I recently went out to the coast with my wife on a gloriously sunny day.
We wanted to have lunch at a pub with a very good reputation, near the beach, so we decided to get there early.
We achieved our goal and got there before the pub opened, so we sat ourselves down on a table at the front, because it was such a lovely position, a beautifully sunny day, and our dogs could lie happily in the shade under the table.
By the time the pub opened, there were 3 other parties of varied sizes doing the same thing, waiting to order a drink and some lunch.
The waitress opened the door, came out, saw there was a small crowd and did an amazing thing. Instead of panicking and serving the nearest person (as would usually happen in this kind of situation), she addressed herself to the crowd and said something like:
‘Well, what a lovely surprise! So many people ready and waiting for lunch. My name’s Sophie, and I’ll serve you all as quickly as I can, so in the meantime, can you tell me in what order everyone arrived, so I can serve you in order?’
What a star!
She was directed to us first, gave us menus while she took our drinks order. She was unflustered, VERY efficient, knew all the products they had in stock (and where they were brewed), and was an absolute pleasure to speak with.
She then went to the next party and did the same: and took all the orders in batches of two, to save time and be more effective.
When she came out after delivering the first 2 orders to the bar, she also bought out a bowl of water for the dogs … all without asking!
She absolutely ‘had it’ – she was the sort of person every pub owner would love to have working for them. And her top-class performance continued throughout the meal, and she earned a good size tip!
Now, lovely though this story is, this isn’t a story about our trip to the pub at the beach: this is instead a question.
How could every business make sure every member of their team was as motivated, efficient and switched on as our hero, Sophie?
Note: Sophie may have been a ‘lone star’: just great at her job, because she loved it and was born to do it (as I think was the case here), or she could have been a quality person working with quality systems in a quality environment (as is much more rare).
Because, in the world of almost unlimited choice and competition, as a small business owner, I would suggest that, unless you do make sure every member of your team is as motivated, efficient and switched on as our hero, life is going to be much harder than you want it to be.
And, of course, the answer to the question is: ‘If you want extraordinary results from ordinary people, you need extraordinary systems’.
And this is exactly what the ‘Slow Selling’ systems are designed to do for you.
And that’s how to make sure everyone is exceptional in their job…
Slow Selling is a UK based not for profit organisation for leaders and managers in independent businesses.
Our systems deliver peace of mind and confidence to caring leaders and managers of start-ups and small businesses who have limited time and resources, and want to grow their business … without sacrificing principles or profits.
To find out more, please click here
