This past week our country elected a new President in what was certainly the roughest Presidential election I have ever participated in. Having two polarizing candidates makes it tough to decide which way to go and which way would result in GROWTH for the country. Some see lots of hope or turmoil as a result of our election; depending upon your point of view. The experience of the last several months made me think of Customer Service and the two opposing viewpoints that result in conflict, frustration and fractured relationships. Since the end result of an election can be the same as a service experience, let’s have a friendly discussion on the TWO SIDES of the Customer Service issue and see if we can’t find a way to

Ever heard these phrases before? Everything happens for a reason…. Things always work out for the best…. If I only knew then, what I know now…. These kinds of statements tend to be repeated years after a chance meeting or the overcoming of some great adversity and a sufficient amount of time has passed to see the end from the beginning. I believe those phrases because time and time again things just seem to work themselves out. A person I met by happenstance turns out to be instrumental in some way or a challenge soon reveals the opportunity hidden beneath the work of it all. Let me illustrate my point with a personal story: My Mother was 16 years old and she was driving her mother to the

Dean and I have been married for 26 years and he has been a hunter the entire time. I’ve always enjoyed hunting season; the food preparation for the guys, the excitement of learning that my husband bagged his prize and the quiet time alone! This year, I decided to give the testosterone filled adventure a go and realized that there are many correlations between hunting and business! Here are my hunter inspired revelations! PREPARATION Before you can experience a successful hunt, you’ve got to be prepared. Knowing the rules, having the right gear and being physically ready for the hunt increase your chances of success. Business is the same way isn’t it? Knowing the rules of your industry, having the right team and ongoing training increase your chances

While Columbus Day is a Federal Banking Holiday (how that impacts your credit card process in a moment!), for many people it is just another Monday. We thought we would share a couple of entertaining and educational links so you could get up to speed on this very special day. But just like Mom always made us eat dinner before dessert- let’s take a look at how Columbus Day (and any banking holiday) impacts your credit card processing deposits. Deposits you were expecting today, will not be delivered to your checking account until tomorrow, Transactions processed today will also take an additional day to deposit since the Federal Reserve is closed. Now on to the good stuff: a little humor. Follow this link for a walk down Hollywood

When you are injured to the point of having to make a trip to the ER- things go pretty fast! Wouldn’t you like to know that the team taking care of you: KNEW the plan of action? Had all of the TOOLS they needed to patch you up? Were well trained to deal with the UNEXPECTED? CARED about the outcome & had the attitudes to prove it? When we treat our businesses and our jobs like they are as important as a trip to the ER, we get the kind of life changing results EARNED by that urgent focus. Our customers, clients & members want the same things we would want if we had to make that ER visit! They want to know that we know our ‘stuff’.

Our Son is now licensed to be a Commercial Airline pilot (I am so very proud of Tyler and his efforts!). He has lots of hours and accreditations to add before he is flying the friendly skies- but HOW EXCITING to be a Pilot right? I wonder if we can use a little playful imagination and pretend that WE are pilots? What would that look like in our companies? Flight Preparation: In order to be prepared to fly- we have to add to our knowledge tool belt. Just like Tyler has been attending flight school, we need to make sure we are familiar with the elements that make up our working environment! Knowing our products, tools and team members, helps us to get prepared and be productive. Dressed