The Customer is telling you things and you don’t even know it.

I am writing this on flight 974 from Brisbane to Hamilton, a very late flight due to delay in arriving, a one hour brilliant lightening storm that kept the plane grounded and then a 30minute wait in the queue waiting our turn to take off once the planes got running again.

I have done thousands of miles over the last two years flying around New Zealand, over to Aussie and a trip to Europe last year. One of the most important things you can get on a plane is the food – get it right and the customer is happy. I have to say that most meals I have been served have been complete shit. A few international flights ago I decided to do a walk about survey of food consumption. That is, I walked up and down the plane a few times getting some exercise and holding the deep vein thrombosis threat at bay, and while doing this I surveyed the food trays of the passengers in cattle class. Without a doubt most of them had eaten bugger all. So they were either not hungry or the food was complete crap. While not scientific my surveys seem to be giving me the same message – the food is crap. All of these flights have been on Air NZ – sorry team – it’s time for a new chef.

While I was in Brisbane I started reading Richard Branson’s latest book and in it he talks about making changes when they are needed and these are usually at the request of the staff. When a staff member see’s that something is not right they can request it be tidied up or changed for the better and are rewarded with a free ticket to give to anyone they like. Consequently the standards are kept up, but having never flown Virgin Blue or Atlantic I can only take Richard Branson’s word for it.

If so much food is being thrown out surely there is a message for the company that what they are providing is not what the paying punter wants. The customer talks in many ways about their likes and dislikes. This means we have to listen in many ways to what they are saying. We have to listen with our eyes, ears and actions. Branson expects all his management staff including himself to be a flight attendant for a day to see what people think. Air New Zealand could learn from this.

How about your customers – what are they saying to you in their actions as well as their words. Have you been a flight attendant for a day to see how things are going, It gives you a chance to see not only what the customer thinks but also what your staff member thinks. How many customers have you got and how many of them are happy customers. What are they really telling you – do you know?

On another matter, I am still on a crusade for my “One for the Blokes™ program about men’s health and wellness. I have made the seminar into a 90 minute version that I can run at your business for your blokes. Mens health is a serious issue, and if you want to provide a great low cost, high investment in the men in your company then contact me to find out more.

Of the seminars I have already done I have three men who have had medicals and had to be put on medication for things like blood pressure and cholesterol. Many others have started doing small regular workouts and the feedback around nutrition changes has been great with many guys changing their eating habits for the better. I have also had several of them go and get their prostate checked.

Give me a call or flick me an email and we can set up a 90minute “One for the Blokes™” seminar in your business for as many men as you get to attend. Women are invited as well (they are my biggest advocates).

The three effects of time

In business as an executive or a manager you transition through three different stages of development. When you first start in your business or job you are in the WORKING stage and you learn by practice that it is better to work on your business than in your business. Through this working stage you graft away learning all the things you need to know and then setting up systems to make these things happen smoothly - well at least as smooth as you can. Once you recognise the $10 an hour jobs and you can afford it - you pay someone to do these jobs for you so you can get on and do the $1000/hr job. This is known as grow your business and maximise your leverage.

The second part comes once you have been in business for a while and your knowledge starts to grow as does your confidence. You learn the VALUE stage. In this stage you understand the value you bring to your staff and clients and the differences you can make. It is important to value these things UP so as to keep motivation high. In my experience Valuing up is not done well amongst New Zealand business owners or executives and it is time we got over this and really valued up what we know. A client recently told me that they felt a little intimidated when telling and showing people such as Lawyers and accountants about the services they offer. He made an assumption that these people should already be familiar with his type of service. My response was immediate - "you are a specialist in your area of expertise - Lawyers know about the law, accountants know about accounting, value up your specialist knowledge because it is a unique way of approaching a common problem". My first major corporate speech was to a group of lawyers and I had prepared very diligently for this presentation. The technical terms were in their as well a good deal of assumption that they would know what I was talking about. It became very clear they had no idea what I was talking about so my notes went in the bin and I talked to them in way that could be easily understood. They were lawyers and what would they know about executive health and fitness, and if they new about it why would I be standing there talking to them. I did not value up enough about my knowledge and recognise that even smart people can be educated and I could this.

After a much longer time you learn about PERSPECTIVE - your thoughts and urgency's and anxieties change with time. As a young self employed consultant I used to fret about getting enough work and where would it come from, got to pay the bills and make ends meet aaahhhhh!!!!! Now my perspective has changed. This is because I have done the work and I still work on my business and I value up what I know and I back myself to deliver. I ask myself once a month "If everything turns to shit tomorrow what is the worst possible thing that can happen"? I will go and get a job and still pay the bills and feed the family. The stress is not there now because my perspective has changed due to my experience and due to the transition from work to value.

Where are you and your team on this simple three step scale?