Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
World Records – BIG deal !
Sure, it’s fine for you lot out in Social Media land, its easy to say “lets set a Foursquare world record”. But then you turn around and delegate. Delegate to the plebs who have to then actually make it happen. Let me tell you SM jocks, there is more to an event than a few key strokes and your tweeps. There is more to an event than your Facebook friends and LinkedIn amigos. There is menu, ordering, making and not to mention SERVING all these connections. Oh yes, SERVING these friends. It was a long morning, a long cold windy cyclone morning and I was not amused. Some of them didn’t even bother to move so I could get past and serve them. I’m flexible and svelte, but some gaps are not made for me.
Leggy Business
Lets face it, I’m not always the most loved person at VIVO. I get hate mail, glares, sarcastic comments and general bad behaviour. You might say that it could be the result of my own bad behaviour -if you dared that is! Or you could look into it a bit more and examine the circumstances, a touch of CSI if you will. I am usually the enforcer, the organiser, the realist. And that mostly brings out the worst in others. If you are under the assumption that you can come into VIVO and do what ever your little heart desires, please rethink this concept. The customer is not always right, and if you are occasionally right, its because it works for us at that time. Have I managed to destroy your fantasy? Now lets talk about legs.
Your Business Mother
“I am not your mother” is a phrase I must say about 100 times a day. To customers, other staff members and my boss (not out loud to HER you understand, I’m not suicidal – see HER blog http://blog.angelavithoulkas.com.au “Mothering Your Business”)
Its a strange situation when those who appear to be grown ups act like children and require mothering in the workplace. It appears that all maturity is stripped away once they cross over – walk in the front door basically. Male customers behave like pigtail pulling pre adolescents, female customers act like obsessed teenagers from Gossip Girl or Home & Away and my comrades, well THEY act like we are in a zoo. I blame the customers for this too.
Pulling a Business Face
My boss has rules, she’s got rules about everything. It can be frustrating and annoying and boring. But its her business blah blah blah & whatever. One of the rules I agree with (I will never ever tell her though) is my business face. She’s got this rule about swearing at customers or telling them what we really think – like that stops me. I just choose to mostly say stuff when the customer can’t hear or when they are leaving. So, since I can’t verbally express myself, since I can’t be honest out loud, I agree that I should look it. Her rule is for our business face to reflect the message of the business. Sometimes my message can include my tongue sticking out and/or my nose scrunching. It can sometimes include a snort. That’s a sound not a word and I think a snort is a facial expression anyway. Try it, you can’t snort without making some kind of face.
Declutter Your Customer
Its not what you think. Decluttering your customer is not about accessory reduction – although with some people LESS IS MORE, certainly with Ms Weak Long Black who we can hear before we see coming into the shop, or Mr Strong Black Tea who we can smell before we see. Its not about their emotional baggage either, even though they take out there frustrations on me & mine. Its about making sure they shed all their illusions regarding their retail behaviour before they begin their paying activity with you.
The Politics of Hospitality Customer Service
Are there politics in service?
Hospitality customer service is what I am referring to. Short answer, yes. Long answer, yeessss. There are many politically sensitive issues in service that require various degrees of maneuvering, gentle persuasions and sometimes outright declaration of war. They don’t call me the Warrior Waitress for nothing.
Of course sex and politics have always gone hand in hand. Just before all your minds seep into the gutter, by sex I mean boys and girls, as in M or F. Not the act of doing, but the state of being a M or a F. Most sensitive issues in Hospitality occur around the M / F situation. Read the rest of this entry »
George Michael, Lust & Latte and Rude People
Its been a long day, its almost a full moon and I have been waiting patiently for George Michael at the Sydney Football Stadium. I am finally relaxing after another hectic week serving lingering lattes and catastrophic cappuccinos. People breakup over lattes and get fired over cappuccinos. Anyway that’s all for another day. Read the rest of this entry »
