What if we participated in reverse customer service? If we, as customers, tried to be kinder to the people serving us?

The thought has me tripping over my keyboard.

I mean, why should I be the one to work to be kinder to that person at the ticket counter (or at that gate in the airport) when s/he always treats people the way s/he does, week after week. Why should I be the one who has to be kind when I’m the customer this time?

Because…

This whole thing is not supposed to be a battle.

Several months ago, I posted about the idea of businesses being more approachable and opening a little earlier and closing a little later. Someone who runs a retail business commented…

“I certainly take care of my customers but I have found that the public is quite rude and lacks much compassion for retail businesses.”

We do, don’t we?

But what it really is, I think, is that the public lacks much compassion for itself. Those people serving me have an obligation to do it well but I could certainly be more helpful to their efforts — perhaps starting the exchange with the smile I wish they’d have for me (or asking my questions humbly rather than grumbly — something about the phonetics of “umbly” that makes me want rhyme).

All of us are on both sides of the customer service experience every day.

Maybe if we were a little more compassionate, if we looked inside ourselves to help improve the experience (rather than outside), we’d more often find what it is we wish we’d experience.

tgim