CarusoBlog

An Answer Can Be Right, Wrong and . . .

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

Solving problems is guess work until one finally attains the correct solution. 

The older I get, the more I realize that in many situations there are many solutions with varying degrees of correctness.  Things get even more confusing when, to our chagrin, not everyone agrees on what is correct. 

Scientists spend their careers formulating hypotheses, testing them and evaluating the results.  I'm told they classify results in three categories:  right (multiple possibilities) , wrong (even more possibilities) and "not even wrong."

The latter phrase is featured in Peter Woit's recent book, Not Even Wrong:  The Failure of String Theory And the Search for Unity in Physical Law.

Trustomer Service

Posted from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina--

Marriott is my hotel of choice.  Marriott runs a fantastic hotel business and I'm a big fan.  Every stay seems to generate a positive experience and many visits treat me to a customer service experience that I convert into a story for clients. 

Last fall, I stayed at a Marriott property in Rhode Island to deliver a keynote speech to a group of  sales professionals in the health care industry.  As I left my room to deliver the talk, the housekeeper greeted me in the hallway outside my room.

She asked if I would be needing my room serviced.   

I pointed to the "Do Not Disturb" sign I had displayed on the doorknob and said, "No, thanks."

Then, something odd happened.  The housekeeper asked me to sign a document stating that I didn't want my room cleaned. 

As I signed the form, I teasingly said, "I guess your manager doesn't trust you, eh?" 

"Oh, my manager trusts me," the woman innocently replied.  "But sometimes guests tell us that they don't  want their room cleaned and then later complain that we didn't clean their room."

So her manager trusts her, but doesn't trust me.  Oops.  I like how the Marriott documents customer requests, but the implied lack of trust left a bad taste in my mouth. 

The secret to remarkable customer service is trustomer service.  Your representatives can be taught how to better establish trust with customers.  More information is available in my FastLearnerAudio2 CD and e-book, Teaching Remarkable Customer Service.

Chronic Complaining Is a Form of Manipulation

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

Complaining is a hobby for many people.  The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines "hobby" as "a pursuit outside one's regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation."

One may argue that complaining is not relaxing, but I sure hear a lot of it in casual conversations in break rooms, on airplanes and in lines for the bank teller.

Dr. Gary Zukav offers a unique perspective on chronic complaining in his book, Seat of the Soul. Essentially, Dr. Zukav explains that chronic complaining is a form of manipulation.  Years of observation has taught me that complaining will not make our  planet greener, clean up politics or make the media more tolerable.

Do you want automotive companies to produce efficient cars?  Then buy smaller cars and stop buying gas guzzling SUVs.

Do you want politicians who represent the best interests of the people?  Then stop voting for politicians who are more interested in themselves than the issues and start voting for honorable, productive representatives.

Tired of reading depressing, slanted, bad news in the newspaper?  Buy the newspaper that doesn't use tricky headlines and shabby reporting standards. 

Psychologists say the best way to develop a new habit is to replace the old one.  Habit replacement is a great way to eliminate complaining. 

This week, try to not be the complainer or the person who listens to complaints.  After all, if you listen to complainers, you're the one being manipulated.   

Your Job Is Not Safe

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

There is no such thing as job security anymore.  No job is safe; not even yours.  I am not being overly dramatic.  Nobody owes you anything.  Pity the person who is naive enough to depend solely on his or her employer for income.  Your employer can let you go anytime. 

Did you know that at-will employment, which is practiced to some degree in nearly every state, began in 1877 at the suggestion of a Mr. Horace Gay Wood?  Mind you, Wood was referring to master-servant relations in post-slavery days.

At-will employment essentially means that your employer can terminate you at any time for any reason.  It also means that you're allowed to quit anytime for any reason, but more about that in another blog post.

Here in Motown, longtime radio deejay Tom Ryan has just been handed his walking papers by longtime employer, WOMC-FM.  Ryan had been employed 18 years.

Chat rooms are buzzing with entitlement-speak about how ungrateful the radio station is and how there's no such thing as loyalty anymore.  Radio station managers haven't gone public with the reason for the firing, so we're left to guess if management couldn't get the numbers to work, Ryan's star has faded or the man committed a job-ending faux pas.

I met Mr. Ryan when I was keynoting a conference on Mackinac Island this year.  He seems like a nice guy and I'm truly sorry he's lost his job.  Perhaps he'll pick up another radio gig quickly. 

Meanwhile, take note.  No job is protected.  This is good news!  And now that you're keenly aware of  it, you'll always be networking.  Float your resume every few years just to see what's out there.

There is no job security anymore.  There is only employment security.

Movie Recommendation -- Apocalypto

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

If you haven't seen Mel Gibson's Apocalypto movie, I highly recommend it.

Many people missed it when the movie originally appeared in theaters because the subtitle concept and unknown cast turned people off.  The movie also debuted around the time of Gibson's DUI arrest, the drama of which overshadowed this brilliant motion picture.  The photo at the left was taken about an hour before Gibson was busted.

Apocalypto is violent, but it's a great story and offers a thrill a minute.  And . . . nary a car crash!

Everything Is An Illusion

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

I've been looking into an old spiritual belief called maya.  The premise of this concept is that everything is an illusion.  The more I think about it, the more it seems to be true.

Your attitude is an illusion. A good mood can dissipate quickly during a day filled with bad news.  Conversely, a bad mood is easily lifted with a stroke of good fortune.

Your job is an illusion. Retirement is perhaps the best evidence that work is an illusion.   Thousands of workers are laid off every year, suddenly forcing workers into a world where there long-time job is a distant memory.

Your family is an illusion. A family is a group of people that temporarily keeps us company.  Our original nuclear family is replaced by another family a generation later.  Eventually every person leaves the family in one way or another.  Losing a life partner can be extremely traumatic because the survivor cannot adjust to his or her new reality.

Life is an illusion.  I lost an old friend this week.  Ralph Horan--a widower and a good man--fell in his home and bumped his head causing a cerebral hemorrhage that did him in.  Ironically, a man who had won dozens of ballroom dancing contests died because he lost his balance.

So, if everything is an illusion, why not choose an illusion you can be happy with?  Choose an attitude you like.  Live in a place you enjoy and spend your time working at something you love.

Poor Voter Turnout Indicates "Hapathy"

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

Residents of Royal Oak, Michigan are either extremely happy and carefree about local politics or they just don't give a rip.  Or maybe they are happy and apathetic--  hapathetic.

Royal Oak is a vibrant community in Oakland County, one of the richest counties per capita in the United States.  The population in Royal Oak is approximately 57,000.   

As I post this blog, it's the dinner hour and I've just returned from the voting polls.  I sat at a new computer device and inserted my ballot into the scanner before considering who should be mayor and which new ordinances I should support. 

I used a piece of cardboard to cloak my ballot and protect it from wandering eyes.  Privacy, however, was not an issue on this election day.  There wasn't a person in line behind me or clusters of citizens at nearby machines. 

There wasn't a person within twenty feet of me.  In fact there were only a handful of voters in the entire gymnasium.  The  election workers far outnumbered the voters.  I was only the 138th person to vote in Royal Oak's Precinct 12 today.  As of 6:35 PM.

Cities all over the fruited plain reported abysmal voter turnout.   Three possible scenarios immediately come to mind:

1)  Local citizens don't care to vote because they are confident and happy about the course of local politics or

2)  Local citizens don't care to vote because they are disenfranchised with the process and are apathetic about local government or

3)  Local citizens don't care to vote because they are "hapathetic."

In any case, local citizens don't seem to care about local politics.

This Extreme Hotel Has Serious Silos

Composed in Akron, Ohio--

I've got a new, long-term consulting client in Ohio.  They originally hired me to teach their executive team to be better speakers.  In addition, they now have me teaching their directors and sales people to give better presentations. 

Congrats to the company's COO, who quickly caught himself siloing areas of his organizational chart.  To his credit, he quickly realized there was no good reason to deny anyone valuable training on how to be a better speaker.

"Siloing" is a business term to describe what happens when companies use departmental distinctions to isolate groups of people.  It's generally viewed as an unhealthy, unsanctioned practice, yet it's common and hard to stop.  My hotel tonight has given new meaning to the term "siloing."

My Akron client has put me up in what might be the most unique hotel I've ever stayed in.

The Crowne Plaza at Quaker Square bills itself as the most unique hotel in America.  It's constructed from the old Quaker Oats manufacturing silos and every room of the hotel is round! There are 36 silos, which are 120 feet tall and 24 feet in diameter.

The history of the Quaker Oats company is fascinating.  Founded by Ferdinand Schumacher, the company provided oats to Civil War troops.  Henry Parsons Crowell was the company's marketing genius.  Quaker was the the first significant food label and the first American company to use packaging as a sales lure. 

It was the first nationally advertised food product and the first cereal to have a registered trademark (1877).  The Quaker man became the company's face and image.  Quaker Oats were sold worldwide by 1910.

The University of Akron has bought this landmark hotel and plans to convert it into a dormitory.  They are stuck with the silo format.  It's not easy to get rid of siloing at this hotel or in other businesses.

My Definition of "Hero"

Posted from Royal Oak, Michigan--

I'm inspired!

We all woke up with an extra hour of sleep, thanks to Daylight Saving Time, but that's not what has me going.  It's only 6:30 am or 5:30 am but I've read how one of the astronauts on the international space station performed an emergency repair on an external panel. 

Spacewalker Scott Parazynski is a hero.  Heroes do things that others are unwilling or unable to do.