Quality of Service
No one can make you serve customers well ….That’s because great service is a choice.
Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point. He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport, when a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine.
Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey. (When is the last time you saw that?)
He handed him a laminated card and said: I’m Wally, your driver. While I’m loading your bags in the trunk I’d like you to read my mission statement.
Taken aback, Harvey read the card. It said:
Wally’s Mission Statement: “To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment.”…
This blew Harvey away, especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean! (Okay, that’s another first).
As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, ‘Would you like a cup of coffee’? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.’
I said jokingly, “I’d prefer a soft drink.” Wally smiled and said,
“‘No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.”
Thinking, Harvey said, “I’ll take a Diet Coke.”
Handing him his drink, Wally said, “If you’d like to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.”
As they were pulling away, Wally handed Harvey another laminated card, ‘These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you’d like to listen to the radio.’
And as if that weren’t enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him. Then he advised Harvey of the his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he’d be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts…
‘Tell me, Wally,’ Harvey asked, “‘have you always served customers likethis?”‘ Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. “‘No, not always. In fact, it’s only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do”
Then I heard the personal growth guru, Dr. Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day. He had just written a book called “You’ll See It When You Believe It”. Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you’ll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, ‘Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition.
Don’t be a duck. Be an eagle
Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.’ ‘That hit me right between the eyes,’ said Wally.
‘Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle.
I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few changes at a time. When my customers responded well, I did. ‘I take it that has paid off for you,’ Harvey said. ‘It sure has,’ Wally replied.
‘My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I’ll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me. I now get appointments on my cell phone by messages on my answering machine. If I can’t pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action. ‘Wally was phenomenal”
He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I’ve probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn’t do any of what I was suggesting. Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like the ducks and started soaring like the eagles.
How about us Brethren? Maybe we can use this as a lesson in our Lodges. Take our future into our own hands and make good things happen.
Smile, and the whole world smiles with you…. The ball is in our hands. A man reaps what he sows.
Let us never weary in doing good, for in time we will reap a harvest, do not give up…
Let us do good to all people. Have a nice day, unless you already have other plans.
SORROW looks back, WORRY looks around, and FAITH looks UP…
Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar.
Personal Comment
In 1988, while living in Northern British Columbia, I noted an ad in a Business Magazine promoting an audio tape on Effective Marketing, & an offer to purchase a second tape 50% off. Not being able to turn down a bargain, I ordered the Marketing tape PLUS one called “Learning to Live & Love” by someone called Dr Wayne. W. Dyer. Since that date I have purchased almost everything Dr Dyer has had or sale in either book or audio form & have benefitted from them all.
Should anyone be interested, my recommendation is “The Power of Intention” which, in my opinion, speaks to my understandings of life & my journey as a Freemason.
Have a wonderful day & God Bless
Norm