Customer Services
The customer always acts to satisfy his or her interests by seeking the very most and best at the lowest price possible. Customers practice economic calculation in their choices. They seek to minimize their purchases and to minimize their costs, or outlays. Customers always attempt to get the things they want the fastest and easiest way possible, right now, at the lower possible price. This is not a problem. This is merely a fact of business life. Customers want the very most for the very least, and they will buy from whomever they feel can best give it to them.
Customers are both demanding and ruthless; they reward highly those companies that serve them best and allow those companies that serve them poorly to fail. Sam Walton once said, “We all have the same boss, the customer, and he can fire us any time he wants by deciding to buy somewhere else.” It isn't that customers don't care about your business, its just that customers care more about themselves and their own satisfaction than they do about the success or failure of your enterprise. Wherever you see a business fail, you see a business where the owners were either unable or unwilling to adjust their offerings to satisfy the customers at prices that allowed them to carry on.
Customers always behave rationally in pursuing the path of least resistance to get want they want. From the point of view of the customer, every action makes perfect sense. All buying behavior is aimed at achieving greater personal satisfaction, toward improving one's position, toward being better off. If a salesperson or a businessperson suggests that the customers are stupid for not patronizing a particular store or buying its products, it is actually the salesperson or the businessperson who is stupid. The customer is very smart and usually knows what is in his or her best interest. The customer's decision is always rational, from the customer's point of view.
Planning
Proper business planning always begins with the customer as the central focus of attention and discussion. People within companies have a dangerous tendency to lose touch with the thoughts, feelings, and needs of their customers. They tend to talk only among themselves, and what is worse, they listen only to each other. They lose touch with the reality of their customers. If you are in business, and if what you do affects your customer, you should mentally erect a statue of the customer and place it in the middle of the table when you discuss any plans regarding your products or services. Always ask yourself; if the customer was sitting here listening to us, what would the customer be thinking? What would the customer say?
customer service 1
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