Get in the Feedback Loop

I am teaching a class this morning; twenty newbie managers ~ my favorite audience! Yesterday, I called the hotel venue to confirm some things, and the young man who answered the phone (remember when we called them PBX operators?) said the words you expect to hear when you call a hotel in Hawai'i, but there was something different; the way he said them. His voice and his tone was animated yet personally low enough to be intimate and not over the top. I could make out every word he said, and he made me feel like he was there only for me. It was as if he'd been waiting for me to call. You could sense he had the energy and spirit of someone who loved their job, and was happy to be at work. I had to comment on it, and I said, "wow, what a wonderful way to answer the phone. I am so glad I got you this morning!" Know what he said? "Gee, thanks, usually no one says anything to me about how I do what I do, and sometimes I kinda think the extra effort makes no difference." We customers need to do the same thing I coach all my newbie managers to do: If you want your people to be exceptional at work, you have to catch them at it when they are, say thank you, and reinforce the behavior you want repeated. All it takes is noticing it when it happens. Be a good customer, and get in the feedback loop. It takes two to make hospitality happen, and it flows in both directions. ~Rosa Say