How to Improve Your Customer Service Skills and the World at the Same Time
Discover the secret to improving your relationships, building a better world, and filling your wallet
What would you be willing to give if you could learn a skill that would make you more money while making the world a better place? Five hours of your time? Four? One? How about 7 minutes?
As you read this article, you will discover a simple change you can make that will rejuvenate freedom, democracy, and innovation in our society and make you more money. But first, let’s start with a fun example.
“The customer is always right!”
- “I like this couch. Does it go with these curtains?”
- “Madam, that is not a couch. It is a canapé! Furthermore, those are drapes.”
Which one is the fool, the customer, or the salesman?
If you want to give exceptional customer service, should you correct a customer’s questions or answer them? Believe it or not, a customer is far more interested in solving his own problems than in a demonstration of your vocabulary.
Fields like Law have their own vocabulary and clients often use the wrong term for things. However, it is almost always clear what they are asking. I had to learn early on that customers appreciate helpful answers more than legal instruction.
In some cases, the technical term might be important. In that case, answer the question with a compliment but substitute the correct terms.
- “I like this couch. Does it go with these curtains?”
- “Why, yes! That canapé will go perfectly with those drapes. You have a fantastic eye.”
“Listen to my smarmy, sarcastic voice!”
Since recent social media bans started, people began complaining about “free speech.” Predictably, this broke open the bees’ nest of constitutional scholars lecturing everyone about the First Amendment and whether it applies to Twitter.
Who are the fools? The people trying to solve a problem they see that affects all of society, or the people giving irrelevant legal instruction? It is as if furniture salesman gave a lecture on the history of seating design to a customer who used the wrong word for a sofa instead of helping with color selection.
Rather than getting into the weeds of whether “Free Speech” means “First Amendment” or words can have more than one definition, let’s talk about something useful. For that, I’ll invent a new term, “Social Free Speech.”
Social Free Speech is the Free Speech everybody means when they are not talking about the First Amendment.
The quest for cosmic freedom.
Once we get past the terminology, we discover that there are some critical societal issues available to discuss. I do not have answers for any of these questions, but see if you think they are worthy of discussion.
Democracy
Imagine I hand you piece of paper filled with blank ovals. I say, “Fill in these ovals, and I will put the candidates’ names in later.” Is that a vote? You were given a free choice.
Most people would say, “No, that is not a vote.” The right to choose implies a right to information about the choices.
Imagine a monopoly, Megabook, buys all of information infrastructure in the country. It then decides what information you are allowed to see about political candidates.
- Do you still have a free choice?
- Do you still have a democracy?
- How much control over information can Megabook have before harming democracy?
- How close are we to that?
- Is there a danger to our democracy the way things are going now?
- Is there something we can do about it that won’t only make things worse?
(If we are still quibbling, by “democracy” I mean a federal constitutional republic or any other form of self-rule.)
Science
The scientific approach is composed of three attitudes: curiosity, skepticism, and humility.
- Is science harmed when Megabook decides what topics you are allowed to research or which theories you are allowed to question?
- Is there a risk of harm?
- How much harm is being done now?
- Is there something we can do about it that won’t make things worse?
Innovation
Innovation requires the exploration of new ideas. Imagine you come up with a new method of teaching math that substantially improves the ability of children to understand fractions. You want to get feedback from your peers.
You belong to a Megabook discussion group and try to ask members what they think of your method. Unfortunately, Megabook only allows discussion of “approved theories” to prevent harm to children and deletes your posts.
- Is innovation harmed when Megabook decides what ideas you are permitted to discuss with your peers?
- Is there a risk of harm?
- Is there something we can do about it that won’t make things worse?
Is quibbling over whether we are talking about Free Speech or Social Free Speech helpful to answering these important questions?
Most people think democracy, science, and innovation are essential drivers of progress that make our lives better. Moreover, they represent our future and our children’s future. If someone feels that those things are threatened by what they mistakenly call “Free Speech,” you are not going to give them a lecture on Constitutional Law.
Instead, you are going to say:
- “Yes, I agree with you,” or “No, I disagree;”
- “Social Free Speech (or whatever you think the correct word is) is [your argument];”
- “It’s nice to meet someone who is concerned about those things too.”
That’s how you make new friends and grow your brain, even if you disagree with them.
“Will this work on my girlfriend too?”
Bonus tip: This will help in all of your relationships. Intelligence is attractive so sometimes we feel like we need to show our intelligence all the time. That can be irritating.
It is always helpful not to be irritating in relationships. You want people to interact with you more because they expect that it will be a rewarding experience. That will make you look more intelligent.
It will also bring you more referral sources.
Go and be profitable.
Sales come from relationships. It is no surprise that a sales attitude can be a benefit to your other relationships and even make the world a better place.
- If you have a great product, make the sales experience about the customer, not about you.
- If you want a great relationship with your partner, when she needs something, make the experience about her.
- If you want the world to adopt your amazing ideas, show people that you understand their issues, not that you think you are smarter.
Good luck!
