Posts in Category: Awareness

Are You Your Own Worse Enemy?

Complacency and a lack of common sense can cost you greatly.

Hardly a day goes by that I don’t see or experience poor customer service, people doing less than their best at their jobs or tasks, or some other example of complacency. 

I ask you, “how much effort do you put into whatever you are doing at work, your business, or anywhere else?”

Friday I participated in a district convention.  The registration table was not at or near the entrance to the room.  There was no one checking I.D.s.  Delegates just picked up their name tags.  This was important because only delegates were eligible to vote.  That by itself almost caused a big problem.

One speaker could not go two sentences without inserting filler words (uh, ah, etc.) and another speaker who was supposed to be speaking about the qualifications of one slate took his time to denigrate the opponents.  It was very unprofessional.  I’m not talking about normal political attacks, but this speaker actually started making accusations that were totally irrelevant to the proceedings. 

Yesterday, I purchased a couple chain saw blades at a local hardware store.  I needed to cut a root out where we plan to plant a new tree.  I read that roots can be harder, but I would expect that a brand-new blade should be able to cut through four inches of wood.  In this case two blades couldn’t do it.  I believe the blades were defective.  I returned to the store today where the employee said that the manager said, “once you use them we won’t take them back.”  In other words, even if the product was poor quality or defective, I was out of luck once I used it.  How would I know if there was a problem if I didn’t use it first?

A lack of preparation, poor planning, and a lack of common-sense thinking can end up affecting your bottom line.  I probably won’t be returning to that hardware store, one that I’ve been going to for more than a few years and have spent a fair amount of money with.  The convention that could have been completed in a few hours went at least an hour longer than it should have and instead of bringing people together created conflict.

Don’t let something that you have control over defeat you, whether in business, sports, or life.  As a coach I was taught and also taught others that there are two things you can control in life: Your attitude and your effort.  It’s hard enough to beat the challenges that we face.  Don’t help beat yourself.

Posted by Mike Davis Monday, April 14, 2025 3:18:00 PM Categories: Awareness business customer service Employee Mistakes Life
Comments(0)

Did You Notice That Pencil on the Floor?

Don't overlook little things, they might end up costing you big time.

How observant are you about things around you?  Do you tend to notice things that are out of place, or do you go about doing what you’re doing until someone slaps you upside the head?

As I was worshipping in church this morning, I noticed a pencil someone had dropped in the aisle.  The person it was next to apparently didn’t see the pencil, and as it turned out, he was not the person who dropped it.

The pencil had been dropped by a teenage boy in the pew behind the man whose foot appears in the picture.  As service ended, I pointed the pencil out to the man but before he could pick it up, the teen who had dropped the pencil did pick it up.

Dropped Pencil on Floor

Now all of that doesn’t seem to be anything that important to write or talk about, does it?  What was interesting is that during the ten or fifteen minutes that the pencil lay on the floor, four or five people walked right by the pencil.  None of them bothered to pick the pencil up, nor did they point it out to the man who was closest to the pencil.  A few of those were young children.  You would have thought they might have anxiously grabbed the pencil.  But no, they went right on by.

The mother stepped next to the pencil but went right on by, as did one or two other adults.  Did none of these people see the pencil?  Or did they not care that it was there and that they almost stepped on the pencil?

I’m thinking that they were oblivious to the pencil.  Their eyes may have seen the pencil, but their brain was fixated on something else.  After all, as Christians wouldn’t you think that one of these people would do the courtesy of picking up the pencil for their neighbor, or at least point it out? 

So why did this pencil suddenly gain such importance?  What triggered me to think about it?

Almost every day or night I see people driving with a light out, a brake light not working, driving with their bright lights on in traffic, or driving without lights in dark or bad weather.  I’m sure that sometimes it’s just a matter of “it just happened, and they haven’t gotten around to fix it yet…”

Right?

Uh huh?  I wonder how many people drive day after day and never bother to check out their lights, turn signals, etc.  I’ll bet some don’t bother to change their oil until something goes wrong.

Now what does all of this have to do with helping your business?

If you don’t notice little things in your business until they become big things, it is probably costing you money.  It may get you into big trouble.  If you have a web link that doesn’t connect properly, you may be losing potential sales.  If you have a little money missing now and then, and if you dismiss it or ignore it thinking “it’s only a little” that costs you money and may cost you much more.

I know!  It happened to me.  A little money was missing from my business once.  Money that wasn’t mine but that I was responsible for.  I didn’t totally ignore it.  But I didn’t take the right action in trying to solve the problem.  I wasn’t oblivious.  I was frustrated.  It cost me money.  It eventually cost me that business.  It almost got me thrown in jail.

Before you drive your car the next time, take a moment to check your lights to see if they work.  Check your brakes.  Your oil.  When you do this, I hope you will remember this blog and make sure you check the lights at your work or your business.

 

Gravatar
Posted by Mike Davis Sunday, March 3, 2024 4:56:00 PM Categories: Awareness business customer service
Comments(0)