The way the end of April lined up, I didn’t have a chance to
sneak in my book update before the end of the month. So this is technically my
April recap, even though it’s showing up a bit late.
This
first book I want to tell you about was one I finished at the tail end of
March, but I had already shared my books for the month, so it had to be
delayed. Be Our Guest was one of many books recommended to me by my friend, Jodi,
as I was beginning my role at church. Jodi worked as a First Impressions
Director at a megachurch, and by the time she left to work with another
organization, part of her job entailed lots of training for the church staff –
and for other organizations, too. She graciously and generously shared
resources with me, and I purchased almost every book she recommended.
Be
Our Guest has been out for several years, so the stats in it are no longer
accurate, but the advice still holds true. The book is published by the Disney
Institute and speaks to the art of customer service.
I
remember when I worked in Financial Aid, part of our staff went to the Disney
Institute for some training, and I still recall some of the specific things
they shared with the rest of us when they returned. Though I have never been to
Disney, and am unlikely to go, because I don’t love crowds, I know
enough to know they work hard at making a top notch experience for their
guests.
The
book outlined the importance of knowing what the goals of the organization are
and then finding ways to implement them thoroughly.
Obviously
we’re a church and not a theme park, and not everything about working in
hospitality within our church translates neatly to the goals of an
entertainment-based organization, but I did underline several things that
either applied accurately or could be used in a loose translation to help me
understand those who might be walking in our doors for the first time.
I
didn’t love this book as much as the one I read a few months ago – written by
the gentleman from the Ritz Carlton – but I did find some good nuggets that are
worth remembering. One I really
liked was the ongoing reminder that everything speaks. While there might
be details about an experience or a building that no one zooms in on and
notices in particular, its presence or absence speaks in subtle ways that
impacts people even if they don’t realize it. As a detail-oriented person, I
both appreciated and was challenged by the reminder that it all matters!
I also
loved this quote from Walt Disney himself – “You can dream, create, design, and
build the most wonderful place in the world…but it requires people to make the
dream a reality. I’m a dreamer and creator, but what matters are the people I
aim to encourage to do their part well!
This
book probably wouldn’t be your first choice if you are just reading for fun or
pleasure, but if you are involved in customer service or hospitality in any
aspect, you can find some good nuggets tucked in here from a place that has
made it their business to know and improve upon this craft!
***
The second book I read this month
was also a work-related find, but it was a total win in my opinion. Also
a recommendation from my friend Jodi, this one is called The Come Back Effect, and it’s written collaboratively by Jason Young and
Jonathan Malm.
The book focuses on hospitality and
teaches churches how to rethink their hospitality approach so guests will want
to return after a first visit.
I underlined so much in this
book and have already made notes about how to implement what I’ve learned,
starting with the lay leaders I lead within our church.
I appreciate the way the authors
look at hospitality from all perspectives: planning ahead to do it well before
anyone ever steps foot inside the church, being fully aware moment by moment to
continue to do it well when people are present for services, correcting
mistakes (immediately or later, when realized), and following up to go the
extra mile, even after the fact.
From implementing good training to
doing a good job of reading guests and anticipating their needs to always being
on the lookout for ways to do better – this is what I hope to have at
our church! For the record, I think our people do a great job of welcoming guests
and making them feel at home, but I want that trend to continue, and if there
are ways we can go further to do it even better, I’m in favor of that!
One thing the authors pointed out
that I found fascinating (and true) was this: “Over the years, our expectations
for customer service have dropped. In fact, even when we get mediocre customer
service, we often celebrate it by writing on a comment card. We’ve become so
accustomed to bad service, ‘just okay’ is often an improvement over the norm.”
YES! I hadn’t thought about it, but
it’s true, and that just makes me sad. May we do a better job than just okay!
I’ll be coming back to this book
over and over (see what I did there?) and encourage you to check it out if you
are a church leader!
***
I am almost done with one more book, but I didn’t get it
finished before the end of April, so I’ll hang onto my thoughts on that one
until next time.
