About three years ago, I was walking through a beautiful little village in the Caribbean. On one of the beaches, there were a string of shops with local art and special clothes very attractively displayed to capture the attention of tourists as they strolled by.
Not far from the edge of the water was this very memorable shop. It was memorable because of its name and it spelled out in big red letters: COULDN’T CARE LESS.
Overcome with curiosity, I entered the store. I looked around and I saw 2 sales people in deep conversation, at times quite animated, and arms flailing with lots of laughter. They were really into their own agenda. They appeared to be having so much fun that they couldn’t care less about me.
I was interested in purchasing a special painting of a famous mountain, but I left without buying it. And they couldn’t care less anyway.
About 12 months later I returned to this village and immediately headed for the store to see how it was doing. I discovered that it had long been closed. I was told that it lasted only 2 months.
I am telling you this because I want to impress upon you that in order to really succeed in any venture you have to care. You can really only affect people if you care about them.
So here is some unsolicited advice.
If you are involved in any relationship, any business or any career, remember to CARE. Put “CARE”at the top of your priority list.
The catch is that “care” is not something you feel or something you possess. Care is a verb. You have to express it. And “Care” is as big a determinant of your success as any other single factor.
Here is a system that can help you make this wonderful quality “CARE” an integral part of your business.
As you read these ideas, see if you are already practicing them. If you are, take note and celebrate. Or maybe you can assess how close you are to implementing them in your daily routine.
Here they are:
C – Create a story that will make you or your service memorable. Do what others don’t do, and do it in such a special way that it will become a story that they will remember and recount for a long time.
I created a story once when a patient called me to ask a question. I realized he had difficulty moving, so I made a house call. I prescribed a pain medication. He could not go for the prescription, so I went to the drugstore myself, got the pills, administered them and waited until he felt better.
That was the best career move I ever made. This older man spent the rest of his days telling the world how great a doctor I was. He not only told the story, believe me, he embellished it.
Create your own story.
A – Astound all your customers. Don’t aim to satisfy, astound.
An insurance company astounded me once when I made a claim. I thought they would be self-serving and defensive, but the owner of the company said ” you have been paying us for years. Are you sure you included everything? Will the amount you claim cover all your expenses?” And he was not even my friend. He astounded me and I can’t stop talking about this company.
R – Recover from mistakes. Use recovery as a strategy to build and improve your business or career. Don’t waste your mistakes. They have a lot of value in them. Use your blunders, failures and mistakes as opportunities to impress your customers in new ways.
When someone tells me that the book or DVD that I sent him or her is defective, I don’t replace it. I send them two plus some additional products and I return their money. Now don’t get any ideas!
E – Emotion – Send out positive emotions. In any situation, the person with the emotion on his or her side will always win.
Make happiness a big part of your business. Do like Zappos. Don’t just deliver the goods. Deliver happiness. People only buy 2 things, solution to a problem and good feelings.
So go to work and C.A.R.E