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| Happy People Win Newsletter |
Volume 6, Issue 4
April 2012 | |
| NOTE: if you are using Outlook to view this and it has strange spaces, please click on "click here to view it in Web browser" at the top and it will look as it was intended to look. ☺ Thanks!! |
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 Happy April!
I am hugely aware of customer service. Since I provide customer service trainings and am a frequent traveler, I am probably more aware (or sensitive) of how customers are treated than most consumers. I am often astounded not only by horrible customer service but also by how many people hate their jobs, and how they let us, the customers, know that. Whether it is communicated verbally or non-verbally, they let us know their feelings by acting bored, indifferent or even rude.
I was doing a training at the Embassy Suites Riverfront in Sacramento in March. I didn't realize, but when I was half an hour out of town, I got a call from the conference planner that I had left my laptop at the location. They were all leaving so left it at the hotel. I drove back to Sacramento and on the way called the hotel to tell them I would be pulling up front and asked if my laptop could be at the Concierge desk. The switchboard gal, Diamond, told me she would check where it was. Diamond personally checked in a few places and then called around. I was amazed, it was definitely above and beyond service. When I picked it up, Charles the front desk manager came out to valet with a big smile on his face handing it to me. Wow. I was so impressed. Diamond really went beyond her job title for me, and Charles made my day with just his big ole' smile (and hug, I initialed it, he is huggable.)
So how did Embassy Suites get so lucky to have Diamond and Charles as employees?
In the best-selling book, Good To Great, Jim Collins emphasizes that hiring the right people is critical to the success of any great company. I started using Behavioral Based Hiring (BBH) before I even learned there was a term for it. Let's say I have two people who are the final candidates for a job. One has way more experience and/or education than I require, but she is not as friendly, enthusiastic and positive as the second one. I can train Candidate #2 to learn my systems and how to do the job. BUT I CAN'T TRAIN #1 TO HAVE A MORE POSITIVE ATTITUDE. Behavior-based interviewing and hiring is increasing in popularity because it lowers turnover rates and improves work place satisfaction and morale for all (staff and customers).
So bottom line - Embassy Suites must hire on attitude. Bottom line, I will be back. (To top it off, when I wrote the Hilton - ES owners - I got a very nice letter from Carolyn, their Guest Assistance Specialist thanking me for letting them know.)
Keep smiling!! Really. Keep smiling. ☺
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| Need more energy?
2
hours
That is how long you'll feel revved up after taking just a 10-minute walk, according to a study in Personality and Social Psychology.
Spotting something scarlet can actually kick you into high gear. Seeing the fiery color makes your muscles move faster and work harder, giving you a burst of energy when you need it most, according to University of Rochester research. Keep crimson flowers in your sight to pep up a jam-packed day.
 Dragging? Try this invigorating stretch: Stand in a doorway, facing forward with feet several inches apart and reach to the sides of the frame. Grab the frame with your fingers, then push your chest forward until you feel a stretch in your torso and back; hold for 30 seconds. "This stretch stimulates the sympathetic nervous system," explains Dr. Timothy McCall, "so it's energizing for the body and mind." - Health 1/2 2012
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Harvard Business Review
In a worldwide survey, employees ages 16 through 34 were more likely than others to say that they're satisfied with their jobs and that they'd be willing to recommend their companies as good places to work. But this age group was also more likely to be looking toward the door, according to Mercer's study of 30,000 workers in 17 geographic markets in 2010 and 2011: 46% of workers ages 16-24 and 40% of those 25-34 said they were seriously considering leaving their organizations. The results are at odds with traditional views of loyalty and retention, Mercer says.
We live in a world where we're expected to be available all the time for almost any reason. But taking a vacation is important for you to get the rest and rejuvenation you need. Here are two options to achieve a mostly unplugged vacation:
- Completely unplug. Yes, it can be done. And the office won't fall apart without you. In fact, being away often allows others to step up and develop. You can achieve this by going to a remote destination, or simply turn off your gadgets and commit to yourself and others that you're unreachable.
- Schedule plug-in times. If being unreachable is truly not an option, at least put up boundaries around your available times. Choose a specified time frame when you will be accessible and stick to it.
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Most Relaxing Tune Ever?
"Weightless"
A British band and a group of scientists have made the most relaxing tune in the history of man. Sound therapists and Manchester band Marconi Union compiled the song. Scientists played it to 40 women and found it to be more effective at helping them relax than songs by Enya, Mozart and Coldplay.
"Weightless" works by using specific rhythms, tones, frequencies and intervals to relax the listener. A continuous rhythm of 60 BPM causes the brainwaves and heart rate to synchronize with the rhythm: a process known as 'entrainment'. Low underlying bass tones relax the listener and a low whooshing sound with a trance-like quality takes the listener into an even deeper state of calm.
Dr. David Lewis, one of the UK's leading stress specialists said: "'Weightless' induced the greatest relaxation - higher than any of the other music tested. Brain imaging studies have shown that music works at a very deep level within the brain, stimulating not only those regions responsible for processing sound but also ones associated with emotions."
The study - commissioned by bubble bath and shower gel firm Radox Spa - found the song was even more relaxing than a massage, walk or cup of tea. So relaxing is the tune, apparently, that people are being advised against listening to it while driving.
Click to listen to "Weightless" |
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Quotes
- Albert Einstein-
"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction."
"Imagination is more important than knowledge."
"Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."
"The life of the individual has meaning only insofar as it aids in making the life of every living thing nobler and more beautiful..."
"One should not pursue goals that are easily achieved. One must develop an instinct for what one can just barely achieve through one's greatest efforts."
"Look deep, deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better."
"If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things."
"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."
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Environmental Wellness
If just 20% of American households switched from paper to electronic bills, we could save 1,811,275 trees and avoid 2 million tons of greenhouse gases.
Personal note, I have been paying on-line for years and an extra bonus, I pay automatically, so my bills are never late. ☺
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Forgetful?
2x
How much more likely you are to forget a thought when you walk through a doorway into another room.
The next time you walk into a room and can't recall why you went in there, don't blame your aging brain - blame the doorway itself. New research from the University of Notre Dame finds that doorways serve as "event boundaries." When you walk through one, you mind processes a new event, making what you were thinking about slip your mind. Avoid the problem by carrying a reminder, like the dead battery you wanted to replace.
Prevention April 2012 |
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Physical Wellness In a study at University of Southern California participants were given popcorn to nibble on as they watched a movie and told which hand to eat with. People who snacked using their nondominant hands reduced about 30% of their total intake, compared with those using their dominant hands, according to the study, which was published online in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.  Switching sides disrupts that unconscious hand-to-mouth pattern. You slow down and realize the food is bad for you. So next time you sit down to movie night, make sure to pick sides - your weaker one. Note: But this tip may not work out if you're ambidextrous. |
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Facebook
I love Facebook. It is a wonderful way for me to keep up with old friends and find fun quotes and videos that I use for work. I do have a number of friends whose updates I hide because they post incessantly or are total downers (oddly enough not so in "real life" but definitely on FB). Real Simple came up with some stats that I thought were great. They asked "WHAT'S THE MOST ANNOYING KIND OF FACEBOOK UPDATE?"
24% Intentionally vague posts meant to generate concern and attention, a.k.a. vaguebooking. "Jennifer wonders if it has all been worth it."
20% Chronic complaining. "Ugh, who ordered this RAIN? It's making my carpal tunnel act up again."
19% Meaningless calls to action. "If you want to fight world hunger, put the color of your socks as your status update for the next half hour. I want to see who is brave enough to take a stand."
14% Oversharing. "Note to self: Next time, wear a thong with that wrap dress."
13% Miscellaneous posts - including polarizing religious or political statements, indecipherable txt spk and game updates.
10% Posting too frequently. "12:03 Chicken salad or tuna? 12:12 Chicken! Thanks for the responses."
Here is one that made me smile, although Chris probably wasn't too happy. 
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