Genuine Curiosity

Author Dwayne Melancon is always on the lookout for new things to learn. An ecclectic collection of postings on personal productivity, travel, good books, gadgets, leadership & management, and many other things.

 

Interesting colloquial expression

"That's one to tell the Captain."My wife recently hung out with someone who, when you said something noteworthy, said "That's one to tell the Captain." 

We'd never heard the expression, and there's nothing on Google about it.  Any ideas where this one came from?  Maybe this lady started it.  We're starting to use it, so expect to hear it at some point.

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It’s a wonder I remember to wear pants, I guess

I've noticed a trend in advertising that bugs me.  What trend?  The depiction of men as stupid.  For example:

  • I just saw a Home Depot commercial on TV where a woman buys some tool called a "MultiTasker" and asks the store employee, "Does that mean I won't need him?" and points to her husband who's busy sticking a plunger to his forehead.
  • There's another commercial on the radio where a woman is advised to treat her husband like a dog to get him to use a household cleaning product more often.  The announcer says things like, "When he uses the product, praise him by saying 'Good boy!' and pat him on the head."

In a society where we are supposed to respect others and not denigrate people based on sex, I don't think this is a good thing.  If the same commercials were made with women as the stupid one, how would the public react?  They tend to shy away from casting a black man as the stupid man, too.  But when the "stupid man" is just some white guy, it seems that's OK.

Some stereotypes are just wrong, and certainly shouldn't be promoted in mainstream advertising campaigns.  For example, portraying blondes as dumb, successful women as bitches, southerners as toothless idiots, many ethnic and nationality-based stereotypes, etc.  The list goes on, and I think it should include the "all men are stupid" stereotype.

I'm all for free speech, but  I don't think promoting that kind of thinking is doing anyone any good.

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Brand new look for Win-Win Web

I was just reading an article on lifehack.org called "When does great service happen?"  According to Rosa, the author:

I think there are only two parts to it, but you need both, not one or the other.

1. When you have hired the right people in the first place, and
2. When you take care of them really really well, providing them with a workplace that is as exceptional as the service you expect them to give others.

I agree that these are essential, but would add that this is certainly a case where "tone at the top" differentiates good organizations from the not-so-good.  Here are signs you are dealing with organizations that don't promote a "culture of service."

  1. They are quick to quote policies which explain why you are wrong or your request is unreasonable.

  2. They do not suggest alternatives to help you solve your problem.

  3. They find creative ways to get out of honoring commitments and guarantees (goofy technical loopholes, strange interpretations of their guarantees, etc.)

  4. They don't offer any sympathy, empathy, or token of esteem when they cannot satisfy their commitments.

  5. Make you feel unwanted or unneeded.

In contrast, other organizations seem to have a better grasp that keeping us as customers is a long-term thing.  They are more likely to:

  1. Apologize for the inconvenience and offer some sort of compensation (a free dessert or a free drink, for example).  Sometimes it's as simple as "I'm really sorry this happened, and I never want it to happen again - I'll write this down and report it to my manager."

  2. Come up with suggestions for other ways to solve your problem, sometimes even telling you where you can find a competitor that's a better fit for your need (ironically, this makes me an even more loyal customer of the company that couldn't help me)

  3. Understand that a guarantee means they have a commitment to fulfill or make things right.

  4. Make you feel needed and wanted.

You don't want one of these slide shows flying around the internet about your company, do you?Not being a good service provider can have all sorts of implications.  Unhappy customers spread their ill will a lot more than happy customers.  Several years ago, I received a copy of a PowerPoint slide show that goes into great detail about a bad customer experience at a hotel.  I've included it here for your enjoyment, since it is well done and quite hilarious - enjoy! Download review_hotel.pps

And if your business provides service, try to ensure that you instill a culture of service within your organization.  You don't want one of these slide shows flying around the internet about your company, do you?

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Comment Conversation Done Better: Never Work Alone

Well, it's the end of day one for our Never Work Alone project, and I've just posted the first summary post on our blog. The scenario we discussed was this one:

A customer comes into a business and asks to buy a product and bill them in a certain way. The person at the counter didn't know how to bill the customer for the product in that way. The customer got frustrated and took their business elsewhere.

The first post is a good example of the kind of discussion you can expect from Never Work Alone, and we would love to have more people involved. So, come on over, discover our insights and get involved in this new endeavour of ours.

And why not do us a favor and pass it along to others if you like what you see?

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