Positively Outrageous Service

"One chord is fine. Two chords is pushing it. Three chords and you're into jazz." ~ Lou Reed “FINE” Is an Open Door for Positively Outrageous Service® https://youtu.be/4ZhG41PsiJE "How are you doing?" "I'm Fine!" How often have you heard that! Business is all about relationships. Relationships are elevated or eroded by the experience one encounters. Most conversations on the phone, in a meeting, on a video conference call, start with the question: "How are you doing." Sometimes we will hear: "great," "fantastic," "busy," "overwhelmed," "fabulous," or "really good." Often, we will hear, "I'm fine." Fine is, more often than not, a default, knee-jerk reaction when things aren't great. We've all done it, I've done it. Some years ago, someone asked me an additional question: "How are you really doing?" WOW! That was random and unexpected! I felt they cared. And I shared. And our relationship deepened. Out of proportion to the circumstances. In the British comedy-adventure film The Italian Job, a Cockney gangster Charlie Croker, says "I'm fine," Mr. Bridger, the crime syndicate boss, replies, "You know what 'fine' stands for, don't you? Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional." Let me repeat that: 'fine ‘ is an acronym for: Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional. The response "I'm fine" when we are not is simply a means to suppress our feelings because we don't think the other person would care to hear our real emotions. The band Maroon Five's lyrics sing "I'm not fine, I'm in pain," is way more honest. Speaking the truth sets one free, permitting one to be free from other constricting and fallacious aspects of life. In my experience, when I hear "I'm fine!” The other person is either Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, or Emotional unstable for some reason. And I ask the additional question. To them, it's random and unexpected: "So, how are you really doing?" Nineteen out of twenty times, the person is indeed not fine. They share, they experience care. Sometimes, if the circumstances warrant it: I've even prayed for them. It's incredible how even the agnostic will accept prayer when their cart is in the ditch. In any case, the relationship is elevated. Positively Outrageous Service doesn't have to be complicated – showing you care distinguishes you from the competition. Five words: "How are you really doing?" allows customers or team-mates to be impacted by your care, elevating the experience, enhancing the relationship. How the customer feels about the relationship isn't necessarily about you per se, it's how they feel when they're around you! Why would they want to interact with anyone else but you! We look forward to you being Positively Outrageous as you respond to their "I'm fine!" © 2021 Positively Outrageous Service, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Positively Outrageous Service is a registered trademark of Positively Outrageous Service, Inc.

Giving Thanks to Your Customers, Clients, Suppliers and Employees “Gratitude, not understanding, is the secret to joy and equanimity.” – Anne Lamott. Gratitude – Give thanks for who you are, what you have, and those around you. What you are feeling is more important than what you are thinking. What are you thankful for? Giving thanks builds community and connection.  Giving thanks communicates how you are important to me. Who in your business is helping you be successful? Do something fun for them! An attitude of gratitude is beneficial for the giver and not just the receiver! Gratitude boosts your hormones, from oxytocin to cortisol, as well as neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin. Recent studies point to gratitude delivering behavioral and psychological bonds. Oxytocin connects adults in meaningful relationships. Gratitude accelerates blood flow and activity in the hypothalamus, the master gland that controls hormones. Give thanks and release joy through a natural cocktail of drugs! A key 2003 study on gratitude concluded that, “a conscious focus on blessings may have emotional and personal benefits.”* Improved sleep, decreased depression, greater happiness are all driven from a habit of gratitude. Not only will you benefit others by showing your gratitude, YOU will personally benefit. The more you give gratitude .... the more you will derive from its benefits! Start today. Practice it for 30 days until it becomes your habit! Photo by Gabrielle Henderson on Unsplash "You cannot bring anything new into your life until you are grateful for what you have now.” - Dr. Michael Beckworth Want to dive deeper? We recommend this excellent article by Dr. Sara Gottfried: Thanksgiving: What Gratitude Does to Your Brain     Emmons, R., et al. “Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life.” American Psychological Association – Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 84, no 2 (2003): 377-389.

Be The Revolution of Excellence in Customer Experience with Positively Outrageous Service! You can only be the revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Dispossessed A few years ago, I met some extraordinary Virgins! I was due to fly to a Healthcare Technology conference in Las Vegas from Dallas Love Field by the erstwhile Virgin America airline. There were two clients at this conference and had a program for one of them which included a video. The video was late in getting to me. But I had everything lined up. My Uber was waiting, I didn’t have bags to check and I was TSA pre-checked. I had this! As we turn off the main road into the airport approach road my mobile phone rings. It’s not a number I recognize. Like most of us I depress the red button to hang up. The Uber pulls up to the curbside, the same number rings. Hit the red button again. Running through the terminal into TSA pre-check, put my bag on the conveyor belt, phone rings again, same number, somebody is really trying to get a hold of me specifically! I answer the phone. “This is Brian with Virgin, we are about to close the gate!” “I’m here!” I emphatically respond. TSA man sternly motions me to hang up and get through the metal detector! I’m compliant. Yes, that day, I was THAT passenger. You know the one! “Mr. Szabo please come to Gate 11. This is the final call for boarding!” I run through the terminal. I glance at the departure board. It’s 11:05 am and … the 10:20 am Virgin flight to Las Vegas is not listed. “What!” There’s a Southwest 10:15 am flight listed to New Orleans. How could this be? Out of breath, heart racing, I get to Gate 11. It’s empty. No passengers. No Virgin employees. No one behind the counter! The door to the jetway is closed. Foolishly, I look down at the plane, how can this be? It’s only 10:07 am. I am startled by the gate door opening. A tall man in a Virgin uniform comes through. I plead with him to let me on the plane. “I have a client on the plane, I really need to get on … is there any way? Please!” “Is your name Andrew?” “Yes.” “Oh, I’m Brian … I was the one you hang up on earlier!” Ouch! I cringe. Any possibility of me boarding vanishes in my mind. It’s the end of the road! Brian turns around and returns down the jetway closing the door. Defeated, I slump into a chair at the empty gate and turn on my mobile to figure out when is the next flight to Las Vegas and how to make the change. A few minutes later the jetway gate door opens. I glance up to see it’s Brian. Not expecting anything I am startled as he opens the door wide and motions me to come and go down the jetway. “Please board the plane Mr. Szabo!” I am flabbergasted. My jaw must have dropped to the carpet! “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!” I almost wanted to hug him. But thought better not push my luck! This is Positively Outrageous! I’m sure he and / or the flight captain broke a rule to let me on. Have you ever heard of anyone letting you on a plane after the gate has been closed? Never! This is Positively Outrageous Service! Positively Outrageous Service is that WOW experience you can't wait to tell another about!   My heart racing, briskly I make my way down the empty jetway to the plane fully expecting a shaming, perhaps some scowls or grimaces from the flight crew. I enter the plane and there are three Virgin flight attendants finalizing details. They turn to me with huge smiles, and greet me with total enthusiasm. “Mr. Szabo we are so glad you made the flight today!” “We are delighted to have you on board!” A feather would have knocked me over! More Positively Outrageous Service! And by the way the flight still left on time! Strong choices by great Virgins. Brian went over the top. He made a choice to see if it was possible to get me on the plane. The flight attendants made an intentional choice to welcome me and make me feel good.

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." ~ President John Quincy Adams The Influence of Inspiring Interactions on Positively Outrageous Service® and Relationships https://youtu.be/pKXWNjtrMck Recently I heard these words, "inspiring interactions" - WOW! Five thoughts immediately came to mind: Inspiring interactions require superior communication to foster engagement. Inspiring interactions galvanizes influence. Inspiring interactions infects. Inspiring interactions cultivates Positively Outrageous Service. Inspiring interactions build relationships. The information age heightens and escalates expectations for both customers and employees - and if your organization can't meet them, they're going to leave you for your competitors. To inspire another means they experience intense feelings of loyalty, a positive reaction that is motivating, or the urge or ability to do something creative. When you creatively inspire the interaction with a team member or customer, you elevate engagement and enhance the relationship. And it all starts with superior communication. The words we use in a conversation, meeting, or email either elevates or erodes our engagement with another person. Choose your words carefully. We all have influence. When we inspire a customer through an enhanced experience, they won't dream of going anywhere else, and they'll give you more business. However, you can't inspire the customer without inspiring your team first. You can't have what we call "two faces" - inspiring interactions internally infect our influence and interactions externally with the experience we create for our customers. Inspiring interactions through superior communication elevates engagement and infectiously influences our Positively Outrageous Service to our colleagues, teammates, and ultimately the customer. Positively Outrageous Service directly correlates to building relationships internally, first and secondarily to the customer. And by the way practicing inspiring interactions makes you a leader with influence. The essence of leadership is best described in 19 words by President John Quincy Adams "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." Initiate inspiring interactions to invigorate your Positively Outrageous Service and intensify relationships!   © 2021 Positively Outrageous Service, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Positively Outrageous Service is a registered trademark of Positively Outrageous Service, Inc.

You Can Have Too Much of a Good Thing! https://youtu.be/jRnlQRtClME Boss: “What do you think?” Me: [going to the bathroom] Boss: “Can you hear me?” Me: [getting another beer] Boss: “I think he's on mute.” Me: [getting chips] Boss: “Hello?” Me: “Sorry I was on mute” @RodneyLacroix Do you feel exhausted after attending too many back-to-back virtual video meetings? Virtual meeting fatigue became big news as significant sectors of the population attended school and worked remotely during the CoVid pandemic. Dr. Mitchell, a neurologist at Sunnybrook, says, "We require additional effort and sustained attention during video meetings," "The added strain on our attentional systems and other cognitive processes can leave us feeling exhausted."  Imagine going to a three-day all-day conference. The sessions are all back-to-back, with no breaks, no time for personal interaction, no time to check your emails or call your spouse. Probably time to eat or go to the bathroom! That would be exhausting! Yes, there are some distinctive benefits to video calls as it's more personal and interactive, it: Facilitates conversation details when you see the person's face and body language. Improves conversation engagement as it's closer to the feeling of a real face-to-face meeting. Improves Team Building  But, there are also pitfalls to avoid - you can have too much of a good thing as well! Here are our top tips based that are experiential and research-based that provide relief and make video calls less exhausting. Pick a few that YOU resonate with and would be easy to implement. Experiment and try others over time.  Avoid multitasking. Research reveals doing multiple things at once cuts into performance. Swapping between tasks can undermine as much as 40 percent of your productivity. Researchers at Stanford found that people who multitask can't remember things as well as their more singularly focused peers. So on your next video conference call, close your other programs and tabs that will distract you. Yes, that includes your inbox and chat. Turn off your mobile phone. And be present, focused – and ultimately less exhausted. Take a break! Schedule frequent short breaks. Do something else; work on that other project; check your Email; take a walk. Make lunch, an espresso, or a smoothie. What you eat also impacts fatigue.  Schedule and protect breaks on your calendar. Control your calendar, don't let your calendar control you! Limit the meeting duration. There is a tendency to default to 60-minute meetings. Schedule more 30-minute appointments – better yet, make it a 25-minute session; now you have time to go to the bathroom! If it has to be 60 minutes, make it 50 or at most 55 minutes.   Stand up! In one 7-week study, participants who stood more often at their desks reported less fatigue and stress than those seated the entire day. Additionally, 87% of those standing reported increased vigor and energy throughout the day. If you don't have a stand-up desk, use a cardboard box. That's how the founder of VARIDESK® started! Additionally, if you're making a virtual presentation, you will have way more energy in a standing position than sitting down!  Make space for fun. Start personal. It's okay to come in a few minutes early. You would do that in a face-to-face meeting. Connect personally with others and make the conversation fun. As others join, we are talking at a personal level first – just like you would as you enter a real conference room. I change my virtual backdrop every week, which makes for a fun conversation starter – it might be from a vacation trip or an amusing crazy background that invites a fun initial conversation. Mix it up. Switch to phone meetings over video conference sometimes, especially if it's 1:1 with someone familiar. It's 4.30 PM; you're video-called out but have a scheduled one-on-one. Suggest this, "I'd cherish a break from video calls.

https://youtu.be/5SgC6elyNVs “The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them—preferably in unexpected and helpful ways”. ~ Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group What Does Customer-Centric Mean? If you ask ten people, you may get ten different answers. If your organization’s vision is customer-centricity, then we’d better agree on a single definition and what that entails. According to Investopedia, “customer-centric is an approach to doing business that focuses on creating a positive experience for the customer by maximizing service and/or product offerings and building relationships.” Customer-centric organizations ensure the customer is the epicenter of the organization’s vision, processes, operations, and most importantly, service excellence. Customer-centric organizations understand that their customers are the primary reason for their existence. They use every means to deliver an exceptional experience – what we call Positively Outrageous Service® (POS) - an experience that generates an undeniable feeling. Feelings feed into experience. An elevated experience enhances the relationship. An enhanced relationship ensures intense customer loyalty, revenue growth, and recommendations to others, generating additional customer referrals. According to KPMG, 88% of CEOs are concerned about customer loyalty, recognizing that their customer needs and agendas are vital to success. Business is all about relationships. Your customer’s experience elevates or undermines that alliance. There is no middle ground. Every experience and interaction with your organization’s processes and people impact their experience of you and hence the relationship. The customer experience is not centered on your product offering - it’s the experience surrounding and enhancing your offering. We have a saying, “everything you do sends a message - everything you don’t do sends a message.” Every internal decision we make – how we handle every action, email, telephone call, delivery, problem, resolution, and process impacts the experience and, hence, the customer relationship. Just imagine you’re a customer and have an issue with a business, and it takes 14 emails back and forth to resolve it. We know the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place – context is lost in the maelstrom. There’s miscommunication and misinterpretation galore. You’d have a whole lot of pent-up frustration and emotion, wouldn’t you? Would you want to deal with that business again? The customer-centric agenda starts and ends with the needs of the customer. Customer-centricity is a business methodology that cultivates a positive customer experience at every phase of the customer journey. Every time a customer-centric organization makes a decision, it passionately considers its impact on the customer. Furthermore, customer-centric organizations realize that Positively Outrageous Service starts internally. Two things to remember: Positively Outrageous Service is infectious. There is a direct correlation between a decision to Positively Outrageously Servicing your team and the impact on the customer. Studies show that for every two percent improvement in employee engagement and satisfaction correlates to a one percent increase in customer satisfaction that results in a two percent increase in customer revenue. Everyone has a customer. We sometimes hear that our team or an individual isn’t in the front-line serving a customer. Everyone has a customer. Everyone in an organization interacts with others. Everyone who gives another’s support, interface, process, or relationship is serving that internal customer. To successfully attain the customer-centric vision through Positively Outrageous Service requires more than a periodic feel-good buzz or the program/initiative of the month or year – it requires a cultural change.

https://youtu.be/14OA3aMMc4g "Think twice before you speak because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another." ~ Napoleon Hill Influence and Impact Intensifies Positively Outrageous Service® Don't you love being the Sheriff! Where you walk into that situation where what you say and what you do is just right! You're on! Your timing is perfect. You walk away from that situation, "did anybody hear me? I was amazing!" You're a person of influence. I think it happens all the time. You come in with guns a-blazing with superb solutions, or is the real impact and influence made in the conversations and the connection? We all want to be influential, where we have the opportunities, where we are instrumental in moving things forward. Having that level of impact and influence on the person in front of you leads to world-class customer experiences -- Positively Outrageous Service. Service excellence boosts sales. Serving one another creates a united world-class team that creatively works together despite the craziness of our days. What is it that makes us influential? Aren't there times when we miss opportunities that really could have taken us to the next level or taking that experience to the person in front of us through the roof? For instance, when you're in that situation that you heard 50 times already that day, but you have to go through it one more time. "Caller Number 108! Can I help you?" Maybe you're working with somebody who is having a bad day – and they say through gritted teeth, “yeeeees, I am on board, and I'm a team player.” Or maybe you're in that situation where you're moving the solution a little too fast. "You know what we should do is …",  "No" "Let's do this." "I don't think you're hearing what I'm saying" "Actually, the way I would handle that is this …"  "I don't think you know my situation …"  Why don't we …" Sometimes we think being a person of influence is just having the solution. But you know, when we ride into that situation, and we're shooting out ideas all the time doesn't necessarily mean that we're effective or that we're influential. We all work with people who, when they walk into a room, the lights get brighter.  "Love you, love you, love you!" And then there are some people that when they walk out the lights get brighter.  Think about the time when you were in front of somebody that did their job well;  a face-to-face moment, a telephone moment when you were glad you were talking to that specific person. Why did you like that person? Was it because they had the big guns and all the answers? Was it because of their approach? Was it because of their heart? Was it because of the way they made you feel about you? Consider this, the person that you're dealing with works behind their eyeballs. They don't get a chance to see themselves. All they know about themselves and the impact they’re having is from the input they're getting from the outside world. The first place we start as a person of influence is to understand that I significantly impact how you see me. The quicker I can let you know that I am for you, that I am actually on your side, the faster we're going to get past defensiveness and move to a solution. Making a conscious choice to have a heart for somebody is not just an attitude it's also an approach. It shows up in your tone of voice. It shows up in your face. It shows up in your body language. It shows up in that word that you choose to say. Ask yourself, where is my heart in this issue? What is my heart towards the person in front of me? How am I expressing that to them? Your Challenge To get to the heart of real influence, I want you to pay attention to how you're coming across this week. I want you to go out of your way to have a positively outrageous impact on everyone you meet. The lights get brighter when you enter a room.

https://youtu.be/vB3_UFIlDGc “The internal customer experience drives the external customer experience” ~ Andrew Szabo Don’t Overlook a Very Important Customer -- Your Employees and Teammates! Who is your customer? Who are you serving? Whoever you provide a service to is your customer. Positively Outrageous Service® (POS) isn't only about creating an excellent experience for your external customers, clients, patients, or guests. Not everyone in an organization is in the front-line dealing with the external customer. Positively Outrageous Service is just as essential to implement internally. Everyone in an organization has to interact with others. Your internal customer is every bit as important as the external customer. Perhaps even more critical. When we serve another teammate, or as a leader, your team, Positively Outrageous Service comes into play. Anyone who experiences your support, interface, process, or relationship is an internal customer. For example, IT, payroll, HR, legal, and administration are typical examples of internal functions serving other employees. However, anyone that supports another person providing data or resources is serving that stakeholder. In actuality, to have a cohesive, consistent, consolidated culture means that everyone has a role in supporting others in an organization. Poor internal service results in a splintered organization, turf wars, and ultimately poor inconsistent service to the external customer. Here are three indispensable considerations when serving an internal customer: Employees who are the beneficiaries of Positively Outrageous Service feel appreciated and empowered. POS motivates and drives higher performance levels in themselves - to serve others, whether internally or externally. Besides, when employees have the resources, tools, information, and processes to excel, you enable them to perform to extraordinary levels. Motivated, appreciated, empowered employees are more engaged and less likely to leave. Employee retention increases, costs decrease, and often they are advocates attracting others who are like them - service naturals! Employee satisfaction is as critical as customer satisfaction. Engaged, happy, motivated employees provide higher levels of service to customers. If they are disgruntled, distressed, or unmotivated, their performance deteriorates. Want a new business growth strategy? – inspirationally interact and infect your employees with Positively Outrageous Service. There is a direct correlation between employee and customer satisfaction, as well as increased revenue growth. Every two percent improvement in employee satisfaction and engagement results in a one percent elevation in customer satisfaction rippling out to a two percent increase in revenue! Positively Outrageous Service is infectious - love on each other internally, and the front-line will love on the customer. The three principles of Positively Outrageous Service apply with internal customers too: Have them encounter the random and unexpected - which takes forethought on your part! Have them experience things that are out of proportion to the circumstances. And don't forget to be playful and fun! Finally, for it to become inculcated into your culture, it necessitates internal customer excellence through POS to be a habit and not just a one-off, occasional occurrence. We look forward to you being Positively Outrageous with your internal and external customers!     © 2021 Positively Outrageous Service, Inc., Positively Outrageous Service® is a registered trademark of Positively Outrageous Service, Inc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bs08-l5lJ-s “A person's name is to him or her the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” ~ Dale Carnegie Names Are Important for Positively Outrageous Service® William Shakespeare, around here we call him "Bill," wrote, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." In customer-speak, we guess Bill Shakespeare was making the point that it doesn't matter so much what you call your customers; it's how you treat them that counts. But as they say in the infomercials, "But wait! There's more." A lot more. How sweet are your customers? What name do you even call your customers? Everything you do and say sends a message. Let's face it, there is a hierarchy of names that we could call our customers, and each one implies something different. Some are more outrageous than others. There are members, guests, clients, customers, tenants, passengers, and patients. Each category implies something different. At the very top is a member; membership has its privileges. When you have guests, that implies hospitality - it suggests that you're uniquely serving them. Clients denote that there's a relationship - lawyers and accountants have a relationship with their clients. Customers are the generic name but tend to be slightly more transactional, especially in the retail environment. At the bottom, we have passengers that no longer have stewards and stewardesses but flight attendants – it sounds like they are focused more on the flight versus the passengers. And last of all, we have tenants and patients. The Words We Use Set Expectations in Positively Outrageous Service There's a hospital that decided not to call their patients, patients! The connotation of a patient is they wait, not being served. They decided to call their hospital patients guests. That one shift significantly changed the attitude of their staff. They started serving and attending to their guests in guest rooms, not hospital beds. They went from patient care to really caring for the patient. The words we use to describe our customers and our employees set expectations for how we want customers to be treated and how we expect our employees to behave. Employees of Wal-Mart are described as "Associates." At Sam's Club, they are "Partners," and at Ritz Carlton, the staff and the folks they serve who might otherwise be known as guests are referred to as "ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen." That's Positively Outrageous! And then there is Dick's Last Resort, where customers can expect to be verbally abused, and for some odd reason, they seem to look forward to the hazing. And finally, the best name to use that is Positively Outrageous and so sweet to their experience of you is their actual name. Ameen, Andrew, Angel, Christof, Christy, Jennifer, Michael, Michele, Nicole, Rob, Wendy. The sweetest and most important sound.   Using a person's name repeatedly in a conversation draws them in and creates engagement. Engaged conversations tend to be more interactive with more positive responses and feedback. We think the point has been made. Calling customers by name is the best approach. And that's final! The value of in doing so, you are subtlety signaling that there is "something different" about your approach to service. And different is good. Just be careful. If you are going to raise expectations to deliver Positively Outrageous Service, be sure you can keep the promise. And we look forward to you Positively Outrageously Serving customers by name! You want to raise your expectations to a Positively Outrageous Service standard contact us at 972.740.2037! © 2021 Positively Outrageous Service, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Positively Outrageous Service is a registered trademark of Positively Outrageous Service, Inc.

https://youtu.be/JSw4_eEdvzU Fun and Playfulness are the Virus of Positively Outrageous Service® "You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation" ~ President Harry S. Truman Rarely do we wake up in the morning thinking today I'm going to fail miserably, and I'm going to bring everyone down with me. I say "rarely" because it does happen, and there are some people out there that like that. However, most of us want to be part of something fun, and we want to play in a place where you're having a good time. We want you to have a good time because if you're having a good time, I'm having a good time. The reality is that we often spend more of our working hours with you than I sometimes do with my own family! So, if I'm going to have to be here, then let's have some fun.  In this two-minute touchpoint, let's bring up this idea. Are you having fun? And it's not necessarily because we want you to have a good time and everything should be all about let's have a good time. But it's about the impact of your fun on others. When you're having a good time, it almost permits the people next to you or around you to have fun and be playful - whether they're working with you or experiencing your customer experience. But we get permission to have a good time because you're having a good time.  I guess the bottom line is you go. When it comes to having a good time, you go first when it comes to having fun. Set the precedents, have a smile on your face, see things more lightly and allow yourself to see the humor in what's going on around you. Because people next to you will say if you're doing that, then I'm doing that too because fun is infectious.  Your customers will do the same thing; if you're having a good time, then I'm going to have a good time. And you watch what happens to the experience all because you chose to have more fun.  Fun and playfulness are infectious. Infect the people around you. We're the virus, so be a virus for an excellent customer experience and be positively outrageously contagious.  Spread the germs of Positively Outrageous Service through fun and playfulness.

Find Ways to Say Yes to the Customer – That’s Positively Outrageous Service® https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOQigR3zCKM I roared into the microphone, “What’s the best hotel in the city?!” Three hundred employees in unison yelled, “Park Hyatt Washington!” “What’s the one word we never say?!” “NO!”, they all screamed. Image by Sasin Tipchai from Pixabay We had an extreme philosophy of Positively Outrageous Service to never say no to a customer. Let me give you an example of this. One day we had a Sheik with his entourage coming to stay for a whole month. They didn’t like where the light fixture was situated in the dining room of their suite. He said, “can you move it over about four feet?” Move the light fixture? The front desk clerk didn’t want to say no, so he went to his front desk manager. He didn’t want to say no either. The front desk manager said, “I’m not quite sure how we are going to do this.” And he went to the Rooms Executive. The Rooms Exec., went to the Chief Engineer, and the Chief Engineer had to figure out, “how am I not going to say no to this.” The Chief Engineer figured out how he could move that light fixture. It was going to cost $5,000. They went back to the Sheik and said, “Sir, we have no problem moving that light fixture. It will take $5,000 to move it and then to move it back at the end of your stay.” The Sheik said, “no problem, put it on our room account please.” Positively Outrageous Service so extreme it's unforgettable! How extreme do you get with your customer, client, or guest experiences? Do you figure out ways to say yes even under the most challenging circumstances? Extreme positively outrageous service customer experiences will forever be remembered. I’m certain that Sheik shared with others his experience, and I’ve told that story for over 20 years. And that’s one of the many beauties of Positively Outrageous Service. When you create a customer experience where it is out of proportion to the circumstance people can’t help but to talk about it. Positive word-of-mouth marketing comes from Positively Outrageous Service. What are you doing to not say no to a customer?   What are you doing to not say no to a customer? For a complimentary POS Assessment contact us at 972.740.2037!

https://youtu.be/HwAFMGDkHwc Dealing With An Irate Customer or Frustrated Team Member When Positively Outrageous Servicing an infuriated customer or frustrated colleague, we need emotional intelligence. The Navy Seal Creed says it all: "The ability to control my emotions and actions sets me apart from other men." ~ Navy SEAL Creed. In the last episode, we examined three emotionally intelligent suggestions to diffuse anger with an irate customer or distraught team member. Use their name, exercise reflective listening, and practice empathy. So here's three more. Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels 4. Recognize their baggage We all have emotional baggage. Unprocessed emotions and insecurities from past experiences create emotional baggage. It negatively impacts relationships and can be toxic in our ability to converse and effectively relate to another. For example, an organization fails to deliver multiple times on its promises. Once is an anomaly. Twice can be a coincidence. Three times is a pattern of behavior. A customer who experiences this over-promise and under-delivery will potentially harbor resentment, trauma, and other potential emotions that hamper our effectiveness in delivering excellent service. Customer baggage handling that is Positively Outrageous Service reestablishes trust and confidence. Three tips for baggage handling: Watch for cues and clues and take ownership. Unload the baggage. Ask about the customer or team member's prior interactions – the past casts shadows on the present. Acknowledge it, don't minimize but seek to resolve outstanding issues. Don't increase the baggage. If you can't unload it, don't add to it. Acknowledging another's concerns and prior experiences alleviates weight increases. Augment the positive. Cushion the negative. 5. Split It Up Break it down. In the tornado of the moment, often multiple issues are being thrown at you by a heated customer or irate colleague. Parse them out. Some will easier than others to resolve. Tackle the simple ones first, gain understanding and agreement that will increase confidence and trust in you by the other person. Convey an apology for the issues they're experiencing, but you can't apologize endlessly. Giving them a singular, definitive solution is good. Better yet,  presenting options, especially for complex situations, is beneficial since you empower them to decide for themselves the best course of action. We all like options! Photo By Robin Higgins from Pixabay 6. Stay Calm When dealing with an angry person, don't let irritation get the better of you. Don't fall into the temptation to copy their tone and voice - it will only exacerbate the situation. Avoid responding too hastily after they make a statement. You'll have a more productive dialogue, remaining calm and taking a moment to ponder your answer. When responding to a text, chat, or email, proofread your response to ensure you avoid aggressive language. If time permits, step away for a few minutes and return to your drafted response before sending it to the customer or colleague. A break and a fresh perspective helps to filter out any insensitive words. When you're calm with a frustrated individual, you can disrupt the emotional escalation spiral and tackle the underlying problems that caused the anger. That's Positively Outrageous Service! Summary and Bonus Photo By Max van den Oetelaar on Unsplash

How do you regulate your feelings and respond to other people's feelings? https://youtu.be/_uNQ0cGyjmU “Emotions are one of the main things that derail communication. Once people get upset at one another, rational thinking goes out of the window.” ~ Christopher Voss There isn't a business that doesn't have difficult, emotional, or even angry customers and team members. It's not easy to converse with them, but there are emotionally intelligent ways to effectively reduce both sides' frustration. Emotional intelligence (sometimes also called EI or EQ) is the ability to identify and regulate your feelings and people's feelings around you. One leadership coach describes it as: "The act of knowing, understanding, and responding to emotions, overcoming stress in the moment, and being aware of how your words and actions affect others." A higher EQ facilitates deeper relationships, whether in a team or with your customers. Use your emotional intelligence to deal with issues faster by practicing the following six strategies to more effectively work with angry, emotional, or difficult people: Use their name Exercise reflective listening Practice empathy Recognize their baggage Split it up Stay calm In this episode, we'll cover the first three. 1. Use their name. Utilizing their name recognizes your customer or teammate as a person – a person with a particular problem and history that you actively want to help. It communicates a more personal degree of authenticity. Practice interjecting their name naturally into your dialogue. Don't make it forced. Imagine you're talking to your dejected friend. 2. Reflective Listening The upset customer or teammate is sharing their concerns. People are exposed when they express their emotions. When people complain or want assistance, it's often during times when they're exasperated, perhaps enraged, certainly not in a calm place. When you show that you're listening and validate what bothers them, you draw near to soothing their pain or hurt. It's more than saying "I understand" or "I hear you" because those phrases are banal and sound like platitudes. Practice reflective listening! Wikipedia defines reflective listening as "seeking to understand a speaker's idea, then offering the idea back to the speaker, to confirm the idea has been understood correctly." For example, a customer might say to you, "I've been trying to get my payroll corrected for ten days, and I'm frustrated." Your reply exercising reflective listening: "What I hear is you're frustrated because your payroll issue is not fixed yet. Is that right?" Or your teammate says, "I needed that information last week, and I feel you've ignored me," you might reply, "So, you feel that I neglected you when you needed that report from me, is that correct?"  You're absorbing what the person shared, repeating it back to them in a way that shows you understood. The reflective listening demonstrates that you're not only paying attention, you're also deliberating about what they're sharing with you. Here's the warning label. Don't be a parrot. People pick up quickly if you're merely repeating back what you heard without processing what is being said - the result can aggravate and make the situation even worse! Effective reflective listening needs to incorporate empathy. 3. Not sympathy – empathy Sympathy is seldom the best response to an irate person's problem. Instead, empathy positions you simultaneously as professional, compassionate, and considerate. It frees you up to NOT become emotionally entangled - like when you express sympathy. Here's another way to look at the difference. When you're sympathetic, you simply feel badly for someone. Sympathy doesn't convey that you appreciate WHY they feel the way they feel. The archetypal response – "I'm sorry" – is deficient. It won't solve the customer's or teammate's problem. They expect more.

Questions Create Engagement. Engagement deepens relationships. Richer relationships boosts revenue.  https://youtu.be/O1nC3TgZJjI “How are you?” “When do you need that by?” “What’s the problem?” “What do you mean by that?” “Where did things go awry?” “Ideally, how would you like the outcome to be? “ “How else can I help you?” “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.” ~ Voltaire Questions create engagement. Engagement deepens relationships. Richer relationships propagate loyalty, raving fans, and advocacy.  Intense loyalty, raving fans, and advocacy means more business from your existing customers and new business from the outside because of your positive reputation.  All too often in an organization, questions are an overlooked opportunity. Questions are an exceptionally potent means for unlocking value. Questions accelerate learning, fuel creativity, and unleash new solutions. Questions build rapport and deepen trust within your team and with customers. And it can mitigate business risk by revealing unanticipated pitfalls and hazards. For some, questioning comes easily. Natural inquisitiveness, emotional intelligence, and the knack to read people put a jewel of a question on their lips. However, most of us don’t ask enough questions or optimally position our queries. Consistency is the key. Practice, practice, practice; ask better questions, quality questions, open-ended revealing questions; what, how, when, where – and you’ll experience breakthroughs in relationships and revenue. And here’s the bonus: you’ll instinctively improve your emotional intelligence, which in turn makes us better questioners—a healthy cycle. Voltaire, the French writer, philosopher, and historian, once said: “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”  Start today, stop telling and start asking. Dig deeper. Use the power of silence and listen. And ask another question …

How's Your Heart in Serving Others with Positively Outrageous Service® https://youtu.be/lhfJh0G49Nc Here's a 2-minute touchpoint on what I find to be the heart of Positively Outrageous Service.  How does your heart see your role in serving another with Positively Outrageous Service? (POS). "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others" ~ Mahatma Gandhi My mother-in-law, Yvonne, not the most healthiest person when walking, found herself traveling to see us In Dallas. She was coming from California, and boarding that flight, she had to go through a challenging but, as it turned out, a meaningful airport experience. I know we tell many airport stories - they're just fodder as we bump into each other, having those beautiful people interactions and experiences that are Positively Outrageous! It's not a pleasant journey for Yvonne to go from curbside, through security, and then to her gate. She requests and gets a wheelchair. The wheelchair person who pushes her to the gate starts up a conversation. He asks her about herself. He was charming, lovely, and engaging in spending those few moments with her. When he got her to the gate, he realized she had to wait a while for that plane to board. He made a critical choice. He decided to stay with Yvonne and make sure that she was able to make the plane. Not everyone would do that. A "service natural," by definition, does precisely that. Most wheelchair attendants know and do their job well, going from one place to another with one person or another. She tells this story over and over and over again. What strikes me the most is the wheelchair attendant's disposition to her. Yvonne shares how he asked questions about her; how he was genuinely interested in her; how he passed the time, which took about 45 minutes before that gate opened, and he permitted himself to leave. To invest time with another, fully present and engaging, requires a deliberate choice. That is the core of Positively Outrageous Service. To put service in front of self –  to have the heart of someone who sees, anticipates, and understands the customer's needs and takes advantage of those moments, and genuinely brings a positively outrageous experience in serving them. If your heart is in the right place, and you are sincerely doing it to authentically serve another, moments to deliver positively outrageous service pop up all the time. Where is your heart when it comes to helping others? Let me encourage you to ignite that part of your heart that says I know what I need to be for the person in front of you, and you watch what happens to your service as it becomes positively outrageous!

A Special COVID-19 Message How are you caring for your team? Favor them with Positively Outrageous Service! https://youtu.be/xnN8JQ6vIw0 "I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures." - Lao Tzu Connect deeper with your virtual teams - Check-in questions with your virtual teams: What do you think? How do you feel? Tell me more! Interact more! Set ground rules ahead of time for virtual engagement - Ensure they know their role, Be intentional about connecting visually not just through social media or a phone call. Many are, or are feeling isolated …. Connect virtually, use visually Look ways to have fun and relieve the tension. Virtual Happy Hours.  Dance video! Dress up for cocktail hour! Look at what they're doing in Italy, Portugal and Spain! Fun can be infectious and viral … in a positive way Don't just manage ... Lead! Ask better questions. Leaders ask great questions! Check out Leading With Questions! Have fun while wearing a mask …. can you smile under that mask? Be them-focused first … out of proportion to the circumstances. Not just your team but also the people we work for … don’t assume everyone’s OK! Followup up video - record your visually virtual meeting! Or followup with a video vs. and email! Go virtual - yoga studios are providing online classes. Schools switching over to online teaching. Hours … many grocery stores have special plans to dedicate the first hour of each shopping day to senior shoppers and / or their employees. BONUS: Demonstrate grace and forgiveness - relieves tension and stress — Be the first to say sorry. Be the first to forgive!

How caring in a time of crisis elevates customer loyalty. 10 Ideas to Spark Your Creativity https://youtu.be/pPCZ0eG6W0M “Giving is not just about making a donation. It is about making a difference.” ― Kathy Calvin Give, give, give - During the NBA hiatus, Mark Cuban, the owner of Dallas Mavericks, immediately announced that hourly workers at the American Airlines Arena will be continue to be paid. Turn your business upside down- Louis Vuitton Conglomerate (LVMH), the French luxury conglomerate that operates more than 75 brands, including high-end labels like Louis Vuitton, Fendi, and Celine is now making hand sanitizer in its perfume factories. It will produce up to 12 tons of hand sanitizer a week alone as the coronavirus crisis escalates in France. And they are giving it away for free. WOW!!! Meet your customers virtually or through video. Deliver content virtually – Sunstone FIT yoga studio is providing on line classes. Schools switching over to online teaching. Hours … Dollar General Corporation and others announced their plans to dedicate the first hour of each shopping day to senior shoppers. Look ways to have fun … and relieve the tension … Italians started singing from their balconies. In Spain people began applauding healthcare workers at 10m throughout the country. How about a dance video? Michael and his daughter did just that and got over 10 million views in 10 days! Fun is infectious! Empower your team to deliver beyond the circumstances. Leading versus managing - Leaders ask better questions. Grace and forgiveness are critical in this time of stress — both externally and internally. Go first! Care for your team - Love is infectious too and your customers will feel more cared for.

A Special Coronavirus Message to Our Friends from Positively Outrageous Service!!! “A bend in the road is not the end of the road… Unless you fail to make the turn.” ― Helen Keller Like many of you, Michael and I are rethinking our business strategies in this time of turmoil, turbulence and trouble. We are revamping some of programs and delivery mechanisms to preserve, protect and pivot our clients' profitability, market share and competitive edge. The Coronavirus pandemic has changed our business in that we are currently not meeting face-to-face or delivering our content live. We are making the "turn" to appropriately navigate the bend in the road. But this is also a time to not just hunker down and be defensive but to reach out to help others in need. Not all will successfully navigate the sharp bend in the road. This is an unprecedented time in our history ... however, it can spur us to a higher calling ... are you going to retreat in the face of fear or advance with a fearless strategy? "So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is...fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and of vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory.” Franklin Delano Roosevelt,  32nd President, Inaugration Speech, March 1933. In this spirit, Michael and I recorded a special edition video and podcast for you that addresses these very times. It's a special talk where we highlight ten Positively Outrageous Service actions to potentially partake in and uplift and advance those around us in this time of turmoil! We trust it brings hope, a smile, and a ray of sunshine into the world we now must defend, rebuild or redirect. All joy, Andrew, Michael and Scott https://youtu.be/mbnDPkT_G48 Here's a summary of the ten actions to advance, (more details in the podcast or video). Support Older People and Others At-Risk Volunteer for Meals on Wheels Donate Money to a Reputable Non-Profit Support Your Local Food Bank Support Small Businesses Donate Blood Check in on Your Neighbor Support the Homeless Write a Letter! Don’t Hoard or Stockpile — Give It Away! BONUS: Stop Judging and Start Loving!  Let us know what you think! Share your Positively Outrageous Service stories with us!

Love On Your Customers - Drop a Love Bomb or Two! Creating WOW Behind the Lines! Go to war against the negativity in the world. Be a disruptor by dropping love bombs. Ignite and equip behind the lines not with “drive by feedback” but with “love bombs”. The people you work with can lose perspective because “we live behind our eyeballs.” This mission is very specific: Be precise in your observation – the “what” … not just an “attaboy” Connect it to the “why”. Love bombs are not just for your employees, but your team members too. How about the people your report to and other stakeholders!

NOVELTY A Key Driver to the Positively Outrageous Service Pillar: “Random and Unexpected” The power of novelty is in “contextual” novelty. Doing something we expect in an unexpected way. We are all endowed with creativity. It takes many different forms. One may be creative in creating magic moments through listening; creativity through how we respond to a complaint; creativity in solving an employee problem. Be novel and creative! Where can I stand out today? Challenge yourself. What can I do differently today with that person in front of me in this moment? Spontaneously creative, interesting and unexpected!