I thought I’d get a jump-start on holiday-themed blogs this year so we can all be prepared for finding the joy in what can sometimes be a stressful season. To kick things off, let’s talk about family get-togethers. Family holiday gatherings should be a time to reconnect, enjoy great food and drinks, and most of […]
Everyone’s striving for excellence these days, or at least that’s what they tell people. So why is it that we so infrequently experience excellence? I think it’s because we’re focused on the wrong thing. We should be focusing on consistency rather than excellence and here’s why. I recently spoke to a man who was very […]
One of the simplest phrases in customer service is one we seldom hear, yet it’s the most powerful tool in your tool box to de-escalate a customer complaint quickly and easily. What’s the phrase? It’s: “You’re Right.” Wow! That even looks awesome in writing. Don’t you just feel good reading that? So imagine how your […]
No matter what business you’re in, there will be times when things go wrong when serving your customers. From forgetting to process an order to selling a product that doesn’t meet the customer’s expectations, you’re going to let your customers down. Customer service failures don’t have to define you. It’s how you RESPOND to service […]
Listening is probably our most important, but most underutilized communication skill. Part of the problem is that people are selfish and would rather be the one talking than listening. However, I also think people are bad listeners because nowhere along the line as we’re growing up, does anyone teach us how to be good listeners. […]
One of my personal pet peeves is people who don’t reply to emails, voicemails, or text messages in a timely fashion – especially when I KNOW they received the communication. Case in point – I sent an email 2 weeks ago to a group of people for whom I had ordered t-shirts for an event. […]
At least a few times a month, I get a call from a client who wants me to “fix” an employee with training or coaching. “He’s got great computer skills, but he’s rude to our customers.” “She’s very efficient, but we had to move her to the back office because she can’t get along with […]
Within the mainstream U.S. business culture, the rules for handshakes are pretty straightforward and standard, but people often break them unknowingly. Additionally, before taking these rules overseas or across borders, keep in mind that handshake “rules” vary across cultures. Therefore, do your homework before interacting with those from other places in the world. Your handshake […]
Effective communication is criticial to success in just about every facet of our lives and at the top of the list of what makes communication is SPECIFICITY! So much of our miscommunication comes from lack of specificity. We THINK we’re being specific when we say: Get it to me at the beginning of the month. […]
Over the past eight years or so, I’ve fostered more than 700 animals for my local animal shelter and some that I’ve taken in through my nonprofit animal rescue, Starlight Outreach and Rescue. In fact, to continue to do this “labor of love,” we sold our home of almost 20 years last year and moved […]
