Being Present is a Gift to All - The Real Meaning of Real Time
They say wherever you go, there you are. Yet how present are you at any given time and place you find yourself? Many professionals appear in body but little else. Don't get marked as missing in action..
They say wherever you go, there you are. Yet how
present are you at any given time and place you find yourself? Many
professionals appear in body but little else. Don't get marked as missing in
action.
In the last week I encountered the following professionals missing in
action:
Out of Tune: My local mail carrier arrived each day, wearing her iPod
and delivering my neighbors' mail to me. She's in her own world. She dumps
the apartment's mail in a pile each day. In addition to my mail I
consistently receive mail from neighbors up and down my street, as well as
mail of neighbors two streets over at the same street number. So much for
accuracy. Doesn't she realize close only counts in horseshoes and hand
grenades?
Disconnect: An airport shuttle driver who greeted us at our hotel and
attempted to drive the entire route to the airport while engaged in a phone
conversation he was in when he arrived. True, the driver used an ear-piece
so we only had to hear his side of the conversation. Yet whether on surface
streets or the freeway the constant was the phone call, not our safety.
Sickening Service: I showed up at my HMO for a doctor's appointment
and was greeted by a lack of greeting. The receptionist was on the phone,
and without making eye contact, stuck out her hand for my medical ID card,
processed it, took my money and returned my card, without saying a single
word (to me). Her attention was reserved for her call. The call proceeded
long after I paid and sat down to wait for my physician. No greeting, smile,
acknowledgment of me as a valued patient, or even as a person. Hers was an
extended personal call. (How do I know? I was forced to listen in the
waiting room for the next 10 minutes.)
A Present Danger
Is it too much to ask that people be present when we interact with them? You
say you're multi-tasking, I say you're giving poor customer service. And
this applies whether you are in sales or service, interacting with external
or internal customers.
You say you can do two things at once. As a coach I say it's disrespectful
and often downright rude to divide attention from a customer or client who
has called or is face-to-face. And what's more, the results speak for
themselves: errors, omissions, sloppy products and services, missed
opportunities to strengthen customer loyalty and allegiance. And a degrading
feeling for customers held captive by inattentive service providers.
Are you Present and Accounted For? Audit your own interactions with
customers. Ask yourself the following:
- Do you greet them with genuine affection?
- Do you know and use their name? (Are you pronouncing it correctly? Not
sure? Ask!)
- Are you giving them your undivided attention?
- Are you giving good and consistent eye contact?
- Are you preoccupied with a previous client, customer or call?
- Are you easily distracted?
- If the phone rings while you're in conversation, do you let it ring
through?
- Do you listen actively and intently or are you "faking" it?
In today's world customers long to be heard, to be understood and to feel
others care about them. Help customers feel connected! Show them you care.
Treat them as if they're the most important people in the world. For the
brief time they're in your midst, give them your undivided attention. Don’t
just be here now…but hear now! Or, forever lament the loss of treasured
customers!
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