To illustrate a point this week, I asked our customer service team to each send me an image that best exemplified the word “AWESOME.” Here is a photo collage of the images I received. As you can see we have everything from airplanes, to Batman using a light sabre to a data center loaded with a gazillion network cables. Take a moment to look at the variety represented here.
As you can imagine, I did this to illustrate a few points.
1. We are a TEAM of unique individuals- This photo collage represents the unique interests of our team members and as you can see, no two images are alike. The funny thing is that I wouldn’t personally have selected any of these images but when I look at them, I agree that they are in fact awesome. DO NOT try to fit your team into a box and DO give them opportunities to express themselves. Your team will be richer and more cohesive because of it.
2. Never stop finding ways to have fun- Yes customer service is a busy and often draining profession. That is all the more reason to find ways every day to talk and laugh as a team. This puts our team members in the best possible mindset to answer every call with a smile or go the extra mile in responding to an email or show a little extra gratefulness in thanking a customer for being our customer.
3. The middle two images are my definition of awesome- When I look at the images of our team members in the middle, that is how I define awesome. I see people with unique sets of strengths and abilities that bring something invaluable to our customer service team. As Aristotle said “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” The parts all need to know they are valued and integral members of the team first.
4. Keep talking about AWESOME- We listened to Shep Hyken (@Hyken) and decided our goal and mantra in customer service was to “Be Awesome.” We talk about it every day and exercises like this help enrich and define the word for us and help us embody it in the service we provide to our customers. Here’s the video by Shep Hyken that I’m referring to:
