Some of you may remember that I reviewed Donna Cutting's awesome book The Celebrity Experience a while back. I loved this book! As I read the book, I remember thinking to myself that I know a waiter that must have read this book. Last time I was in Sarasota, Florida at The Crab & Fin Restaurant, our waiter, Michael, went way above and beyond typical service.
We went to Crab & Fin on our second night of vacation and Michael waited on us. He was so nice and helpful. He treated us like celebrities through the whole service. At the end of dinner, I ordered my favorite dessert. Michael explained that they didn't have it any more because it was the previous chef's recipe. He told me he could get the recipe to me by the end of the week. We went back for dinner at the end of our trip. Fortunately, we had Michael as our server again. He remembered everyone's (party of 10) drink order from earlier in the week! We felt very special! Once again, his service was outstanding. Best of all, Michael followed through and gave me the recipe for my favorite dessert! Michael made our experience at Crab & Fin memorable. He also spoiled us... we wish we could have that level of service every where. Well, if all restaurants would read Donna' book, perhaps we would. :)
Without further ado... let's take a look at some ideas from Donna Cutting's book and celebrate The Celebrity Experience Blog Tour!
Positive Thinking at Work
The following are some ideas excerpted (with permission), in part, from The Celebrity Experience: Insider Secrets to Delivering Red Carpet Customer Service (Wiley, 2008) by Donna Cutting, for sharing a little positivity in the workplace!
Celebrate Accomplishments – It’s that kind of support and celebration that keeps us motivated to continue when difficulties arrive. Kim Kotecki of KimandJason.com shares that she and her mastermind group members celebrate the accomplishments of members with “woo-hoos” and special emails.
When you see it, say it – Many times we might think something wonderful about employees or coworkers, but refrain from saying it out loud. We figure, “Heck, they already know how much I admire them.” Perhaps so, but we all love to hear positive feedback about ourselves and our work. Get in the habit of verbalizing specific praise you have for people whenever you think it. If you see employees or coworkers behave in a way that you admire, tell them on the spot. See it, and say it.
Write them up – We certainly waste no time writing up employees when they’ve done something wrong. What if we wrote them up for the things they do right? Or, if you are a coworker, write it up and give it to the supervisor. Cheers from peers are important as well as the ones that come from the boss.
Celebrate milestones – Create a culture of celebration by recognizing the important events in the work and personal lives of your team. There are many reasons to celebrate including work anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, and even citizenship days. When one of the supervisors where I once worked became an American citizen, we held a big red, white and blue shindig complete with hot dogs and apple pie.
Have Hoopla – It’s amazing what you can turn into a special event. Once employee of a credit union organization told me they have what they call “Friday Night Dancing.” Every Friday, when the credit union closes, they turn the music on and employees dance for a full 15 minutes. How’s the hoopla where you work?
©2008, Donna Cutting
Donna Cutting is the author of The Celebrity Experience: Insider Secrets to Delivering Red-Carpet Customer Service, and a full-time keynote speaker on the topics of employee engagement and customer experiences.
This book excerpt was part of a blog tour conducted by Key Business Partners
Yesterday, the blog tour stopped at these blogs:
Judy Davids/ Guitarist of the Mydols and author of Rock Star Mommy
Claudia Meydrech / Ebook & Book Reviews
Sept 26th -
Mary Eileen Williams / Fiesty Side of Fifty
Kirsten Harrell / iPopin
Pam Archer / ArcherFitPress
Sept 27th -
Karen Putz / Karen Putz.com
Debba Haupert / Girlfriendology
Glenda Watson Hyatt / Author of I can do it Myself - Do It Myself
And please note that you can purchase your copy of Donna’s book at Amazon
