Be On Time Every Time !

Make it a habit to be on time to every appointment or meeting you have scheduled or accepted. How frustrating is it when an appointment or meeting is delayed due to one or two people who show up late. I know, very frustrating and also disruptive to the rest of your day, especially when you or your colleges were on time. A delayed appointment just delays the rest of your schedule. If a meeting has to start over, schedules get disrupted and again you spend the rest of the day in a catch-up or re-planning mode. Bottom line, it is very disrespectful to be the person who shows up late, so don't.

You can modify your behavior or those people who are late though a few simple actions.

If you are the person facilitating the meeting, curb late attendance by simply:
1.Start the meeting on time with the people in attendance.
2.Close the door, lock it or unlock it is up to you. I would not.
3.If someone shows up late, do not start the meeting over. This is important, even if it is your manager or peer. The missed subject matter discussion can take place after the meeting. More often than not, this step will not be necessary and the other people in attendance will appreciate your leadership and respect you for it.
4.Always have an Agenda
5.Establish a "Late Fee", this may or may not be practical in your situation. But, in small department teams it works well. Peer pressure is a good behavior modifier.

If you are the problem simply:
1.Understand and be truthful to yourself on why you are late.
2.Get a day planner or alternate organization tool and use it.
3.If you have an electronic device, set it to remind you of the appointment meeting 15 to 30 minutes early!
4.Try not to schedule appointments or accept meetings that are scheduled back to back.
5.Personalize the behavior, be the "On Time" example.

Sometimes we perceive being late to an appointment or meeting as acceptable because we convince ourselves whatever caused us to be late is more important than being on time. Don't believe this, the message you convey to people by being late is very negative. Punctuality is one of the easiest behavior modifications you can make in your life, get started today!

Are Your Customer's Satisfied?

Do you monitor how satisfied your customer’s are with the service or product provided to them? If you do great, if not, you definitely need to start. The reason to maintain customer loyalty is obvious, look at all the competition that is in the market place. Customer loyalty to you and your product or service is a key component to maintaining a successful business.

Where to begin? Begin by improving you & your companies listening skills at all levels. Every contact made by you or your personnel via the internet, phone or in person is a potential “Customer Moment” and can provide early indications of potential problems. I mean everybody, from the dock to board room; train yourself and personnel to listen. Listen to what may be considered a trivial or off the cuff comment, document it and discuss internally. These comments may actually become a real customer issue, and if dealt with sooner rather than later will build customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Next, develop a feedback system that supports the collection of customer information and can even provide a response mechanism when required. To implement this system, you will need to assign a person or small team to decide what is best for your business and customer base. You might even engage some of your faithful customers in this project.

Active listening to you customers is not easy at first, but you will recognize the power and monetary benefit of avoiding customer complaints and heading off problems before they escalate. Just remember the last time you were the recipient of poor customer service! Do not fail to act on what you information gained through your customers voice. If additional training is required seek out subject matter professionals and organizations to assist you.

The investment will be worth it, just ask your customers what they think!