Earlier this week I posted an article discussing the importance of leading with your heart (http://www.fastcompany.com/3002141/why-you-need-lead-your-heart). This article stated that a shocking 71% percent of American workers are not engaged in their job. How can this be? Do we not love our jobs? Most of us spend 40 hours, sometimes more, during the week working at our jobs. So it brings the question to mind, why are we unhappy and more importantly what can we do about it?
Several years ago I had a job working for a great boss, good pay and a strong company, but I was still frustrated. My boss, sensing my discontent, sat me down and had a one on one talk with me about my future and the dreams that I had. After some serious self-reflection I discovered that the missing puzzle piece was working towards a personal goal. Two months later I signed up at the local university and four years after that I walked across the stage to receive that Bachelor’s degree; making this one of the proudest moments of my life.
Without that conversation form my former employer I never would have had the guts to take that step forward, to take a chance on myself. Now work is fun, exciting, challenging and most of all, rewarding.
What does this have to do with leading from your heart, you might ask? Although, my job and performance never dwindled, my employer sensed I needed more. She took the time to get to the heart of the issue, she listened, and she cared. Through the utilization of these characteristics she was able to get to the core of my issue. Now when I think back on my time there I don’t think of a job that was o.k. and getting my bills paid, I think back to an organization who helped me discover my dreams.
As customer service representatives our jobs can sometimes get grueling and tiresome. We can frequently lose sight of our purpose and get overwhelmed by the discouraging phone calls of our customers. However, if we are diligent and listen with our hearts we can discover the true reason for their discontent. We can show our customers that we care, we listen and that enables us to offer the best service possible; offering that truly WOW customer experience.
