A Lesson In Excellence
Just a Coffee?
I will always remember the day I had my first lesson in excellence. I went to my favorite coffee shop and was greeted very politely by a young guy working behind the counter. Handing him my large size tumbler I ordered a large coffee, as I always did, and started to count my change out as he disappeared at the end of the counter with my tumbler. As I waited, nearly two minutes had passed and I was growing impatient because I expected everything right away and not being a very patient person especially when it came to coffee, I was feeling my anxiety grow as I noticed the other register next to me had already served three other people…and I was still waiting.
As three minutes had now passed and the next person stepped up to the opposite register to order, I started to pace back and forth, dancing from one foot to the next in the hopes someone would take notice how angry I was getting here. I was paying nearly $3.00 for this coffee and I wanted it now! I decided it was time to act. I leaned over the counter to peer around the large glass case that was blocking my view with every intention of giving this guy a real piece of my impatient mind…and that was when I saw it. I had just opened my mouth to tell him to “Hurry up!” when suddenly there it was, my precious coffee tumbler of nearly three years, held under a tap of running hot water with one hand and in the other hand the coffee guy was scrubbing the insides of it with a metal scrub brush, removing the caked on coffee grime that had gathered there over the years. I realized that this coffee shop employee wasn’t just serving a $3.00 coffee; he was delivering a service experience that would never be forgotten, and he knew it.
I was suddenly filled with an admiration for what was happening and, as I watched, he then filled up my mug with steaming fresh coffee [more than I had ordered] and brought it back to me, placing it on the counter with two hands and, he was still smiling as he wiped sweat from his brow probably because he had to scrub about an inch of grime off the inside of my cup that had accumulated there over the past three years. And if that was not enough, he then apologized or making me wait so long. I realized as I walked away with my cup that not only was I a satisfied customer but that my expectations had been exceeded.
It was then it occurred to me what excellence really is. This young guy, although he was probably being paid the same wages as everyone else at the coffee shop, he was doing his job with one exception…he was doing his work with excellence! I continued to return to that coffee shop again and again and although it wasn’t always necessary to give my cup a good scrubbing, I was always greeted with a smile and served in an efficient and friendly manner, which I later gathered was probably why this place was so popular.
Customers were treated with an appreciation and gratitude that kept them returning. This place not only served great coffee and friendly attitudes but, they were in the habit of serving excellence as well. I was convinced that day that excellence sells, it attracts people, and it sets the standard practice for everything that operates in that field of service. Excellence does make the difference!
Just make up your mind at the very outset that your work is going to stand for quality… that you are going to stamp a superior quality upon everything that goes out of your hands, that whatever you do shall bear the hall-mark of excellence.
~ Orison Swett Marden ~
To determine your own level of excellence through setting standards and willing to accept nothing but the best, there are many companies [and people] that will deliver to you exactly what you ordered. They say that you “Get what you pay for.” This is the attitude that has crippled many organizations and attitudes.
Most people really want to do their best; they want to make a difference but often is the case they lack the know-how, the confidence, or support to follow through. What could be mistaken for laziness might be misguidance or a lack of support and gratitude for best efforts put forward. It is vital that our best work, and the quality of our work, is recognized and appreciated in order that we may continue to deliver a level of quality that is superior to anything else.
Dedication and a Promise to Deliver
Remember that success is something that comes about through a persistent plan of action, a dedication to that plan, and a personal promise that you will fulfill your obligation to the best of your ability. The seed of excellence blossoms from within and so it is here we must tend to its growth, day by day, nurturing ourselves as we would something that has for us great value. Excellence isn’t what happens when you finally reach your destiny; excellence is the road you travel to reach it.
You can’t always expect the best from everyone, but you can expect it from yourself.
It really makes no difference if you are a world famous talk show host or a struggling musician or writer – you give the same level of dedication and persistence in all of your pursuits. How you do something, even the most minute of tasks, is an expression of how you do everything.
The Critical Difference
Excellence is not the end result of all your efforts; it is the beginning of your best efforts in order to reach higher and higher plateaus of creativity and learning. The people who maintain a consistency of purpose and follow a set of adhering principals, who do not allow ego, resentment, or ambivalence to interfere with their quest for greatness, are the ones that will reap the grandest rewards available to those that perform the tasks they love to do and do with superior craftsmanship. It is the core principles of a life defined by strong actions and desires of the heart that have the strength to set the world on fire.
What are you going to do today that defines your level of excellence? Give someone something that they are not expecting and you will be setting a strong precedent for future success.
Remember: the real value is not in the cost of the product but the level of excellence it is delivered. This makes the critical difference.
The post A Lesson In Excellence appeared first on OBSTACLE CRUSHERS.
