Week #249

See What Happens

It is confirmed. I now understand the meaning, when advised: ‘we shall see what happens’!
The answer is: NOTHING! This has been confirmed following a telephone conversation over the last week, where I specifically called to pass on information which simply was never acted on. Hence nothing happened with my request. I have arrangements with this supplier, with whom I have had a number or frustrations subsequent to internal changes over the last couple of years. Incredibly, whilst I thought I had an understanding with the company, obviously the staff interpretation of those arrangements differ not only with mine, but the communication & reasons for this difference have clearly never been passed onto their people.

In the current business culture, customer observations to the supervisors are a waste of time also. The business is simply not listening, despite what they tell you in their marketing. Recent experiences again confirm some people are just going through the motions in an attempt to provide the impression they even care. Feedback received from frustrated customers, who are having the same annoying experiences; continue. It is clear, some businesses are just not getting it & the only way they will is by taking your valuable business somewhere else & warning others to stay away.

Manipulation is another control feature of such poor performers. Manipulators aim to covertly or overtly control & overpower the behaviour of others. They use subversive, unhealthy power tactics to get something for themselves, although I cannot comprehend why, as they receive no personal gain! It seems to me they think about what they want to tell people, but not what their customers might want to know. Effectively, they do not walk in their customers shoes & this therefore sends the message: ‘we do not care about our customers.’

The Great Wall of China is thought to stretch nearly 9,000km. Built originally to keep out the threat of invaders, it sure is a whole lot of protection. Likewise, some people can rival the Great Wall’s scale & strength by the invisible barriers which are built to keep others out. They have a perception which suggests if they do not let anybody in, then they will be safe. But in the process of barricading others out, they fence themselves in creating a prison cell.  Perhaps this is the reason such people take the actions which they do? Conversely, now is the time to start removing brick-by-brick the wall constructed to keep these very people out, especially as far as possible away from customers & or putting them in the customer position.

Have you ever heard of the butterfly effect? In physics, it describes how tiny changes in initial conditions (such as the flap of a butterfly’s wings); can effect weather thousands of kilometres away. Imagine – a fragile butterfly can alter weather patterns on another continent! Had it not flapped its wings, the trajectory of the weather system might have been vastly different. What can we learn from this? We may feel insignificant at times, as fragile as the butterfly. It may seem like one is just flapping their wings when you are standing alone for truth & honesty in the workplace. So, what can I do in the face of a problem this big? Our flapping wings may just be enough to initiate changes which will influence lives around us .

From my perspective, I would like to conclude & acknowledge the wonderful legacy my parents left me. They taught me my work ethic, about the importance of family, people & connections. They taught me how to stand tall & hold my own & to stand up for what I believe in. They also showed me the importance of community, listening & being flexible enough to move with the times. I am proud of this inheritance & hope it reflects in the way I respond to the people I deal with.

1 Source: Word For You Today & Rhema Broadcasting Group as publishers of quarterly daily word of encouragement from RBG NZ
2 Bob Gass is an American-based former Christian pastor, broadcaster & author of several books who was raised in Northern Ireland. He writes a daily devotional, called The Word for Today which has a circulation of over one million copies quarterly. Adapted from a series of articles entitled When You Don't Get What You Want