One Person Makes a Difference

5. CHANGE

(5 out of 5 posts)

Individuals respond to change in three ways. A few become early adopters. Most become late adopters. And some remain persistent skeptics who never stop resisting. Make yourself an early adopter. Look for opportunities to change. Anyone who takes on risk and responsibility in society must resist the temptation to be a cog in the machine.

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One Person Makes a Difference

4. WRITE SOMETHING

(4 of 5 posts)

The act of writing is powerful. It makes you think through problems. It doesn't matter what you write about. You need only add a small observation about your world. When you dod you make yourself part of a larger world.

One Person Makes a Difference

3. COUNT SOMETHING

(3 of 5 posts)

We should be scientists in this world. We should quantify things that interest us when possible to get a handle on their abstract essence. You will learn something.

One Person Makes a Difference

(2 of 5 Posts)

2. DON'T COMPLAIN

There are difficulties of having to work with other human beings under circumstances only partly in one's control. Choose not to complain! It's boring, doesn't solve anything, and will get you down. Therefore, be prepared to discuss something else.

One Person Does Make a Difference

(1 of 5 posts)

If you ever thought surgeon's knew it all, let me refer you to a book by a surgeon for people in the medical field...with applications to anyone involved in delivering a service to a customer. Atul Gawande wrote, Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance. In the Afterward he wrote a piece entitled, Suggestions for Becoming a Positive Deviant. There a five suggestions:

1. ASK THE UNSCRIPTED QUESTION

Encounter people at a real, personal level. Intentionally make conversation with them. Learn something about them. Sometimes you discover the unexpected.

Bags Fly Free

I give kudos to Southwest Airlines and their marketing campaign, Bags Fly Free. What a novel concept and a great piece of advertising. It reminds me of what I've learned about business:

You tell people what you want to do.

You tell people what you are doing - while you're doing it.

You tell people what you've just done.

So...it's all about marketing, even when you're providing a customer service.

"Clientele" - A Customer Service Verb

Management guru Tom Peter's wrote in a blog that businesses have wasted opportunities every day because they do not "clientele." He defined it: "to create a relationship-building encounter with your customer, so that the relationship with the store is better when she leaves than it was when she came in."

How is your clientele?

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