Essay about nobility of service
Answers
Although his co-workers could not happily let Gandhiji go, they had to. However, they laid out a humble condition – Gandhiji should return once his domestic crisis were solved, within a year. It was not an acceptable condition for Gandhiji yet he accepted the condition because he was bound to the people by true love for them.
you make me want to be a better man.” These were the most quoted lines in the hit movie “As Good As It Gets.” It was Jack Nicholson’s awkward “terms of endearment” directed at new girlfriend Helen Hunt. The words capture the essence of the nobility of service—helping customers source their higher self. And, in challenging times when so much in customers’ lives pulls them down, noble service can help them pursue their best.
Noble service is sourced in joy and fun—a better emotional place than simply “good service.” It comes from the same part of our soul that organizes a party or does a favor for a friend. When that part is used regularly, it raises self-esteem, increases resilience, and improves morale. Take a look at Fortune Magazine’s annual “Best Companies in America to Work For”—Nordstrom, Container Store, Marriott, eBay, and FedEx—and you see the noble service-high morale link. They boast the lowest turnover (a cost saver), the best recruits (an investment), the highest productivity (another positive hit to the balance sheet) and the greatest profits.
Noble Service Comes From Excellence
How does one reawaken the nobility of service? Make it come from the heart. Greatness does not come from working harder or working smarter. Greatness comes from working “hearter.” (I made that word up!) When it comes from the best of who we are, it invites out the best of who customers can be. It means showing customers extraordinary patience when they are making a big a deal out of a small issue. It means staying vigilant for opportunities to provide unexpected help. Proactive service is not reactive; it is anticipatory–thinking ahead of the customer’s requirements. It means caretaking—keeping customers out of the weeds and worries of their service encounters.
Excellence is about demonstrating obvious pride in our role and the opportunities that role creates. The Marriott Quorum in North Dallas had a well-known doorman for many years named Charlie. When Charlie received a compliment on his great service he would say: “My company created my role for one reason: to make you very happy sir. And, the best part is they picked me to do it.” That is the type of pride that elevates and enables.
Besides, excellence is the best lay-off armament available. Will it guarantee job security? Of course not. But, when decisions are made about who goes and who stays as organizations are forced to trim staff in the face of declining profits, those people showing their best while creating happy customers will be the ones more apt to wind up in the “retained” group.
Noble Service Comes From Trust