A few weeks ago, I took my mom out for a birthday dinner. It was nice to take her out for a nice meal and catch up. We arrived, they seated us immediately, and the friendly server came over to take our drink order and tell us about the specials. We pursued the menu and ordered our meal.
Our food arrived and that’s when the evening went downhill. Mine was cold; mom’s was overdone; it was an epic fail. I called our server over and told her that our meals weren’t good and she immediately offered a refund and a free replacement meal for each of us. But we decided to skip the whole thing and I took mom home with the promise of a rain check at a different restaurant.
Order Up
Our dinner was a disaster but the restaurant handled it well. They offered to remove the original order from my bill and give us a free dinner right then and there. It was our choice to leave and we may never return. But the point is they tried to fix it right away. Their apologies were sincere; no one got flustered; they handled it well.
That’s the 95%. That’s the majority of what your company is and it has nothing to do with what you do or sell. It’s your people, your customer service, your ability to handle conflict, your capacity to deal with change and potential conflict.
They Did It Right
I may try this restaurant again, but that’s not the point. The real take away was how they dealt with it and treated us with care and respect. We didn’t make a fuss, we didn’t storm out, and we did demand to see the manager or yell and scream. We simply decided our meals weren’t good and we didn’t want to order anything else. But they did try and make it right.
Conflict and communication breakdown happens. It’s what we do about it that really matters. You will mess up with customer and clients, so will I. You will make mistakes, so will I. It’s called being human. But it’s how we deal with it in the heat of any moment that counts most. It’s that connective tissue within your company and relationships with those who engage with your services or buy your products that is critical. And it’s how we take care of things when things don't go well.
That’s the 95% which will separate you from everyone else.
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Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
October 8, 2016
July 1, 2011
Canada Day Fun Facts
In keeping with the multitude of celebrations today, here are some items you may not know.
The Dominion of Canada was established on July 1st, 1867 and officialy became a country April 17, 1882. So today is Canada’s birthday and she’s 144 years young. Like our American pals’ Independence Day we spend at BBQs and parades or just enjoying the extra long weekend.
The average life expectancy is 8th in the world at 81.16 years while the United States is 46th at 78.14. Butter tarts, poutine and ketchup chips are among the long list of snacks native to Canada. Our national anthem, originally entitled “Chant National” was first performed in 1880 and Canadian Parliament approved it as the unofficial anthem and renamed it O Canada in 1967 and it became the official anthem on July 1, 1980.
Over 18 million Canadians on Facebook
Though delicious, maple syrup is not our official beverage. 22% of Canadians name French as their first language. The longest border between two countries in the world is between Canada and the U.S. stretching 5,525 miles or 8,891 kilometres and known as the International Boundary. Three quarters of Canadians are online which ranks the country 4th in the world.
Canada is 3,855,103 square miles which makes it the second largest nation by land mass on earth. Remarks such as “please”, “thank-you” and “you’re welcome” are alive and well in Canada. Ice hockey is the country’s official sport. There is evidence of hockey being played in this part of the world dating back to the 10th century. The rules of the game were first published in 1877 in the newspaper The Montreal Gazette.
Loonies and Twoonies
Canada is the 9th in population density and has the 14th largest Gross National Product in the world. Besides being home to animals such as moose and grizzly bears, Canada has over 50,000 species of insects and more than 10,000 species of spiders and mites. Newfoundland was the first area of the country visited by European explorers but the last to become an official province.
23% of Canadians search LinkedIn for job opportunities. We say a-bout not a-boot. Canada has the longest coastline of any country in the world at 151,600 miles or 243,976 kilometers. The population of Canada just over 34 million.
Beer and Basketball
Although symbolic, the regent of England, Queen Elizabeth II, is the Canadian head of state. The Moosehead Brewery of Saint John, New Brunswick produces over 1,600 bottles a minute. James Naismith, born in Almonte, Ontario just outside of the capital city of Ottawa invented basketball to give his YMCA students more exercise in 1892. At 74, Naismith attended the 1936 Olympic Games to witness the first time basketball was in the competition.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police were formed in 1873. Today there are over 28,000 members. We eat more than 350,000 tons of cheese every year. That’s close to 24 pounds each. Canada has universal health care. From its opening in 1976 until being eclipsed in 2007, the CN Tower in Toronto was the worlds largest free standing structure. Canada is the most multi-cultural country on earth.
Happy Canada Day!
Kneale Mann
image credit: lancasteronline
The Dominion of Canada was established on July 1st, 1867 and officialy became a country April 17, 1882. So today is Canada’s birthday and she’s 144 years young. Like our American pals’ Independence Day we spend at BBQs and parades or just enjoying the extra long weekend.The average life expectancy is 8th in the world at 81.16 years while the United States is 46th at 78.14. Butter tarts, poutine and ketchup chips are among the long list of snacks native to Canada. Our national anthem, originally entitled “Chant National” was first performed in 1880 and Canadian Parliament approved it as the unofficial anthem and renamed it O Canada in 1967 and it became the official anthem on July 1, 1980.
Over 18 million Canadians on Facebook
Though delicious, maple syrup is not our official beverage. 22% of Canadians name French as their first language. The longest border between two countries in the world is between Canada and the U.S. stretching 5,525 miles or 8,891 kilometres and known as the International Boundary. Three quarters of Canadians are online which ranks the country 4th in the world.
Canada is 3,855,103 square miles which makes it the second largest nation by land mass on earth. Remarks such as “please”, “thank-you” and “you’re welcome” are alive and well in Canada. Ice hockey is the country’s official sport. There is evidence of hockey being played in this part of the world dating back to the 10th century. The rules of the game were first published in 1877 in the newspaper The Montreal Gazette.
Loonies and Twoonies
Canada is the 9th in population density and has the 14th largest Gross National Product in the world. Besides being home to animals such as moose and grizzly bears, Canada has over 50,000 species of insects and more than 10,000 species of spiders and mites. Newfoundland was the first area of the country visited by European explorers but the last to become an official province.
23% of Canadians search LinkedIn for job opportunities. We say a-bout not a-boot. Canada has the longest coastline of any country in the world at 151,600 miles or 243,976 kilometers. The population of Canada just over 34 million.
Beer and Basketball
Although symbolic, the regent of England, Queen Elizabeth II, is the Canadian head of state. The Moosehead Brewery of Saint John, New Brunswick produces over 1,600 bottles a minute. James Naismith, born in Almonte, Ontario just outside of the capital city of Ottawa invented basketball to give his YMCA students more exercise in 1892. At 74, Naismith attended the 1936 Olympic Games to witness the first time basketball was in the competition.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police were formed in 1873. Today there are over 28,000 members. We eat more than 350,000 tons of cheese every year. That’s close to 24 pounds each. Canada has universal health care. From its opening in 1976 until being eclipsed in 2007, the CN Tower in Toronto was the worlds largest free standing structure. Canada is the most multi-cultural country on earth.
Happy Canada Day!
Kneale Mann
image credit: lancasteronline
July 1, 2009
Canada: Happy One Four Two
I am proud to be Canadian. We are a kind and gentle nation of almost 34 million people living in the word’s second largest country by land mass – 6,195,692 square miles. This is a country rich with natural resources and a lot of bright and talented minds. Our best exports have been our people who have done amazing things worldwide.
Nice Place to Visit. Nice Place to Live.
For as long as they have been doing those surveys, Canada remains one of the most desirable places on earth to live.
Canada is the 9th largest economy in the world and 8th biggest trader. It's also the 19th largest beer guzzling nation per capita on earth. If you're interested, the Czech Repulic is #1, Germany is #3 and the U.S. is #13.
The standard of living in Canada is one of the best and despite our penchant to be overly modest – this place frickin’ rocks!
Myths and Memes
We do like maple syrup like many people from many nations but it is not a daily beverage. Sure we say “eh” but we don’t have the market cornered on that harmless little questioning word. Do we, eh?
It is not winter 8 months a year, 99.9% of the population does not live in an igloo and despite it being our second official language we don’t all speak French.
There Will Be A Test
I have done a lot of business with colleagues in the States so I have had numerous conversations about Canada with them over the years. It’s always fun to test them on Canadian facts and history – they fail miserably – I laugh and point.
Back To School
It is OUR nation's birthday. Time to pay tribute to a few Canadians who have changed the world.
Sir Frederick Banting and partner Charles Best discovered Insulin which has saved the lives of millions of people living with Diabetes.
Terry Fox began his Marathon of Hope in 1980 after having one leg amputated because of bone cancer. He lost his battled a year later but to date, the Terry Fox Foundation has raised more than $400 Million for research.
James Naismith has been credited as the inventor of basketball. Naismith was born in Ramsay Township; now known as Almonte, Ontario – about an hour outside of Ottawa, which is the nation's capital.
Alexander Graham Bell is credited with inventing the first practical telephone. Unconfirmed rumors persist that service charges were introduced soon after that.
The baseball glove was invented in 1883 by Arthur “Foxy” Irwin who was born in Toronto in 1858. One hundred and thirty-four years later, The Toronto Blue Jays won their first of two World Series.
Canadian legends from a very long list include: Norman Jewison, Leonard Cohen, John Candy, Michael J Fox, David Cronenberg, Pierre Burton, Celine Dion, Paul Shaffer, Mary Pickford, Leslie Neilson, Arthur Kent, Matthew Perry, Gilles Villeneuve, Frank Gehry, Gordon Pinsent, Dan Ackroyd, Jack Warner, Norman Bethune, Monty Hall, Jack Kent Cooke, Mike Myers, Ali Velshi, Margaret Atwood, Morley Safer, Stephen Leacock, Wayne Gretzky, Donald Sutherland, Doug Henning, Russell Peters, Ivan Reitman, Alanis Morissette, Sir Sandford Fleming, Howie Mandel, David Suzuki, Rick Hansen, Phil Hartman, Sandra Oh, Keanu Reeves, Peter Jennings, Neil Young, Steve Fonyo, Martin Short, Mario Lemieux, John Roberts, Jim Carrey, Alex Trebek, Brendan Frasier, Bryan Adams and thousands more.
To my fellow Canucks: Happy Canada Day :-)
And to my colleagues and friends elsewhere; yes there is a big difference between “table syrup" and "maple syrup" and it is deelish.
Where's my parka, eh?
@knealemann
knealemann at gmail dot com
Helping you better utilize all media.
How to make it, use it and profit from it.
August 28, 2008
Happy Birthday Mom
Today is my mom’s birthday. I will call her later but I won’t wish her a happy birthday. Last year, she made it official that she wasn’t “celebrating those things anymore”. My mom is my hero. This is the woman who made my life easy, supports every decision I make and backs me all the way. She has given me great joy and belly laughs all the way.
Mom is the most quotable person I know, makes the best cookies on the face of the earth, is never bored, reads veraciously, is always up on current events and never short on opinion.
This is the woman who; thought I was a shoe-in for the NHL, told everyone who would listen about her son the writer-broadcaster-executive producer, and has never been anything but straight up.
Mom came from an era where you had two choices at a tender age; work or work. She entered the workforce at 13 and retired last year at 70. She has a bright mind and for as long as I can remember, we have always had wicked long in-depth talks about everything – no topic is off-limits.
She is finally retired and I’m sure today she’ll be watching her beloved Toronto Blue Jays and going to dinner with her man Ross – the love of her life. Mom is finally making it about her and that makes me smile.
So I won’t wish her happy birthday today, it’ll be our little secret ;-)
km
Mom is the most quotable person I know, makes the best cookies on the face of the earth, is never bored, reads veraciously, is always up on current events and never short on opinion.
This is the woman who; thought I was a shoe-in for the NHL, told everyone who would listen about her son the writer-broadcaster-executive producer, and has never been anything but straight up.
Mom came from an era where you had two choices at a tender age; work or work. She entered the workforce at 13 and retired last year at 70. She has a bright mind and for as long as I can remember, we have always had wicked long in-depth talks about everything – no topic is off-limits.
She is finally retired and I’m sure today she’ll be watching her beloved Toronto Blue Jays and going to dinner with her man Ross – the love of her life. Mom is finally making it about her and that makes me smile.
So I won’t wish her happy birthday today, it’ll be our little secret ;-)
km
